Swing Time (1936)

Lingering in the empty art deco nightclub in which they had performed, the duo dances a farewell, moving through a dramatic sequence of choreography which re-enacts their affair. Musical themes and dance styles are reprised from earlier in the film. Critic Arlene Croce called the number “the supreme dramatic event of the [Astaire-Rogers] series, a duet moving through a succession of darkening emotions and abrupt rhythmic changes in which we see unfolded in dance the story of the film.” The scene was filmed as a continuous shot, with only one cut. Forty takes were necessary for the climax, a difficult set of rapid turns performed by Rogers.