This movie actually does better as a comedy than a musical. Jack Benny delivers some great lines and has an appealing sidekick. Una Merkel is funny and cute as producer Robert Taylor's secretary.
But it falls flat as a musical. The songs just didn't grab me. The dancing was insipid. I mean, it's fascinating to see Jed Clampett hoofing it up there like Gumby with tap shoes, but only as a curio. As one reviewer has noted, Ebsen delivers his lines as though he'd just hit 4 tabs of Ambien. His sister had a face for radio and her dancing didn't make me lament her early retirement.
But the real disappointment is Eleanor Powell. Not her fault, but who put her in that smokin' hot outfit and then decided to drape her in a long coat so we don't get to see her legs when she's auditioning as Fifi LeBalle. Then in the big closing number they've got her in thick, long pants that belong on a back alley hobo. Maybe she was packing around a few extra pounds on those gorgeous legs because her costuming completely mystifies me. However, I will admit her spinning in that final dance is remarkable; I kept looking for figure skates. Good thing Powell could dance b/c she couldn't act. No amount of costuming could cover that up.
Robert Taylor is the pretty-boy producer. Looks great in a suit. That's about it.
This movie is little more than a hack of the great Busby Berkley musicals. For 5c at the Bijou in the middle of the Depression, or late night on TCM, it's a pleasant way to pass 80 minutes but hardly worth a second look.
But it falls flat as a musical. The songs just didn't grab me. The dancing was insipid. I mean, it's fascinating to see Jed Clampett hoofing it up there like Gumby with tap shoes, but only as a curio. As one reviewer has noted, Ebsen delivers his lines as though he'd just hit 4 tabs of Ambien. His sister had a face for radio and her dancing didn't make me lament her early retirement.
But the real disappointment is Eleanor Powell. Not her fault, but who put her in that smokin' hot outfit and then decided to drape her in a long coat so we don't get to see her legs when she's auditioning as Fifi LeBalle. Then in the big closing number they've got her in thick, long pants that belong on a back alley hobo. Maybe she was packing around a few extra pounds on those gorgeous legs because her costuming completely mystifies me. However, I will admit her spinning in that final dance is remarkable; I kept looking for figure skates. Good thing Powell could dance b/c she couldn't act. No amount of costuming could cover that up.
Robert Taylor is the pretty-boy producer. Looks great in a suit. That's about it.
This movie is little more than a hack of the great Busby Berkley musicals. For 5c at the Bijou in the middle of the Depression, or late night on TCM, it's a pleasant way to pass 80 minutes but hardly worth a second look.