A Hunt Stromberg production for MGM begins with the credits in lights like the same year's My Man Godfrey. It purports to co-star Myrna Loy with William Powell - but get this - she doesn't even make an appearance until two hours ten in. Yes. When we realised there was an interval at an hour 25, our little hearts sank. We had been enjoying the trials and tribulations of impresario William Powell, but much less enjoying the Follies that he was putting on - not Busby Berkley, I can't really describe it... like a flamboyant meringue - good to look at but empty. So we did have to fast forward sections of it for our own sanity.
German-born Luise Rainer won the Oscar for her supporting part as the highly strung French singer and first wife of Ziegfeld. Frank Morgan is good as Ziegfeld's long-term friend. With the real Fanny Brice, Virginia Bruce, Reginald Owen, Ray Bolger, Nat Pendleton (the strong man), William Demarest.
Superbly photographed, mainly by Oliver T. Marsh, with the help of George Folsey, Karl Freund, Ray June and Merritt B. Gerstad.
It cost $2 million, which sounds funny now - it was MGM's most expensive picture since the silent Ben Hur, and brought in twice its cost. That looks like the MGM lion Jackie in the lion scene.
Blackface routines now look so shocking and wrong - as they always should have done.
No comments:
Post a Comment