We meet all the staff and learn how they help keep the fucking going smoothly. The first is the winkingly risqué “Honeymoon Hotel,” which takes us from room to room in a hotel where I’m pretty sure some fuckin’ is goin’ on. They’re all gigantic and intricate and could never ever ever be performed on a stage, but forget all of that and enjoy. The last three numbers make up the finale. It’s a nice tune with plenty of “meows” in the lyrics. “Sittin’ On a Backyard Fence” is a furry’s wet dream, featuring beautiful dames in kitty costumes and a hunky tomcat as well. Hey, you know that Andrew Lloyd Webber musical about cats featuring people dressed like cats based on poems about cats? I forget what it’s called, but Footlight Parade did it first. But goddammit, it’s lovely.įrancis doesn’t even put his cigar out. Yep, it’s supposed to be a big laugh that two men are nuzzling and singing about love, and they keep cutting to James Cagney chuckling to make sure you know that. I only counted five songs in Footlight Parade, and they’re all big, lavish productions except for the first, which is a rehearsal of “Ah, the Moon is Here.” It’s a sweet and wonderful duet between Francis and Dick Powell’s character to show the ladies what they’re looking for. She goes from swooning at Chester to cringing at him an awful lot.Īnd at this point, I think it goes without saying that Dick Powell and Ruby Keeler play performers in love and are damn adorable. Joan Blondell is a sweetie as Nan Prescott, Chester’s secretary who pulls things together behind the scenes and may or may not also wanna get with him. Francis is frowny and whiny and I know that sounds like some irritating comic relief, but he’s sort of a fun cartoon character and he and James Cagney play off of each other wonderfully. He talks so fast you might need subtitles.Īlso great is Frank McHugh as Chester’s constantly worried dance director Francis, who isn’t billed nearly high enough for his hilarious performance. Showman Chester Kent is a fast-talkin’, hard-workin’, deal-makin’ son of a bitch and his voice is a goddamn hoot, like somebody pumped that classic ’30s “yeah, see?” gangster accent full of cocaine. This is my first ever James Cagney movie, truth be told, but holy hell, he’s amazing in this. But even that’s interesting because whoops, Chester’s still legally married! Scandal, I say! All in all, I was fairly hooked, even while itching to see some crazy musical sequences. Oh, wait, it still has one of those, too. It’s more than just the stock “Will they fall in love?” plot that a lot of these films have. Ya see, somebody is stealing Kent’s ideas for musical numbers! Who could it be? Okay, honestly, it’s kind of obvious, but still, I like a good scandal. He figures out that he can save money by using the same sets and outfits and props in theaters all across the country. Solving this pesky picture problem is Chester Kent (James Cagney), who starts choreographing “prologues,” live dance numbers performed in movie theaters before the films start. Like Singin’ in the Rain, but made around Yeah, that’s right, it’s lamenting a cultural shift that it’s actively contributing to. For starters, this flick has the balls to address that nobody goes to see stage musicals any more because musical films have become so damn popular. Of the three Busby Berkeleys I’ve seen this year (so far), I found the backstage shenanigans in this one the most interesting. Iiiiiiiiiiiiiit’s Footlight Parade! Released in 1933? Check! Choreography by Busby Berkeley? Affirmative! Ruby Keeler and Dick Powell? Yup! An hour of showbiz drama and then 30 minutes of mind-blowingly good musical sequences? Right again! So what’s to set it apart from 42nd Street and Gold Diggers of 1933? Let’s find out! Watch 52 musicals, one every week, in 2015.
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