During the hey-day of Hollywood, remakes came fast and furious, but most of the great screwball comedies weren't touched for 20 years. MGM obviously couldn't wait and remade one of its best only 10 years after the original. There is no topping the original cast of this tale, and the replacements point out the B category this fell into, even on an A budget. As charming as Esther Williams is, she can't compare to Myrna Loy, and Van Johnson and Keenan Wynn are as far down the totem pole from William Powell and Spencer Tracy as they can be. The real delight is that Lucille Ball can't miss here in the Jean Harlow part, showing off her flaming red hair here in Technicolor. Only Lucy could get away with accusing someone of arson, meaning bigamy.
The musical numbers seem pretty superfluous, with Lucy utilizing her hips to literally blow the hats off the chorus boys without even touching them, in one number. Organist Ethel Smith heats things up, even banging on conga drums in another. Ms. Williams pretty much avoids the water, although a funny duck hunting scene with her, papa Cecil Kellaway and Johnson (altered from the original hysterical fishing sequence) is set on a river. The presence of the annoying socialite and her dizzy daughter seems out of place here. This isn't for purists but isn't a dud, either.
The musical numbers seem pretty superfluous, with Lucy utilizing her hips to literally blow the hats off the chorus boys without even touching them, in one number. Organist Ethel Smith heats things up, even banging on conga drums in another. Ms. Williams pretty much avoids the water, although a funny duck hunting scene with her, papa Cecil Kellaway and Johnson (altered from the original hysterical fishing sequence) is set on a river. The presence of the annoying socialite and her dizzy daughter seems out of place here. This isn't for purists but isn't a dud, either.