IMDb RATING
7.4/10
3.7K
YOUR RATING
Despite her mother's objections, the naive young daughter of a show boat captain is thrust into the limelight as the company's new leading lady.Despite her mother's objections, the naive young daughter of a show boat captain is thrust into the limelight as the company's new leading lady.Despite her mother's objections, the naive young daughter of a show boat captain is thrust into the limelight as the company's new leading lady.
- Awards
- 1 win & 1 nomination
Maude Allen
- Fat Woman
- (uncredited)
- Director
- Writers
- Edna Ferber
- Oscar Hammerstein II
- Zoe Akins(material unused) (uncredited)
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaSpecial permission had to be granted from the Hays Office in order to retain the famous miscegenation (interracial marriage) sequence in the movie. Miscegenation was banned as a film subject and the scene had been excluded from the 1929 film version.
- GoofsAbout five minutes in, Cap'n Andy Hawks is introducing Miss Ellie May Chipley, the toast of Cairo, Illinois. He mispronounces Cairo. His pronunciation is for the capital of Egypt. Cairo, IL is pronounced Kay'ro, with perhaps other local variants. But NEVER as the Egyptian capital.
- Crazy creditsThe rights to this film were bought by M-G-M in 1942, so all prints shown on TV until the mid 1990's had the roaring lion logo at the beginning. However, despite having bought the rights, M-G-M retained Universal Pictures' spinning globe for the "The End: A Universal Picture" credit at the film's close.
- ConnectionsFeatured in The All Talking, All Singing, All Dancing Show (1973)
- SoundtracksCotton Blossom
(1927) (uncredited)
Music by Jerome Kern
Lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II
Sung by offscreen mixed chorus (during opening credits) and in opening scene by mixed chorus of dock workers
Featured review
By Far, the best "Show Boat" on film
What an exquisite and enjoyable film! Along with "The Great Garrick"(1937), "The Old Dark House"(1932) and "The Bride of Frankenstein"(1935), "Show Boat" is one of James Whale's loveliest and most enduring classics. By far, the best "Show Boat" ever captured on film. The plush 1951 MGM remake is a cartoon by comparison.
Like Whale's "The Great Garrick," the film is a delicate, self-reflexive study about the entrancing possibilities of the theater, or for that matter acting. Acting as a metaphor for life. One of delights of "Show Boat" is that it does not avoid depicting either the joy of make-belief (the basis of the theater) or its inevitable heartbreak. In this regard, it invites comparison to Jean Renoir's exquisite "French Cancan"(1955), another back stage musical that understands, accepts, and celebrates the difficulties and ultimately the magic of the theater.
In addition to being an honest and frank celebration of miscegenation, "Show Boat" is also a genuinely felt evocation of a stage actress (wonderfully played by Irene Dunne in one of her greatest performances ever), who goes from a stagestruck teen to a mature woman seriously dealing with the consequences of a marriage to a gambler(played by the occasionally bland Allan Jones).
Paul Robeson's extraordinary, melodious rendition of "Ol' Man River" is the highlight of the film, occasioning in great and inventive montage sequence.
A great film.
Like Whale's "The Great Garrick," the film is a delicate, self-reflexive study about the entrancing possibilities of the theater, or for that matter acting. Acting as a metaphor for life. One of delights of "Show Boat" is that it does not avoid depicting either the joy of make-belief (the basis of the theater) or its inevitable heartbreak. In this regard, it invites comparison to Jean Renoir's exquisite "French Cancan"(1955), another back stage musical that understands, accepts, and celebrates the difficulties and ultimately the magic of the theater.
In addition to being an honest and frank celebration of miscegenation, "Show Boat" is also a genuinely felt evocation of a stage actress (wonderfully played by Irene Dunne in one of her greatest performances ever), who goes from a stagestruck teen to a mature woman seriously dealing with the consequences of a marriage to a gambler(played by the occasionally bland Allan Jones).
Paul Robeson's extraordinary, melodious rendition of "Ol' Man River" is the highlight of the film, occasioning in great and inventive montage sequence.
A great film.
helpful•443
- Kalaman
- Oct 1, 2002
Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Language
- Also known as
- Edna Ferber's Show Boat
- Filming locations
- Production company
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
- Runtime1 hour 53 minutes
- Color
- Aspect ratio
- 1.37 : 1
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