But having said that, there are definite drawbacks to these kind of Depression-era musicals--namely, RUBY KEELER, who admits herself that she "couldn't sing, dance or act." She does manage to get by on sheer charm but her skills are, truthfully, decidedly limited.
DICK POWELL was still playing the juvenile lead in these sort of musicals, usually with someone like JOAN BLONDELL exchanging some salty wisecracks with him or giving out with her own songs when he wasn't crooning a couple of ditties.
The hard times aspect of the story is easy to discern with the four showgirls sharing a tenement flat and subsiding on stolen goods like a bottle of milk from their neighbors. Very dated stuff.
But Busby Berkeley's musical interludes make up for some of the slow going in the familiar plot line which has them trying to scrape together enough money for a Broadway show and then fortunate enough to latch onto Dick Powell, who comes from a monied family and also happens to sing, dance and act. GINGER ROGERS sings a song in Pig Latin in the film's opening number.
The moral lassitude of the era is evident in some of the song numbers: "Pettin' in the Park" is the most obvious example but there are plenty of other "undressing" moments and bawdy gestures that seemed to permeate these pre-code films of the '30s. "Forgotten Man" is supposed to be the ode to the unemployed.
Summing up: Although trivial and trite, it manages to entertain thanks to an enjoyable cast and a few good Berkeley touches in those overhead numbers.
DICK POWELL was still playing the juvenile lead in these sort of musicals, usually with someone like JOAN BLONDELL exchanging some salty wisecracks with him or giving out with her own songs when he wasn't crooning a couple of ditties.
The hard times aspect of the story is easy to discern with the four showgirls sharing a tenement flat and subsiding on stolen goods like a bottle of milk from their neighbors. Very dated stuff.
But Busby Berkeley's musical interludes make up for some of the slow going in the familiar plot line which has them trying to scrape together enough money for a Broadway show and then fortunate enough to latch onto Dick Powell, who comes from a monied family and also happens to sing, dance and act. GINGER ROGERS sings a song in Pig Latin in the film's opening number.
The moral lassitude of the era is evident in some of the song numbers: "Pettin' in the Park" is the most obvious example but there are plenty of other "undressing" moments and bawdy gestures that seemed to permeate these pre-code films of the '30s. "Forgotten Man" is supposed to be the ode to the unemployed.
Summing up: Although trivial and trite, it manages to entertain thanks to an enjoyable cast and a few good Berkeley touches in those overhead numbers.