Not the best musical in the world by a very long chalk, but amusing enough and the sidelong look at the world of pop music and its culture of fandom is quite funny. Sadly, to my eyes it looked like a cut-price production and the dance routines - especially those featuring the teens - looked very much like our UK-produced musicals of the late 50's and early 60's. The ones starring Cliff Richard spring to mind. Something lacking. Who was meant to be the star, the central figure? Dick Van Dyke didn't do a great deal, and even the normally-hilarious Paul Lynde never got the chance to unleash his wonderful campery. Anne Margaret spent most of the time swooning or lost in the dance troupe, although she made up for it with her 'straight to the camera' songs at the start & finish of the film. There was some great talent in this film, but the director failed to hold it all together and the result was ill-defined and messy. Still, it was colourful and entertaining and the viewer could watch it either as a silly musical or as a wry comment on pop culture.
Review of Bye Bye Birdie
