Mjeteconer Just perfect...

Moustroll Good movie but grossly overrated

Sexyloutak Absolutely the worst movie.

Dana An old-fashioned movie made with new-fashioned finesse.

Lee Eisenberg Warner Bros. spent much of the 1930s as the studio that turned out gangster-themed movies (and launched the Looney Tunes later in the decade). It was a surprise to learn that the studio known for Humphrey Bogart and Bugs Bunny also made "Dames", the sort of musical for which MGM was usually known.What I like about this movie is that it shows puritanical people as regressive lunatics (they really are). I just wish that they had done so without all the musical numbers. Seriously, the whole thing is a happy-go-lucky ego trip. If you ask me, the best kind of musicals - aside from the Beatles' movies - are satirical ones: the musical versions of "Reefer Madness" and "The Evil Dead".As for this one, I took the time to look for strings holding up the clothes during the "Girl at the Ironing Board" sequence (and I could make out a few of them).Basically, it's not the sort of movie that I recommend.

dougdoepke Busby fans have to wait until the last part for their guy to do his stuff. But then it's a real eye-popper. The dames keep comin' at yah one after another, blondes, brunettes, and in- betweens. What a line-up of 30's cuties. Then there's Berkeley's trademark: feminine geometry. That's enough to give Freud analytic overload and others x-rated dreams. Good thing those fluid figures were too abstract for the censors to erase. Speaking of blue- noses, '34 was the first year of Code enforcement. So, wouldn't be surprised the plot was jabbing at our watchdogs of public morality. After all, ridding the city of stage shows is the millionaire's (Hugh Herbert) favorite hobby. It's a winning cast, even if Powell mugs it up faster than a Ferrari's RPM's. True, Keeler's hoofing may be on the clunky side, still she's got the sweetest smile this side of Hollywood and Vine. Too bad the real dame, Blondell, was hobbled by six months of motherly gestation. Working her camera angles must have been a real challenge. I know a lot of folks don't especially like these antique concoctions. But in my book, they're inspired combinations of artistry, pizazz, and sheer Hollywood hokum.

writers_reign This was the fifth musical in two years since Warners revitalized the genre with 42nd Street and the fact is that whatever your preference the chances are this will probably satisfy it; for example if you're a fan of songwriters then you have not only the highly successful team of Harry Warren and Al Dubin but also an arguably less successful team in Sammy Fain and Irving Kahal (although we shouldn't forget that they came up with two smash hits, I'll Be Seeing You and I Can Dream, Can't I) in one show (Right This Way, 1938) and for good measure old timer Mort Dixon weighs in with a number. If, on the other hand you're an aficionado of character actors look no further because here you'll find F. Hugh Herbert, Guy Kibbee and Zazu Pitts strutting their stuff and as if that weren't enough you have the great Joan Blondell wisecracking her way through the script and unleashing a production number to boot. On the other hand you will have to endure the Singing Sweat Gland, Dick Powell, to say nothing of the clod-hopping Ruby Keeler. Ah well, you win some, you lose some.

lewis-51 A wonderful musical comedy, fitting in well with 42nd Street, Golddiggers of 1933, Footlight Parade, and Golddiggers of 1935. Of the five, I would place this one tied for second, behind Golddiggers of 1933, equal to Footlight Parade, and just a hair better than 42nd Street. If you have seen none of them it would be good to start with this one. Then I would go to 42nd Street, Footlight Parade, saving the masterpiece Golddiggers of 33 for last. (Golddiggers of 1935 is quite a bit inferior.)The first strong point is the excellent comedic plot, better than that in 42nd Street, about the same as Footlght Parade. Guy Kibbe is wonderful as always, Hugh Herbert and Zasu Pitts are great. The three of them really steal the show, at least as far as acting and plot go. The jokes come quickly and can easily be missed. I would hazard a guess that some viewers will no longer get the joke in the name of Hugh Herbert's character, "Ezra Ounce." Joan Blondell is gorgeous and smart as always. Dick Powell is the same as in all the movies - which is absolutely fine! I love his voice. I find Ruby Keeler a delight to look at and watch. It's true, as others have commented, that she really doesn't do a heck of a lot in this one, though she is on screen quite a lot. Some people seem to love to put down her acting or dancing. OK, so she's not going to star in King Lear or Antigone. So what? Get over it! That's not the point. She is very appealing. Similarly, I like seeing her dance. She doesn't have to be as good as Cyd Charisse. Get over it!The real appeal of all five of the movies I've mentioned here, and the real star, is Busby Berkeley. It is amazing to read one or two of the reviews written here in the last decade by people who, I suppose, are rather young and set in their ways. How anyone with half a brain can watch this movie and not be absolutely blown away is unbelievable to me. Truly, such a person is blind. Maybe not in the sense of passing the eye test for a driver's license, but blind nonetheless. Surely Busby Berkeley was the most unexpected creative genius in the history of film.Let me echo something another poster has written. Though I was born long after the great depression ended, it was still a living reality in the minds of my parents, and something I absorbed somehow when growing up. Maybe a byproduct of the difficult economic times we are living through now will be a greater sensitivity on the part of some people to those times and the culture produced in those times. It does seem that some of the negative reviewers here need to broaden and deepen their appreciation, not just of movies, but of humanity.But I digress. This is a wonderful, fun, eye-popping movie, full of great songs and fantastic choreography. Enjoy.henry