Karry Best movie of this year hands down!

Console best movie i've ever seen.

Glucedee It's hard to see any effort in the film. There's no comedy to speak of, no real drama and, worst of all.

Kaelan Mccaffrey Like the great film, it's made with a great deal of visible affection both in front of and behind the camera.

JohnHowardReid Copyright 23 February 1938 by Samuel Goldwyn. New York opening at the Rivoli, 20 February 1938. Released through United Artists. U.S. release: 4 February 1939 (sic.). Australian release: 9 June 1938. 13 reels. 115 minutes.SYNOPSIS: Harassed film producer seeks a new star.NOTES: Academy Award, Edgar Bergen "for his outstanding comedy creation, Charlie McCarthy". Bergen received a wooden statuette. Oddly, although The Goldwyn Follies was his first feature film and not released until early 1938, the award was made at the ceremony (on 10 March 1938) honoring the 1937 year. Bergen had made one-reel shorts for Vitaphone since 1930, including Double Talk (1937).Also nominated (on 12 February 1939) for Art Direction (The Adventures of Robin Hood), and Best Music Score (Alexander's Ragtime Band).Screen debut of Vera Zorina. George Gershwin died while writing the film's songs (on 11 July 1937).Negative cost: nearly $2 million.COMMENT: No-one would say that The Goldwyn Follies is a good film. It is, alas, despite the beauty of its pastel-toned Technicolor photography, often plain dull or even irritatingly banal. Partly despite and partly because of the over-strenuous efforts of its cast, it is at best a mixed blessing. There are so many things wrong with the movie (flat direction, thin script, over-zealous acting, ho-hum choreography, unfunny comics, a sissy hero, never-never-land sets — have you ever seen a hamburger stand so impossibly squeaky clean?), it's a miracle that the total effect is one of a slightly bemused ennui rather than anger or loathing. Fortunately, it's impossible to put good tunes down. Both "Love Walked In" and "Love Is Here To Stay" are so delightfully catchy and melodious, we can even excuse the circumstances in which they are introduced. And thanks to Miss Leeds and the decorative Goldwyn girls — and the rewarding efforts of Messrs Toland and Rennahan — the picture is always attractive to look at. And it has a certain nostalgia value. In fact, if you're prepared to be indulgent and overlook its many shortcomings, The Goldwyn Follies has such undeniable charm it's almost entertaining. If only it were not so dull!

Terrell-4 Probably the only reason for remembering The Goldwyn Follies is that it's the movie George Gershwin was working on when he died at 38 of a brain tumor. In truth, the movie is a mish- mash, although a good-natured one, involving comedy bits, musical numbers and what Goldwyn considered "class." The best thing about the film are two George and Ira Gershwin songs that are as fresh and wise today as when they were written, "Our Love Is Here to Stay" and "Love Walked In." The story line is as thin as a thread, designed to keep the numbers coming and to provide some fun at Hollywood's expense. Ben Hecht is credited with the screenplay. He artfully places some banderillas that probably puckered the skin of several types of Hollywood denizens, from producers to divas to sycophants to...you get the idea. Hollywood producer Oliver Merlin (Adolphe Menjou) has convinced himself he needs someone to tell him honestly about the new movie he's working on, someone who will represent the big audience out there. On a location shoot he meets a young woman who fits the bill. She's Hazel Dawes (Andrea Leeds), gentle, sincere and honest. "I'm a producer of movies," he tells her. "I get my wagonloads of poets and dramatists, but I can't buy common sense. I cannot buy humanity!" "Well, I don't know why, Mr. Merlin. There's an awful lot of it," Hazel says. Merlin looks at her impatiently. "Yes, I know," he says, "but the moment I buy it, it turns into something else, usually genius, and it isn't worth a dime. Now, if you could stay just as simple as you are, you'd be invaluable to me. I'll put you on my staff. I'll give you a title, 'Miss Humanity.' Don't rush, you can finish your ice cream soda." Merlin brings her to Hollywood and consults her on everything from script changes to plot developments. Of course, she also meets a young man, Danny Beecher (Kenny Baker), who has a great tenor and a way with flipping hamburgers. Merlin makes changes in his movie. There's love, a brief misunderstanding quickly resolved and then a happy ending. All this is just a clothes line to hang the comedy and musical numbers on. This is a review movie and Goldwyn gives us a lot to watch, including his idea of culture. This has usually meant excerpts from opera, over-produced and sung straight ahead. Here, we get a bit of an aria from Traviata. We also get a genuinely stunning water-nymph ballet danced by Vera Zorina, choreographed by George Balanchine and with music by Vernon Duke. But we also get the Ritz Brothers, frenetic, anarchic and, above all else, loud. They were big stuff in the Thirties. I think nowadays they'd be an acquired taste. Bobby Clark, a great burlesque, vaudeville and stage star, shows up as a casting director, all leers and cigars. Edgar Bergen and Charlie McCarthy make several appearances. I've always been intrigued at how Bergen could maintain such a sharply split personality between himself and his wooden pal. Bergen may be bland but McCarthy really is funny, especially when looking at tall showgirls. Phil Clark, a comic big in vaudeville and radio, shows up in a recurring gag and finally faces off with McCarthy. There's even Alan Ladd in a brief bit as one of several awful singers auditioning for a part in Merlin's movie. Kenny Baker, who was a singer much like a young Dick Powell but without the cockiness, does full justice to the two great Gershwin songs. The Goldwyn Follies sprawls all over the place, still I like it. First, because it provides a look at some stars we've nearly forgotten, people like Edgar Bergen, Vera Zorina, Phil Baker and Bobby Clark. Even the Ritz Brothers. These were people who knew their stuff. They were professionals and it comes through. Second, those Gershwin songs. They are so good they lift the movie whenever Baker sings them. For me, they create a bittersweet feeling. George Gershwin was at the height of his powers when he wrote them. What on earth could he have created if he'd lived? So here's to George and Ira... The more I read the papers, the less I comprehend. / The world and all it's capers and how it all will end. Nothing seems to be lasting, but that isn't our affair. / We've got something permanent, / I mean in the way we care. It's very clear, our love is here to stay. / Not for a year, but ever and a day. The radio and the telephone / And the movies that we know, / May just be passing fancies and in time may go. But, oh my dear, our love is here to stay. / Together we're going a long, long way. In time the Rockies may crumble, / Gibraltar may tumble, they're only made of clay. / But our love is here to stay.

MartinHafer This is one of the movies selected to the FIFTY WORST FILMS book by Harry Medved. And while I agree it is really bad, I'm not sure it reached the level of wretchedness needed to merit inclusion in the book--but it sure is close enough that I can't fault its mention. The only reason that I would not have included it is because although it's very bad, there are SMALL glimpses of actual entertainment scattered about. The problem is, is it worth slogging through all the awfulness and boredom to find it? I say "NO"!!! Avoid this film like the plague! If you don't believe me, read on,....The film starts with Adolph Menjou screening his latest production to a preview audience. They are laughing convulsively--a real problem since the film is a romantic drama! So, aware that his instincts are failing him, Menjou goes in search of someone to give him advice on what people really like. He picks a lady who has nothing to do with the movie industry and blindly listens to everything she says even though she has no idea what she's talking about. So, in other words, millions and millions of dollars are delegated based on this lady who Menjou nicknames "Miss Humanity". This idea is stupid and the nickname totally annoying. It gets worse, believe me.Then, the film becomes a giant "everything but the kitchen sink" extravaganza, where every few minutes, the action (such as it is) is punctuated by rather random song, dance, ventriloquism or comedy numbers. Ostensibly, the film is a variety show thinly connected by the plot. Oddly, however, the acts are generally just awful and probably won't appeal overall to anyone! After all, in some segments, there is opera, while in others it's Edgar Bergan and Charlie McCarthy, in another it's ballet or modern dance, and in others it's the incredibly unfunny antics of the Ritz Brothers. I honestly find it very hard to believe that all these incredibly divergent styles of entertainment will appeal to anyone--they may like some but hate the rest. Think about it--is there ANYONE who loves opera and ballet as well as the Ritz Brothers?! Frankly, I hate them all (especially the Ritz Brothers) and doubt if my opinion is much different from the average person. Yet, Miss Humanity seemed to like this and thought the average person would like this hodge-podge! As I mentioned above, the Ritz Brothers play quite prominently in the film. A couple times they were MILDLY funny, but most of the time they were like walking, talking migraines! I am a HUGE fan of silent and early sound comedy and think they were perhaps the most annoying comedy team ever. Their antics were far less funny and sophisticated than the Three Stooges and their act consisted mainly of annoying people! In addition, someone gave them a song to sing that is among the most UNINTENTIONALLY funny and obscene songs ever written--as they repeat the same word AGAIN and AGAIN and AGAIN--in fact, this is the entire chorus (it's a euphemism for BOTH a cat and part of a female's anatomy).There's a lot more I didn't like about the film, such as the countless times Menjou said to his talent scout "Basil, drop it" (it was funny the first time but not again and again) and the "Romeo and Juliet" song and dance number. Don't watch this unless you are trying to watch all 50 of the films in Medved's book or unless you are a masochist--it's THAT bad!PS--A final observation. So far, all but one of the many reviews for this film were either negative or extremely negative--with most scores being in the one to two-star range. So, how does this movie have an overall IMDb rating of 5.4 (as of 1/31/07)?! Occasionally, I think some people are deliberately flooding certain films with overly negative or positive scores to unduly influence the ratings. I observed a BAD Humphrey Bogart recently that actually had a much higher percentage of scores of 10 than CASABLANCA--even though the overall score was still quite low. This doesn't make any sense. Believe me when I say 5.4 is WAY TOO HIGH A SCORE to be believed!PPS--Look close--it's a very young Alan Ladd who is singing (badly) at the piano in Menjou's office.

bobj-3 I agree that the film is in many ways a mess, but what grand songs! Some of the last songs George Gershwin composed (a few actually finished by Vernon Duke). Especially lovely is Kenny Baker slinging hamburgers in a diner, singing "Love Walked In," and later "Love Is Here To Stay." It is also a very early example of a Technicolor film. So although often quite dumb, this film has its moments of fine entertainment.