This film is a very strange amalgamation of two types of films--the Busby Berkeley-style musical (like 42ND STREET, FOOTLIGHT PARADE and GOLDDIGGERS OF 1933) combined with a B-mystery. And, on top of that, the film has Pre-Code sensibilities that would shock most today. The newly strengthened Production Code was enacted in 1934 and this one snuck in just before it was adopted. As a result, a lot of surprising material got into the film, such as a song and dance number called "Marijuana" as well as the skimpiest costumes you can find in showgirls during the era. Heck, making them totally naked wouldn't have been that different than what you see here! Purely because of its Pre-Code excesses it's worth seeing!
Now is this weird concoction worth seeing other than for lovers of Pre-Code films? Well, yes, but only if you have a high tolerance for lots and lots of singing and dancing. The film abounds with one enormous production number after another and to be quite frank, other than Marijuana, the other songs are amazingly forgettable. So is the dancing, unless you really love trying to sneak peeks at all the exposed flesh--trying to see if you can catch sight of something a bit more! As for the mystery, it is interesting but unfortunately it's obscured by all this singing. However, most of the characters (such as those played by Jack Oakie and Victor McLaglen) were enjoyable and helped to obscure the odd casting of Carl Brisson despite his heavy accent. His singing was just fine, but when it came to romance and acting, he did seem like a very unlikely actor for this film.
Overall, it's a passable film but a real treat for those who love to see and marvel at the very loose morals of the Pre-Code films. They just don't come a lot looser than this!
Now is this weird concoction worth seeing other than for lovers of Pre-Code films? Well, yes, but only if you have a high tolerance for lots and lots of singing and dancing. The film abounds with one enormous production number after another and to be quite frank, other than Marijuana, the other songs are amazingly forgettable. So is the dancing, unless you really love trying to sneak peeks at all the exposed flesh--trying to see if you can catch sight of something a bit more! As for the mystery, it is interesting but unfortunately it's obscured by all this singing. However, most of the characters (such as those played by Jack Oakie and Victor McLaglen) were enjoyable and helped to obscure the odd casting of Carl Brisson despite his heavy accent. His singing was just fine, but when it came to romance and acting, he did seem like a very unlikely actor for this film.
Overall, it's a passable film but a real treat for those who love to see and marvel at the very loose morals of the Pre-Code films. They just don't come a lot looser than this!