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Best Foot Forward
Bud Hooper, a cadet at Winsocki Military Academy, sends an invitation to movie star Lucille Ball to come to Winsocki's big dance. Ball's publicity-hungry agent convinces her to go in order to boost her career. Complications arise when Bud's girlfriend Helen Schlesinger unexpectedly shows up, too.
Release : | 1943 |
Rating : | 6.4 |
Studio : | Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, |
Crew : | Art Direction, Set Decoration, |
Cast : | Lucille Ball William Gaxton Virginia Weidler Nancy Walker June Allyson |
Genre : | Comedy Music |
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Perfect cast and a good story
I'll tell you why so serious
The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.
It is a whirlwind of delight --- attractive actors, stunning couture, spectacular sets and outrageous parties. It's a feast for the eyes. But what really makes this dramedy work is the acting.
A typical extra-light musical comedy of its time. Lots of patriotic references related to the war; popular dances of the time; ridiculous script; but some good performances. Lucille Ball plays herself and does it well. Harry James and his orchestra play beautifully, and James plays The Flight of the Bumblebee on his trumpet. A young Chill Wills looks trim and shows a preview of his future wonderful acting skills. A youthful June Allyson and others do some very good vocals, and a young Nancy Walker is hilarious (a forerunner performance of her later outstanding comedy). The script is more like a high school farce, but the movie is worth seeing because of those other neat features.
Here's a movie I adored when I was a kid, thrilled by "Buckle Down Winsocki", the spirited song sung at a military academy by a bunch of singing, dancing and marching cadets. But seeing the film now, is a real letdown. It's below par in every department.At second glance, it's really a minor musical with HARRY JAMES and his Orchestra and a little gal named NANCY WALKER (making her film debut) as the chief compensations for a script full of lame, dated one-liners and some trifling songs with bad choreography.Even the great LUCILLE BALL, as the movie star invited to the prom, has a hard time getting any laughs. She's supposed to be a faded star whose press agent talks her into accepting an invitation from TOMMY DIX, who overlooks his girlfriend VIRGINIA WIEDLER because of his crush on Lucy.Lucy looks great and the Technicolor makes her a glamorous creature, but the script defeats everyone. It's nice seeing JUNE ALLYSON, GLORIA de HAVEN and NANCY WALKER having fun with a couple of tunes but while the picture at least got their careers off to a good start, it's no great shakes as a musical--especially one from MGM which specialized in the very best of that ilk.NANCY WALKER struts her stuff as "Blind Date" material--although some of the humor at her expense is a little cruel. But she's a reminder that real talent can even overcome some witless material. And I have to ask the question so many others have: whatever happened to Tommy Dix???
This movie was originally set for Hedy lamarr, but she refused ( wisely ) and was in turn, denied the role in Casablanca. Louis B Mayer was spiteful to be sure. The best thing in this movie was the rendition of the "3 B's", sung by the youthful Nancy Walker, Gloria De Haven and June Allyson, and Harry james orchestra. "Buckle Down Winsocki" was the hit of its day, sung magnificently by a Tommy Dix. Whatever happened to him?
This movie is so unremarkable it is almost remarkable just for that! Some averages songs, badly staged, some average to bad acting from a bunch of unknown boys - headed by the uncharming Tommy Dix, and an unwitty functional screenplay make this undemanding but unrewarding viewing.On the positive side you can glimpse June Allyson ,Gloria De Haven and Nancy Walker in early screen roles. But only Walker is given anything interesting to do - she's funny as the ugly duckling, but the way the men in the film insult her is quite disturbing. Then there's Lucy - looking gorgeous and playing herself, although her presence and actions at a teen prom are hard to believe. If her lines had been funnier she may have made something of this film but...The highlights are Harry James performances - very fine, and the moment where the jealous school girls almost tear Lucy apart - this moment is so vicious it almost makes this an interesting film!