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Very well executed

Better Late Then Never

When a movie has you begging for it to end not even half way through it's pure crap. We've all seen this movie and this characters millions of times, nothing new in it. Don't waste your time.

A movie that not only functions as a solid scarefest but a razor-sharp satire.

More Over-Rated Mediocrity. I liked it though. This was only shortly after the silent era. I liked this one because it was well produced and edited and had a really good, energetic flow. It has the flow, movement and rhythm of a swing-time musical. As far as character study there is not really any of that, just generic characters. As far as meaning or expression (art, symbolism etc etc.) there wasn't really much. This piece seemed to be produced for a secondary reason aside from art or story such as to make money by showing off technology or production value.5.5

42nd Street is only mildly naughty, bawdy, or sporty, as the lyrics of Al Dubin and Harry Warren's title song would have it, but once Busby Berkeley takes over to stage the three production numbers at the movie's end, it is certainly gaudy. What naughtiness and bawdiness it contains would not have been there at all once the Production Code went into effect a year or so later. It's doubtful that Ginger Rogers's character would have been called "Anytime Annie" once the censors clamped down, or that anyone would say of her, "She only said 'no' once and then she didn't hear the question." Or that it would be so clear that Dorothy Brock (Bebe Daniels) is the mistress of foofy old moneybags Abner Dillon (Guy Kibbee). Or that there would be so many crotch shots of the chorus girls, including the famous tracking shot between their legs in Berkeley's "Young and Healthy" number. Although it's often remembered as a Busby Berkeley musical, it's mostly a Lloyd Bacon movie, and while Bacon is not a name to conjure with these days, he does a splendid job of keeping the non-musical part of the film moving along satisfactorily. It helps that he has a strong lead in Warner Baxter as the tough, self-destructive stage director Julian Marsh, balanced by such skillful wisecrackers as Rogers, Una Merkel, and Ned Sparks. But it's a blessing that this archetypal backstage musical became a prime showcase for Berkeley's talents. Dick Powell's sappy tenor has long been out of fashion, and Ruby Keeler keeps anxiously glancing at her feet while she's dancing, but Berkeley's sleight-of-hand keeps our attention away from their faults. Nor does anyone really care that his famous overhead shots that turn dancers into kaleidoscope patterns would not be visible to an audience in a real theater. In the "42nd Street" number, Berkeley also introduces his characteristic dark side: Amid all the song and dance celebrating the street, we witness a near-rape and a murder. It's a dramatic twist that Berkeley would repeat with even greater effect in his masterpiece, the "Lullaby of Broadway" number from Gold Diggers of 1935. Berkeley's serious side, along with the somewhat downbeat ending showing an exhausted Julian Marsh, alone and ignored amid the hoopla, help remind us that the studio that made 42nd Street, Warner Bros., was also known for social problem movies like I Am a Fugitive From a Chain Gang (Mervyn LeRoy, 1932) and the gangster classics of James Cagney, Humphrey Bogart, and Edward G. Robinson. (charlesmatthews.blogspot.com)

Suffering from the Great Depression and a bad ticker, Broadway director Warner Baxter (as Julian Marsh) desperately needs "Pretty Lady" to be a hit musical. When leading actress Bebe Daniels (as Dorothy Brock) gets tipsy and twists her ankle, newcomer Ruby Keeler (as Peggy Sawyer) must step into the starring role. "You're going out a youngster, but you've got to come back a star!" demands Mr. Baxter. This fresh look at an old story made Ms. Keeler a star and likewise advanced young Dick Powell (as Billy Lawler). Much has been said of Busby Berkeley's brilliantly staged production numbers. They are spectacular. It should also be noted that Lloyd Bacon's direction and Sol Polito's photography shine throughout. The cast is delightful, the songs are perfect, and pretty legs are celebrated like nobody's business.********* 42nd Street (3/8/33) Lloyd Bacon ~ Warner Baxter, Ruby Keeler, Dick Powell, Bebe Daniels

As many other reviewers have said, this is the grandfather of movie musicals. It gave birth to many clichés that would be used all throughout classic Hollywood musicals and even to this day, in one form or another. Warner Baxter is terrific as the slave-driving director ("I'll either have a live leading lady or a dead chorus girl"). Ruby Keeler and Dick Powell are the quintessential juvenile leads. Film debut for Keeler and first big role for Powell. Keeler doesn't have the best voice but she has a nice screen presence and immense likability. Plus her tap dancing is pretty good. Bebe Daniels is wonderful in her biggest film role. Ginger Rogers plays Anytime Annie ("She only said no once and then she didn't hear the question"). It's one of those 'tough dame with a snappy one-liner' roles Ginger did so well. The supporting cast is full of familiar faces from the '30s: George Brent, Guy Kibbee, Allen Jenkins, Una Merkel, Ned Sparks, and George E. Stone, among others. The script is fantastic with lots of that colorful lingo Warner Bros. movies were known for back in the day. Of course, the real highlight of the movie are the Busby Berkeley musical numbers like "Shuffle Off to Buffalo" and the climactic "42nd Street" number, my personal favorite. It's a fantastic movie. Obviously a classic and still entertaining from start to finish, over 80 years later.