Watch Hallelujah, I'm a Bum For Free

Memorable, crazy movie

This film is so real. It treats its characters with so much care and sensitivity.

The film's masterful storytelling did its job. The message was clear. No need to overdo.

The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.

Only one person mentions the "sacrifice" that the Al Jolson character Bumper makes in the story. I think this is the central item of the movie that shows that being a bum is not at all positive and even a sweet, honest, charitable guy like Bumper loses Angel to the suspicious, vindictive, sharp Hizzonor (the mayor) who is gainfully employed. Yes, the movie throughout sugarcoats what it means to be jobless and homeless. Imagine that living in Central Park (even during the non-winter months) could be pleasant. Although it is fascinating to see what that part of New York (even an idealized, movie version) looks like in 1933. The mayor played by Frank Morgan is a nuanced character. He does quite a few favors for Bumper but he treats Angel poorly. It takes until the end of the story for the point to be made that being a bum is definitely a negative. The bums made a positive out of the necessity of being jobless and homeless during another of our society's financial "adjustments."

If anyone doubts that Al Jolson was one of Hollywood's greatest and most versatile performers, then watch this movie. Everything about this movie is excellent and entertaining. The movie has a great story, excellent, spirited acting, and an engaging, dynamic script, most of which is said in rhyme. The movie is also a remarkable commentary on social and economic inequalities in modern society as the "bum" is not only a victim but a hero who offers hope for the downtrodden and encourages all not to lose heart, to stay engaged and to try to enjoy life with as few worries as possible. Especially surprising was Frank Morgan who gives a powerful portrayal as a big-city mayor who is in love. Nothing in this movie is corny. It tells a story, has lots of action, has wonderful characters and is both uplifting and highly entertaining.Another interesting feature of this movie is that it is performed by actors and actresses who, for the most part, are all but forgotten today. Al Jolson is still an icon, but Harry Langdon, Madge Evans, Chester Conklin, Edgar Connors ... they were excellent, and all but forgotten. A really marvelous movie.

Slap-happy musical film that tries to use music and images together to meld a new format -- and ends up entertaining and likeable. Many of the songs are "recited" in operatic fashion, as when Jolson, the "Mayor of Central Park" (a famous bum) sings his case in court against a singing tribunal that he's been brought before on chargest of betraying his office by taking a job at a bank. A wonderful tracking shot introduces his job through sucessive levels of importance, beginning with high rollers and ending up with lyricist Lorenz Hart telling a customer he doesn't have a dime to give him. After we see all the varying levels of importance in the bank, we finally come on Jolson and his friend, doing the banking equivalent of peeling potatoes. Wonderful charm of Jolson and Langdon is dulled slightly by Morgan and Evans' stiff leads. Rodgers music and Hart's lyrics are splendid, making this one of the most original, best written original musicals of all time. It should be noted that in his years later working with Oscar Hammerstein, Rodgers only wrote one original play for film (excluding the televised "Cinderella") -- "State Fair" -- which in my opinion, though charming, has got nothing on "Hallelujah, I'm a Bum!" After the failure of this and several other Rodgers/Hart film projects, the duo returned to Broadway to become almost its only reliably successful writers in the later 30s. They left behind this little Hollywood gem to be rediscovered.

The idea of rhythmic dialogue seems strange today, but was a short-lived fad in the early 30s (best example is the 3 Stooges first Columbia short: "Woman Haters")It works well in Halleleujah, I'm a Bum, since rhyming is only done in parts of the picture.This was my first introduction to 30s musicals, and is now released on DVD. The "mistress situation" of the Mayor of New York keeping lovely Madge Evans in an apartment in the same building as his is rather interesting as well. Although a "dud" at the boxoffice in 1933, this picture has developed a cult following over the years. Jolson's starring movie career was over by the late 30's due to his ego, but he still has a major reputation as one of the greatest entertainers in history. This picture is a wonderful example of the wild enthusiasm of Hollywood's early talkie musicals with a moral to the story.