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Load of rubbish!!

A different way of telling a story

This is one of the best movies I’ve seen in a very long time. You have to go and see this on the big screen.

Each character in this movie — down to the smallest one — is an individual rather than a type, prone to spontaneous changes of mood and sometimes amusing outbursts of pettiness or ill humor.

Jack Oakie (Calhoun) and John Payne (Harrigan) are a couple of songwriters on Tin Pan Alley. They need a hit to pay their rent and Oakie puts in a call to a friend Alice Faye (Katie) to come and help them out performing songs. She brings along her sister Betty Grable (Lilly). They achieve success but things don't go as planned especially with the romance between Payne and Faye. Can they all get together again by the end of the film? Have a guess… The cast are fine with Betty Grable coming across as the most likable. Alice Faye is a bit precious, John Payne is a bit negative while Oakie has loads of energy. He is, however, a good balance for Payne who can be a bit moody. As for the songs, I liked them all, especially the first one that Faye and Grable sing and dance to. There is a running joke throughout the film as Oakie keeps changing the words to the song but I reckon it needs no improvement from this opening number. "Moonlight Bay" is another standout as is the whole "Sheik of Araby" sequence with the Nicolas Brothers doing their thing! I disagree with other reviewers in that I found "America I Love You" to be the worst offering.As regards the story, the Nora Bayes reference was lost on me and, unfortunately, will be lost on many others. However, it was made clear that she is big news, and if she comes knocking at your door to sing one of your songs, then you don't turn her down. And this is where the film gets a little silly. Payne gives her the song to sing and Faye seems hostile to the idea. Faye should be supportive of this move – what a coup! The next bit also doesn't make sense, as success for Payne doesn't seem to take off for him once Faye leaves to join her sister. The whole point of giving Nora Bayes the song was to gain instant success on the back of it.The story is slight but it is the musical segments that bring the score for this film into a higher bracket. They are the only memorable parts of the film and the only parts worth re-visiting.

Alice Faye and Betty Grable were made for each other as a sister act, together or separately. As the dominant sister, Alice got most of the single numbers, but Betty got to show her stuff in the "Honeysuckle Rose"- "Moonlight and Roses" routine. I can't believe they were never paired again(Well, they were supposed to be in "The Dolly Sisters", but it was too late, as Alice decided to retire just then). John Payne and Jack Oakie were another great buddy pair, Oakie providing a perfect comic balance to Payne's serious demeanor, as a pair of struggling tune smiths. Oakie does an impromptu rendition of a classic George M. Cohan war moral booster, composed about the time this story takes place, at the beginning of WWI. This duo would appear together or separately in several more Faye films. Payne would also serve as a usually successful rival for Betty's heart in several other films. Too bad Oakie was never considered romantic material for the leading ladies. He was certainly charming enough. He could have teamed up with Betty while Payne was romancing or sulking with Alice.The Nicholas Brothers were yet another talented pair, though they only appeared in their dance routine in "The Sheik of Araby" extravaganza. Breaking the color barrier, they appeared in a number of top musicals of this era, including "Sun Valley Serenade" and the all African American cast in "Stormy Weather", where they performed perhaps their most famous routine. Rotund veteran comedian Billy Gilbert seemed bored with his harem and other diversions, until Alice and Betty showed up in his harem, when he joined them in a memorable song and dance rendition of the title song for "The Sheik of Araby" scene. All in all, a great vaudevillian mix of song and dance, comedy and romantic drama. My main regret is that this wasn't filmed in Technicolor. Few films were then, and the studios didn't always pick the right ones for this luxury treatment. It's about time a DVD version of this classic musical comedy was made available, and dare I hope for a colorized version?This film was essentially remade in 1949as "Oh, You Beautiful Doll", in Technicolor. June Haver and Gail Robbins took the places of Alice and Betty. Mark Stevens and S.Z. Sakal took the places of Payne and Oakie, respectively. I like the original better, except it was filmed in B&W.

"Tin Pan Alley" is a serviceable if slightly undernourished musical extravaganza starring Alice Faye, John Payne, Betty Grable, Jackie Oakie. I thought it would turn out to be as memorable and enchanting as Faye's greatest musicals like "That Night in Rio" or "Hello Frisco Hello" also co-starring John Payne, but it is nowhere near them. There is a sense that something is missing; the idea is there but somehow it doesn't quite coalesce, even despite the luminous presence of Faye. Nevertheless, it has one of the most spectacular dance and musical numbers ever staged: "The Sheik of Araby" - featuring Faye, Grable, and the Nicholas Brothers who also appeared in Grable's previous hit wonder, "Down Argentine Way". The dance number has a spark and excitement most of the movie lacks.

This is a delightful film with some of the best stars from the 40's. Alice Faye has been a personal favorite of mine for years and her beautiful contralto singing voice is only one reason. She is also charming and beautiful, and it's no wonder she was 20th Century Fox's top blonde star for many years (until Betty Grable, who is, of course, also in this film). Alice and Betty make believable sisters and perform some knockout numbers together (especially "The Sheik of Araby", which also boasts the talents of the marvelous Nicholas Brothers). Alice is paired romantically in the film with John Payne (a frequent costar), and their chemistry makes you understand why Fox paired them often in film. The songs are delightful and the movie captures the image of Tin Pan Alley that may not have existed in reality, but isn't the image on film more romantic and lovely to look at? The only quibble I have: why, oh why wasn't this filmed in Technicolor?