DuBarry Was a Lady

MGM, 1943
Starring Red Skelton, Lucile Ball, Gene Kelly, and Zero Mostel
Directed by Roy Del Ruth
Music and Lyrics by Cole Porter, Roger Edens, and others

In addition to being a huge fan of musicals, I also love swashbucklers. Stories of ladies, gentlemen, duels, rebellions, Zorros and Robin Hoods have fascinated me since childhood. There aren't many musical swashbucklers, and most fall under the "operetta" category. This Wizard of Oz-like tale of a hat check boy in a nightclub who learns a lesson about love after a strange dream is a truly unique blending of comedy, costume adventure, and big-band music. Does this unusual fantasy earn its jewels, or should it be strung up by the peasants? Let's jitterbug over to a nightclub in New York to find out...

The Story: May Daly (Ball) is a performer in a popular Manhattan nightclub during World War II. Every man in the place has a crush on her, including Louie the hat check boy (Skelton) and dancer and emcee Alex (Kelly). Comedienne and cigarette girl Ginny (Virginia O'Brian) wishes Louie would pay more attention to her and less to chasing May. May truly loves Alex, but she's convinced herself that she has to marry for money and is pursing the millionaire Willie (Douglass Dumbrille). Louie wins big money in the Irish Sweepstakes and uses part of the payout to convince May to marry him.

Noticing that Alex is still after May, Louie's buddy Charlie (Rags Ragland) gives him a drugged drink...but Louie ends up drinking it instead. He dreams that he's King Louis XV of France, May is the king's mistress DuBarry, Alex is the leader of the peasant rebellion The Black Arrow, Ginny is DuBarry's lady-in-waiting, Willie is the scheming Duc de Rigor, and Charlie is the King's son the Dauphan (even Louie questions that one). After being chased by de Rigor and peasants alike for his spending on DuBarry, Louie finally learns that money truly can't buy love or happiness...and that he needs to let May be with the may she really loves, no matter how much money he has.

The Song and Dance: What I like about this one is the unique premise. The compare and contrast between the typical 40's nightclub in the first half and the comic swashbuckler in the second half is really fun. I actually wish they'd done more with this idea. Skelton's having a ball as the normal guy who wins a fortune and hopes it'll impress a pretty lady...then does the same when he suddenly becomes a king. I also enjoy O'Brian as hopeful Ginny and some brief bits by a young Zero Mostel as a fortune teller at the club who is Alex's friend and the Black Arrow's second-in-command in the swashbuckler.

Favorite Number: None of the elaborate numbers in the night club in the first half or Tommy Dorsey's big-band gigs come close to the finale, "Friendship." Not only is this one of only four songs retained from the original Broadway show, but it suits Skelton, Ball, and O'Brian perfectly. The three of them and Kelly are having more fun clowning around in that number than they are during the entire rest of the movie. (According to Wikipedia, it's also the only song where Ball sang with her own voice - her other numbers were dubbed.) Indeed, the other number I like is the comic duet "Madame, I Love Your Crepe Suzettes" when King Louis is chasing DuBarry in the second half.

Trivia: This is an adaptation of a hit 1939 Broadway show that originally starred Bert Lahr as Louie and Ethel Merman as May. Some of the songs from the show that didn't make it into the movie can be heard in underscoring, including "But In the Morning, No!" and "Well, Did You Evah?"

What I Don't Like: This is about as 40's of a musical as you can get. Tommy Dorsey and His Orchestra are around mainly to boost the film's star power; their numbers are nice if you like big band music, but add nothing to the film. Most of the numbers in the club in the first half don't, either, including the chorus number revolving around Esquire pin-ups. There's a lot of jokes and references to the early World War II years that you may not get or understand if you don't know anything about the era. Kelly and Ball are underused; both are more at home during the more comic and action-packed swashbuckling segment than with the romantic scenes at the club.

I honestly wish we'd seen less of the club and more of the swashbuckler, including more musical numbers in the second half. The swashbuckler had the more interesting story and most of the more memorable gags. Wish they'd retained more of the original songs with their lyrics, too. Some of the Roger Edens/Burton Lane replacements are mediocre at best.

The Big Finale: Mainly for fans of the cast or 40's musicals. The interesting premise doesn't make up for the lackluster and dated first half and some of the dull songs.

Home Media: Not on Blu-Ray at press time, but the solo DVD release can be found for super-cheap, and it's a part of at least two Lucile Ball collections.

DVD
Lucille Ball Film Collection DVD Box Set