The Gang's All Here

20th Century Fox, 1943
Starring Alice Faye, Carmen Miranda, James Ellison, and Phil Baker
Directed by Busby Berkeley
Music by Harry Warren and others; Lyrics by Leo Robin and others

Alice Faye's last starring role in a musical was also Busby Berkeley's attempt to prove he could still film imaginative, elaborate musical numbers despite wartime restrictions. Carmen Miranda was also just starting to make her mark in Hollywood after success on Broadway and in her native Brazil, and 20th Century Fox wanted to promote her as a major star. How does the tale of a singer who falls for the soldier son of a rich businessman look nowadays? Let's head to the Club New Yorker in Manhattan for the start of a show and find out...

The Story: Wealthy executive A.J Mason, Sr. (Eugene Palatte) takes his son Andrew Junior (Ellison) to the club to celebrate his joining the Army. They drag along Mason's partner Peyton Potter (Edward Everett Horton), though he's worried about his wife Blossom (Charlotte Greenwood) finding out he's there. He's even more nervous after vivacious Brazilian dancer Dorita (Miranda) picks him to dance with. Andrew is delighted to dance with performer Eadie Allen (Faye), whom he eventually falls for Eadie is working for Broadway Canteen and isn't supposed to date servicemen; Andrew gives her the name Sgt. Pat Casey to get around the restrictions, ignoring the fact that he already has a fiancee, Potter's daughter Vivian (Sheila Ryan). They fall in love; Eadie even meets him at the station.

She becomes a star at the club; he becomes a war hero. A.J is delighted and tries to book a welcome home party for Andrew at the New Yorker. When manager Phil Baker (himself) insists that they're closed to rehearse a new show, A.J invites them to rehearse at his and Potter's homes. Potter is upset that his wife may find out...and Edie isn't happy when she realizes that Andrew already has another woman.

The Song and Dance: And "song and dance" is the operative phrase here. The cliched story is lifted by the sparkling cast and truly bizarre musical numbers. Faye is lovely and even touching in her last starring role in a musical, and Palatte and Horton have fun as the fuddy-duddy businessmen who learn to let go of some of their prejudices and appreciate show people. And if you ever wanted to know why Carmen Miranda was huge in the 40's and early 50's, this is by far the best place to go to find out. She's central to most of the major numbers and has a great time vamping and swinging with Palatte. The costumes alone are incredible, with the wild fruit-trimmed dresses for "Lady In the Tutti-Fruitti Hat" and glowing "The Neon Ballet" dance outfits.

The color alone makes you wish Berkeley was able to do more musicals in color. The print I saw burst off the screen, with gem-like tones that nearly glowed in their incandescence.

Favorite Number: The movie starts off with a taste of what's to come - a spooky face in mostly darkness that eventually leads to the flowing "Brazil," and then to Miranda shaking her hips to "You Discover You're In New York." Faye gets two good ballads, "No Love, No Nothin'" in her room after she thinks her soldier's abandoned her, and "Journey to a Star," first to Andrew after she meets him, then with the chorus and a host of color-filtered fountains in the finale.

The two big numbers here show Berkeley at his most surreal and downright insane. "The Polka Dot Ballet" kicks off with Faye singing to children dancing in old-fashioned polka-dot bustle and starched collars...then somehow morphs into a surreal neon-lit celebration of dots in all their forms, including people dancing in sleek outfits holding neon circles in effects that pre-date Tron by 40 years. The finale, with everyone's floating heads coming out of nowhere, come off as more creepy than fantastic.

By far the most famous song here is "The Lady In the Tutti Frutti Hat." Women in yellow skirts hold waving bananas that are so sexually suggestive, especially for the 40's, that the studio had to tell the women to keep them under the torso. Somehow, Carmen Miranda shaking her hips and wiggling her rear morphs into Berkeley's signature overhead camera formations, spinning kaleidoscopes of dizzy colors, and more fruit than you can shake a book by Freud at.

What I Don't Like: Did I mention that plot? It's silly, confusing, and ultimately besides the point. This one is all about the numbers. Ellison is so dull, especially compared to all the lunacy around him, that you understand why Vivian eventually drops him. Benny Goodman and His Orchestra get prominent billing, but they're mostly around for specialty numbers and to do "Paducah" with Miranda. This is also very much a movie of its time, with lots of references to the war years that people who aren't into the time period may miss or not understand.

The Big Finale: If you're a fan of Berkeley's wild style, Faye, Miranda, or the musicals of the 40's, this is a must-see for the insanely creative numbers alone.

Home Media: While it was never on video, it's now easy to find on most formats. (The Blu-Ray is fairly pricey and is said to be from a transfer that's not as bright as what's currently streaming or on the later DVD release.)

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