Starring Betty Grable, John Payne, Charlotte Greenwood, and Carmen Miranda
Directed by Irving Cummings
Music by Harry Warren; Lyrics by Mack Gordon
Grable's vehicles were the ultimate in escapism during the World War II years, with legs, laughs, and good songs stuffed around a just-enough story. Her movies tended to either be set in the (then) recent past of the late 19th and early 20th century, or in some exotic location, like this one. Usually, when movies in this era wanted to get away from Hollywood, they traveled south of the border, but this one takes us north to Canada's Lake Louise area. How does this tale of romance at a mountain resort manage to fit in Harry James and his Orchestra, a major hit song, Charlotte Greenwood at her most acerbic, a young Jackie Gleason, and Carmen Miranda? Let's start in New York, as a show - and a relationship - is about to end, and find out...
The Story: Broadway dancer Vicky Lane (Grable) is tired of her partner Dan Christy (Payne) chasing socialites and takes off with her former partner Victor Prince (Caesar Romero), who still loves her. Dan tries hard to get a backer for his new show, but they won't take him without Vicky. While he's drinking himself into a stupor, his agent (Jackie Gleason) tells him Victor and Vicky are appearing with Harry James and His Orchestra at the Lake Louise resort in Canada. Dan says he'll get her, but also insists on not mentioning the producers who want to back his show.
He wakes up at Lake Louise with no idea of how he got there. On the way, he somehow acquired a valet named McTavish (Edward Everett Horton) and a feisty Brazilian secretary named Rosie Murphy (Miranda). They end up trying to help him get back with Vicky, even though she insists she and Victor are engaged. Meanwhile, Vicky's friend Phoebe (Greenwood) is interested in McTavish, and Rosita may have her own eyes on Victor as well.
The Song and Dance: This one is all about the great cast performing the heck out of some nifty Big Band numbers. Horton has a great time as a naïve perpetual student who's been in college for 20 years, thanks to his aunt claiming he'd get his inheritance only as long as he was learning. Miranda's equally funny as the South American bombshell who's a lot smarter than she lets on, and Greenwood gets to show off both her deadpan comedy and signature high kicks as Grable's best friend. The Technicolor is radiant, especially the sparkling dance costumes and Miranda's rainbow wardrobe once they hit the Rockies.
Favorite Number: We open with an adorable chorus routine at Vicky and Dan's Broadway show. They dash through the rain, dodging puddles, other dancers, and each other in "Run Little Raindrop Run." Miranda wriggles through a Portuguese version of "Chattanooga Choo Choo" with her brothers in Dan's room at Lake Louise. She gets a second one on the veranda, "O Tic Tac do Meu Coracao." Grable and Romero have a nice little dance routine to the instrumental "A Poem Set to Music" towards the end.
The big hit song was the ballad "I Had the Craziest Dream." It's heard several times during the film, notably performed by singer Helen Forrest with Harry James and His Orchestra on the veranda shortly after Dan arrives and in an instrumental version with Charlotte Greenwood getting to show off her incredible mile-high kicks in the nightclub.
Trivia: Remake of the 1937 non-musical romantic comedy Second Honeymoon with Tyrone Power and Loretta Young.
What I Don't Like: This is about as typical of a Grable vehicle as you're going to get. It's all a good-natured jumble of goofy types and cliches, surrounding Grable and her golden legs. Payne's not much more interesting here than he is in most of his musical appearances, and other than his numbers with Grable and one sequence when he almost runs into Dan in Vicky's room, Romero doesn't have that much to do.
The Big Finale: Some good numbers are enough to recommend this to fans of Grable, Miranda, or the wacky escapist musicals of the 1940's.
Home Media: Currently DVD-only on the 20th Century Fox Cinema Archives.
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