(90 min) Released 1936-01-03
Director: Sidney Lanfield
Stars: Warner Baxter, Alice Faye, Jack Oakie
Sammy Lee ... dance ensembles; Oscar nom'd, see below
Drama | Musical
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0026571/
Oscar nominated (Dave Gould won; nominees), Best Dance Direction, Sammy Lee, for Lovely Lady (ensemble) and Too Good to be True (Dixie Dunbar and male chorus, portion enhanced by Fats Waller and his band, and yes, they're completely extractable, although that would also cut Dunbar's dancing in half). Also excellent: Nick Long (high kicker from Broadway Melody of 1936 (1935); he does a lot of leaping and high-hopping here too, again reminding me of Bobby Van in BB's Small Town Girl (1953). Gareth Joplin (child with Astaire's forehead and hairline) has only 1 other IMDb credit. Both NL and GJ dance separately with female chorus on Shooting High.
Alice Faye dances and sings, plays the star and dance director of the shows. Her 8th film, my 4th. Musical numbers are distributed nicely throughout the film. Jack Oakie could have been used more.
My bootleg copy is completely adequate; can't imagine an official release being much better quality. Very tempted to rate this a 7, but it lacks something to push it over the edge.
Fox, dir. Lanfield; 6+
My post on Oscar, Best Dance Direction, 1936-38
