(90 min) Released 1937-08-20
Director: Sonnie Hale
Stars: Jessie Matthews, Barry MacKay, Nat Pendleton
Genres: Comedy | Crime | Musical
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0028918/
Watched online; ok print.
Part of the fun of this is the plot twists, so I won't spoil any more than the summary does. It's nice to see American Nat Pendleton here. Alistair Sim was also a welcome face.
JM dances, but less broadly than usual; the choreography is tame, even when she dances alone. And when she dances with a partner it's pathetic, but they acknowledge he's there as romantic interest, not dance partner. During one of the dances I felt she was antecedent to Carol Burnett because she was facially and physically mugging while dancing, which only shows her versatility.
Fortunately the crime theme involves gangsters who live the high life, so I get my quota of glamour. At one point JM wears a fur stole (that she, uh, borrowed) that's in a butterfly shape. Gorgeous; never saw one like that before. But the open shoulders likely make it a poor comfort against the night air.
I'm already wanting to own the complete JM catalog. That's tough given the lack of interest, even in GB. I already bought Evergreen on amazon.co.uk (cheaper!), but the quality was public domain. I didn't find any claiming to be a restoration, or an official studio release. (I did watch a British doc'y about her and how neglected is her dancing legacy; she's remembered more for the radio soap she did late in life, and even that's fading.)
Director Sonnie Hale was JM's husband 1931-44.
Gaumont British Picture Corporation; dir. Hale; 6+
