![]() With that in mind, a lot of my feelings about Footlight Parade might well just be my feelings about the genre as a whole. ![]() I've got a whole lot of thoughts on this film, but I think I gotta make a disclaimer first - this was my first time seeing this movie, and my first real experience with 1930s musical comedies at all. Yes, Ruby Keeler is awful, but I'm an unapologetic Dick Powell lover. FOOTLIGHT PARADE gets a YES vote from me. I'm still mildly conflicted, but while FOOTLIGHT PARADE wouldn't have been my first choice, I do still love it, and if Amy and Bryan can look past their own critiques and quibbles with the film, then so can I. Still, perhaps it's important to have examples of such behavior represented in The Canon, so has to not only fill it with films that represent our ideals but also accurately cover some of the unfortunate history found in great films. I'm generally able to look past that and put such things in a historical context, but I wonder what the outcome might have been if this had been a versus episode with one of his less problematic films. (At the very least, we have to get some real Berkeley theatrics into The Canon before a pale imitation like that found in HAIL CEASAR gets in, which is a film I enjoyed much of, as I do most Coen films, but agree, like Bryan, that the musical homages came across a bit winky and insincere, at least compared to what they were trying to emulate.) I will admit to having some qualms about FOOTLIGHT PARADE as well because of this being one of the more (most?) racist of films for Berkeley to be associated with. ![]() The Waterfall number still makes my jaw drop all these years later and had me thumbing through my Esther Williams library as soon as the film ended. Busby Berkeley needs some representation in The Canon, even if it's not in my favorite film. So even with my uncertainty of my vote, once I got to the musical numbers there was little doubt in my mind which direction I would go. By contrast, I find myself much less antsy and fidgety during the backstage exposition in the other aforementioned Berkeley films I mentioned. There are some golden moments to be had in the first hour or so, though I don't need to subject myself to this entire movie again anytime soon. This was probably my 4th time seeing FOOTLIGHT PARADE and I did watch it in its entirety. But yes, like Amy and Bryan, I too am guilty of sometimes getting impatient and considering fast forwarding to the music and dancing. I love just about any film that features a glorious Berkeley number, with the impossible sets, sudden costume changes, and masses of dancers marching and swaying in formation. So I was all prepared to vote no on FOOTLIGHT PARADE but with the certainty of any of those films I mentioned getting Canon consideration in the future, I may just have to vote YES. And when wanting my James Cagney dance man fix, I will usually watch YANKEE DOODLE DANDY, even without Berkeley and as cheesy as it is, I feel like that film gives Cagney more chances to get his feet dirty. ![]() But for sheer Busby Berkeley joy, I generally prefer GOLD DIGGERS OF 1933 and 42ND STREET. I do my best not to vote No on films just because they're not another film I like more. Can any movie from that period be automatically disqualified from Canon status because of containing instances of such? Also no.Īnyway, I was won over based on the hosts' enthusiasm for the movie, the iconic "waterfall" number, and the argument that this is a rare chance to see Cagney being great in a musical role. ![]() Blackface and yellowface were common things back then. The racial caricatures are obviously "problematic" in a modern sense, but I am in the camp that tends to let this stuff go in older movies unless it's really blatantly KKK racist or something that is shoved in your face for the entire running time (I don't think this movie qualifies). Lots of complaints about Dick Powell and Ruby Keeler on the podcast, but I can't say I was bothered by either at any point in this movie. The story is simple and predictable, but moves along at a fast, breezy clip with lots of good one-liners. I voted yes, because I really enjoyed watching this movie, even the talky parts before the big showstopping musical numbers started. ![]()
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