Ziegfeld Girl

Lana Turner, Heddy Lamar, and Judy Garland get into the Ziegfeld Follies and promptly go to pot in this backstage soaper about the pitfalls of celebrity.

Lana is a saucy elevator operator who aspires to marry Jimmy Stewart--until a Ziegfeld talent scout sweeps her up. She soon turns into a fast-living, mean-tempered lush. Heddy accompanies violinist husband Philip Dorn to an audition; he doesn't get the job, but she gets snatched up to become a beauty queen. Offended by her admirers, Heddy's husband believes she is unfaithful and leaves her. Judy has worked her way up through the ranks of show business and is hired for her way with a song--but Ziegfeld doesn't want to the hire other half of her act, Judy's father Charles Winninger. How can she desert her father?

To say the actors are typecast is a gross understatement, and in truth Heddy is merely there for decoration and Judy tucked into the film for the occasional musical number. The film really belongs to Lana Turner, who--although somewhat wooden--has the most interesting role of the three, and to James Stewart, who like Lana is a good boy gone bad. Will Lana and Jimmy reform and get back together? Will Heddy be able to convince Philip that her love is true? Will Judy's father ever forgive her? Even though the movie is hokey and a bit overlong, it is still rather fun to watch--and such numbers as "Minnie From Trinidad" are lots of fun. But this is not one of MGM's great musicals by any stretch of the imagination, and it is pretty much for die-hard musical fans only.

Gary F. Taylor, aka GFT, Amazon Reviewer

My grandparents saw the original Ziegfeld Follies back in the old days and always raved about the showmanship and glamour that was demonstrated. Both the Great Ziegfeld from the mid-1930's and this film give some depth and insight into the days of the glorification of women. "You Stepped Out of A Dream" had more beautiful women in one production number than I have ever seen and probably will ever see. Oh, to have lived when the Ziegfeld shows were popular. And who can even begin to approach the beauty of Hedy Lamarr!

The story of three girls who join the fabulous Ziegfeld Follies. One makes it big, one goes back to her husband, and one goes bad, Hollywood style.

It's too bad this movie was shot in black and white, most of the high points are the, uh, amazing production numbers. I mean, you haven't lived until you've seen a showgirl wearing a school of tropical fish or a flock of parrots. Or Judy Garland in an Xmas-tree tinsel dress. Also a big Judy Garland production number, "Minnie from Trinidad".

Other than the music and costumes, the fun is watching Lana Turner go BAD. Garland and Lammar are less than interesting away from the stage (blame the script), but Turner's rise-and-fall is classic bad-girl camp. (You know she's hitting the skids when men start giving her *fake* diamonds) And of course she dies of Old Movie Disease at the end, the kind that reunites you with your true love and leaves your hair and makeup perfect.

There are actually three girls who get into the Ziegfeld Follies in this b/w MGM feature. Judy Garland of course has a fabulous voice (especially when singing 'I'm Always Chasing Rainbows' so quietly); Lana Turner has false poise; and Hedy Lamarr looks stunning.

As the men in their lives, we have James Stewart, Jackie Cooper (all grown up!), Ian Hunter, Dan Dailey, Tony Martin … plus Charles Winninger as Garland's father and vaudeville partner of Al Shean (playing himself).

The Follies numbers look good, but the film cries out for colour. Imagine how overblown, preposterous, and perfect it would have been then. As it is, it is a pleasant distraction, nothing more, and I found it quite distracting when towards the end some sequences were obviously taken from 1936's 'The Great Ziegfeld'!

I was expecting more from this, because it has a promising cast and the same director as *The Great Ziegfeld*, which MGM had released five years earlier.

Granted, the premise is hackneyed: three young women are accepted into the Follies and have to deal with the problems that come with fame, especially fame for appearing in a (for its day) skimpy costume.

But, with the exception of Garland's character, the others don't get any good dialogue, no chance to become more than cardboard characters.

At one point, we see Al Sheen do (parts of) his famous vaudeville routine with Charles Winninger replacing his old colleagues Pat Gallagher. Part way through we cut away to an uninteresting moment of drama, rather than getting the whole of what could have been one of the highlights of this film.

The musical numbers here are often lavishly staged, but not in an interesting manner. If you compare it to MGM's *The Great Ziegfeld*, you can see the difference.

That is especially true of the last number, which reuses the wedding cake set used so spectacularly at the end of *The Great Ziegfeld*. The way it is filmed is bland, however, and nothing like the breathtaking finale in the previous picture.

Lana Turner and Hedy Lamarr both look beautiful in this picture, but they are largely just window dressing here.

In short, a pretty but disappointing picture.