Hollywood Revue of 1929

Hollywood Revue of 1929

Director: Charles Reisner Cast: Cliff Edwards
Cliff Edwards
, Jack Benny
Jack Benny
, Joan Crawford
Joan Crawford
, Marion Davies
Marion Davies
Charles Reisner
Hollywood Revue of 1929

Hollywood Revue of 1929

Director: Charles Reisner Cast: Cliff Edwards
Cliff Edwards
, Jack Benny
Jack Benny
, Joan Crawford
Joan Crawford
, Marion Davies
Marion Davies
Charles Reisner

DVD (Full Frame)

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Overview

With the arrival of talkies, every major studio hopped on the musical bandwagon by turning out lavish "revues," spotlighting their top stars performing specialty numbers. MGM's entry in this all-star genre was Hollywood Revue of 1929, which, though a box-office smash and a "Best Picture" Oscar nominee, is an absolutely deadly experience when seen today. Even so, it coasts by on its curiosity value, as several major MGM luminaries display their all-talking, all-singing, all-dancing talents (or lack of same). The film is hosted by Conrad Nagel and Jack Benny, the latter still purveying the "wise-guy" personality he used on screen before adopting his more likable radio characterization. Some of the individual acts are modestly entertaining: Joan Crawford, the top of her head cut off due to faulty camerawork, is quite appealing in a jazz number; Laurel and Hardy and Buster Keaton provide genuine laughs, the former in a makeshift magic act and the latter performing a burlesque ballet; Bessie Love and Marion Davies are cute and cuddly in their respective musical numbers, while Marie Dressler is outrageously funny in her brace of appearances; and, best of all, Cliff Edwards solemnly introduces MGM's "signature" tune "Singin' in the Rain," which serves as a leitmotif throughout the picture. Other "highlights" are more impressive for their concept than their actual execution: Gus Edwards' "Lon Chaney Will Get You if You Don't Find Out" would have been more interesting had the real Lon Chaney Sr. made an appearance (something he reportedly refused to do), while John Gilbert and Norma Shearer's "slang" version of the balcony scene in Romeo and Juliet (a sequence filmed in Technicolor) produces winces rather than laughs. At that, these scenes are easier to digest than the wretched sentimental ballad "Your Mother and Mine," performed ad nauseum by the otherwise reliable Charles King, and the overproduced and under-rehearsed "Orange Blossom" finale (also in color). Long available only in its 82-minute TV release version, Hollywood Revue of 1929 was restored to nearly its original 125-minute length in the 1970s; the film is worth seeing once for historical purposes, but is hardly a "keeper," even for the most diligent of video collectors.

Product Details

Release Date: 12/01/2009
UPC: 0883316224854
Original Release: 1929
Rating: NR
Source: Warner Archives
Presentation: [Full Frame]
Sound: [Dolby Digital Mono]
Language: English
Time: 1:58:00
Sales rank: 30,232

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits
Cliff Edwards Himself,Himself,Composer
Jack Benny Himself
Joan Crawford Herself
Marion Davies Herself
Conrad Nagel Himself
Norma Shearer Herself/Juliet
Bessie Love Herself
Lionel Barrymore Himself
Stan Laurel Stan
Oliver Hardy Ollie
Anita Page Herself
Nils Asther Himself
George Arthur Actor,Himself
William Haines Himself
Buster Keaton Himself/Princess Raja
Ernest Belcher's Dancing Tots Actor
Marie Dressler Herself
Charles King Himself
Polly Moran Herself
Karl Dane Himself
Ann Dvorak Chorus girl
Charles King Bibby Actor
Gwen Lee Herself
Albertina Rasch Actor
John Gilbert Actor

Technical Credits
Charles Reisner Director
Harry Rapf Producer
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