Rock-A-Bye Baby [Blu-ray]

Director: Frank Tashlin Frank Tashlin

Overview

In this comedy, an awkward TV repairman finds himself falling for an actress who doesn't even know he exists and instead marries a dashing Mexican bullfighter. Unfortunately, he dies the day after their wedding; fortunately, he managed to impregnate her. Unfortunately, she is soon supposed to be starring in a religious epic called The White Virgin on the Nile. To help her, the repairman offers to watch her baby after it is born. Unfortunately, she gives birth to triplets. Later he marries the sister of the actress who bears him quintuplets. Some guys have all the luck. Songs include: "In the Land of La La La," "Dormi, Dormi, Dormi," "The White Virgin of the Nile," "Love is a Lonely Thing" and "Why Can't He Care for Me?"

Product Details

Release Date:	02/14/2012
UPC:	0887090035101
Original Release:	1958
Rating:	NR
Source:	Olive
Language:	English
Time:	1:43:00
Sales rank:	18,346

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Jerry Lewis	Clayton Poole,Young Clayton,Actor
Marilyn Maxwell	Carla Naples
Connie Stevens	Sandra Naples
Baccaloni	Gigi Naples
Reginald Gardiner	Harold Hermann
Hans Conried	Mr. Wright
Ida Moore	Bessie Polk
Judy Franklin	Young Carla
Isobel Elsom	Mrs. Van Cleve
Alex Geary	Judge Jenkins
Franklin Farnum	Actor,Actor
James Gleason	Dr. Simkins
George Sanders	M.C.
Snub Pollard	Actor,Actor
Hank Mann	Street Sweeper
Chester Conklin	Actor
Hope Emerson	Actor
Alex Gerry	Actor
Mary Treen	Nurse

Technical Credits

Frank Tashlin	Director
Jerry Lewis	Producer

Editorial Reviews

As Jerry Lewis vehicles go, Rock-a-Bye Baby is one of the better ones -- which means that those who totally dig the comedian's shtick will be in heaven, while those who are somewhat more resistant to his charms will at least find it more-or-less tolerable. In fact, Baby would be even more tolerable if it kept the manic comic feeling of its first half, instead of going in for maudlin sentimentality related to babies and how cute they are. This switch in tone gives Baby a schizophrenic feel -- which, again, won't make the least bit of difference to devotees. As a Frank Tashlin project, Baby has its share of zany gags and, for a while at least, a fairly surreal atmosphere; the director has a gift for creating a world that is slightly off-kilter and has a strange appeal. The problem, as with many Tashlin problems, is that he has a hard time doing anything with that world. It's an interesting place to visit, but it doesn't grow and change enough, and it pretty much gets jettisoned when the film gets gooey. Lewis is Lewis; his work with Tashlin (here and elsewhere) is more palatable than with some other directors (including himself), but it's still a matter of taste. The supporting cast is very solid, especially an incredibly attractive Connie Stevens, who gets to let herself go a little more than most ingénues would. And the screenplay does have a number of set pieces that work very well. Baby won't set the world on fire, but it's a decent enough effort, with some high-jinx that do score high on the laugh meter.

All Movie Guide - Craig Butler