Too much of everything

Good story, Not enough for a whole film

Good concept, poorly executed.

Watching it is like watching the spectacle of a class clown at their best: you laugh at their jokes, instigate their defiance, and "ooooh" when they get in trouble.

More Over-Rated Mediocrity. I liked it though. This was only shortly after the silent era. I liked this one because it was well produced and edited and had a really good, energetic flow. It has the flow, movement and rhythm of a swing-time musical. As far as character study there is not really any of that, just generic characters. As far as meaning or expression (art, symbolism etc etc.) there wasn't really much. This piece seemed to be produced for a secondary reason aside from art or story such as to make money by showing off technology or production value.5.5

This classic old movie talks about people working on a play. The first half of this movie isn't great as it just features them preparing for the play. It's not bad. We do some good character build up and it probably makes the second half all the more rewarding. The second half is them actually showing us the play in its entirety, more or less. The buildup is so good it's what makes the overall movie great. We get to see all the great sets, song numbers and wonderful camera angles. Would it have worked better if the whole movie was the play? Maybe.You get more anticipation this way and the payoff is great. There were a lot of these musicals made in the early 1930's and I'm glad to see one of the most well known. Wait, 42nd Street? So that's where Douglas Adams got the number 42 from! I admit I was afraid they'd get more into the outside plot at the end, but it actually ended right there. I'm glad, because it's great to see a movie that's so well organized. I appreciate it for setting up future musicals too. ***1/2

. . . in Warner Bros.' 1930s musical warning note to We People of America's Far Future, 42nd STREET. Widely dismissed in its day as fatuous fluff mixed with empty eye candy, 42nd STREET actually is a carefully crafted clarion call for the USA to reject the Siren Song of that broken-down, many times bankrupt scam artist sham, Donald J. Rump, represented here by Ruby\Kellyanne's "Pretty Lady" director "Julian Marsh." A tired old White guy, just like Rump, the worn-out Marsh simply wants to exploit the Youth around him to feather his own nest. Like Rump, Marsh has well-known ties to New York City mobsters. Like Rump, he expects the random women around him to be pleased as punch when he plants his pudgy geezer lips onto their mouths with no warning at all. Like Rump, Marsh faces even odds as to whether his dissolute womanizing career has left him with enough oomph in his geriatric carcass to even survive his Opening Night. As has been the case since Cassandra warbled her warnings to the Ancient Greeks, prophets always preach to Deaf Ears in their own Homelands. America ignored Warner's 42nd STREET Rump Warning, and now all of us are going to be stuck with the bill.

42nd Street (1933): Dir: Lloyd Bacon / Cast: Warner Baxter, Bebe Daniels, George Brent, Ruby Keeler, Ginger Rogers: Musicals were popular in this time and here we have the happening as well as the time and place. It is the production of Pretty Lady with Warner Baxter hired to direct with Bebe Daniels as the star player. It showcases the stress and anxiety of putting a play together but it also boils down to a predictable outcome that features the play in its entirety. The musical numbers are mostly corny and over the top but the setup and structure are detailed and payoff. Directed by Lloyd Bacon with Busby Berkeley handling the musical numbers. Some of these are visually effective while others are flat and look about as fetching as something out of a box of cereal. The cast is appealing. Baxter plays off the frustration of a director struggling to meet a dead line. Daniels plays Dorothy the star player who is involved in a relationship. George Brent plays an old partner and lover of Dorothy who pulls away. Ruby Keeler plays a new actress and dancer for the play who comes off as a tad naïve. Perhaps the biggest name to emerge from this film is the dancing star Ginger Rogers who will become a force within musicals. It is on par with The Broadway Melody but musicals have certainly improved. This is entertaining with its detailed view of staging such an event. Score: 7 / 10