Good idea lost in the noise

It was OK. I don't see why everyone loves it so much. It wasn't very smart or deep or well-directed.

This is a dark and sometimes deeply uncomfortable drama

Yes, absolutely, there is fun to be had, as well as many, many things to go boom, all amid an atmospheric urban jungle.

Probably the best thing about CARNIVAL BOAT is the location filming as director Albert Rogell actually took the crew up to logging country for the bulk of the shooting. Otherwise it's your basic action programmer with some good stunt work and some tedious comic relief from Edgar Kennedy and Harry Sweet. William Boyd, later Hopalong Cassidy, stars as the lumberjack torn between father and sweetheart (Ginger Rogers). This may be the low point of Ginger's film career. It was her third Hollywood film (after five in New York), all made for Albert Rogell at RKO/Pathe. She seemed stuck in a downward trend (Pathe really didn't make any good films so far as I know) so she asked out of her contract and Pathe was more than happy to grant her the favor. A couple of years of freelancing and she signed again with RKO, soon to become a star.

Carnival Boat (1932)** 1/2 (out of 4)Jim Cannon (Hobart Bosworth) wants his lumberjack son Buck (William Boyd) to take over his job when he retires but the son just isn't really going for it. A problem happens between the two when the son falls in love with showgirl Honey (Ginger Rogers).CARNIVAL BOAT was a low-budget movie from RKO that was probably playing under a much bigger film and was quickly forgotten about by the public. Even film buffs have forgotten it, which is understandable considering there's nothing "classic" about it but at the same time there are some pretty interesting things that make it worth viewing.The best thing about the picture is the lumberjack setting with us getting to take a look at the type of equipment that was used back in the day by these loggers. There are some very fun scenes built around this including one with an out of control train. The highlight comes towards the end when a bunch of logs jam up a dam and we get a very fun action scene.I thought the three leads were quite good in their roles with Bosworth stealing the picture as the cranky old man. Edgar Kennedy and Marie PRevost are also on hand in small supporting parts. At just 61 minutes there's certainly nothing ground-breaking here and the love story is quite predictable but it's still worth watching.

Directed by 'B' Movie stalwart Albert S. Rogell, CARNIVAL BOAT has a lot of action packed into it - a daring train escape, an explosion involving lumberjacks, several fist-fights, a burlesque stage show and a love-affair involving Buck Gannon (William Boyd) and Honey (Ginger Rogers).The action zips by, interspersed with comic routines from Baldy (Edgar Kennedy) and Stubby (Harry Sweet). The plot is nothing much to speak of - suffice to say it involves a love-affair, patriarchal jealousy and a final reconciliation. But then not much else is expected of a 'B' flick designed to provide an aperitif to the main feature.Of perhaps more interest, however, is the film's representation of gender. Set among a gang of lumberjacks, it suggests that the workers like to prove their masculinity through fighting and drinking; if they don't get the chance to indulge in such worldly pleasures, they get bored. Honey is basically there as an object of Buck's affection; a largely passive character, she spends quite some time as an onlooker while Buck engineers the predictable happy ending. Such stereotypes are characteristic of early Thirties Hollywood movies; but what sets CARNIVAL TRAIN apart is its emphasis on the fragility of masculinity; it really seems as if the lumberjacks have to prove themselves time and again that they are the strong silent types - even when there is no one around to admire them. This makes for an intriguing film, where the fight-sequences serve no real plot-purpose, but exist solely for the workers' self- esteem.

An old logger expects his son (William Boyd) to follow in his footsteps but the son is more interested in pretty showgirl Honey (Ginger Rogers) than in taking his job seriously. William Boyd is a poor lead but he would go on to big success as Hopalong Cassidy, who was very popular with kids. There's a couple of annoying comic relief characters among the lumberjacks. They're played by Edgar Kennedy and Harry Sweet. This one's a creaker with some nice location shooting, logging footage, and a couple of nice action sequences but that's about it. Besides Ginger, of course. Pretty much any Ginger Rogers movie is worth a look for her alone.