Very well executed

not as good as all the hype

The storyline feels a little thin and moth-eaten in parts but this sequel is plenty of fun.

Great example of an old-fashioned, pure-at-heart escapist event movie that doesn't pretend to be anything that it's not and has boat loads of fun being its own ludicrous self.

The first time I saw this film I was distracted for a few minutes and missed the intro credits. Being in a lazy mood I just sat down to watch and if it hadn't been for the setting (Miami) and the star (Doris), I'd have sworn this were one of the early MGM CinemaScope films, since someone was obviously emulating a certain kind of Arthur Freed approach. But while elaborate visually at times, no, it was Warner Bros., but for what it was, not bad. In fact, the only real debit I can make against LUCKY ME remains its very conventional and predictable plot conventions. That, and the one-note roles of Phil Silvers (a ham) and Robert Cummings (handsome but bland nice guy). Songs? Okay, nothing special, perhaps, but serviceable. So for anyone who simply wants an old, spiffy if brainless musical, they still can't go wrong here, even if someone like Howard Keel might have brought more to the Cummings role (for better and worse). As for the film process itself, did this film really need such elaboration? Probably not, but Scope does continue to lend it a certain novelty.

LUCKY ME is a prettily Technicolored musical outing from Warner Bros., one that DORIS DAY was obligated to make because of arrangements made by her producer hubby. She should have stuck to her guns and refused to do the film, which doesn't do much for anyone--including its talented supporting cast--ROBERT CUMMINGS, PHIL SILVERS, NANCY WALKER, MARTHA HYER and EDDIE FOY, JR.Day is the singer in a team of stranded players working in the kitchen of a fancy Miami hotel because of a prank played by the obnoxious PHIL SILVERS, whose strident comedy technique is overworked here.When ROBERT CUMMINGS needs a singer for his upcoming Broadway show, he discovers Doris can sing and from then on he and his girlfriend (MARTHA HYER) squabble over her dad's backing for the show and his interest in Doris. That's all there is to the plot.Songs by Sammy Fain and Paul Webster have been tacked onto this slight story with less than impressive results. Only one ballad--done as a dream sequence--has any real worth and it's a beauty called "I Speak to the Stars" which is the only genuine first class song in the movie. A catchy first number, "The Superstition Song," at least gets some interest for the way Doris Day manages to sing it through a lengthy opening sequence.If you're a Doris Day completist and must see all her films--well, that's the only reason for catching up with this one. It's a dud--a real dud. Trite and unfunny as can be.

This film has quite a few things going for it. Doris Day is her typical breezy self and a few decent production numbers are executed very well. The film is nicely filmed with great color, and lots of wonderful scenes from the Miami Beach of the 1950s.However, this film never quite makes it. Bob Cummings is always pleasant, but at age 44, he looks just a little old for this role (it's too bad that he went into television, because he was a fine actor in either comedies or dramas). It's nice to see Nancy Walker and Eddie Foy, Jr., both of whom are entertaining...and underutilized here. Although there are a number of nice songs, none are memorable. And worst of all, the plot is rather threadbare. For example, this isn't the first time Phil Silvers portrayed a down-in-the-luck head of show business troupe...he did it back in "If I'm Lucky" with Perry Como in 1946. And, comedy ensues as his cast is forced to work in a hotel to get out of hock. Okay, been there, done that, many times over. And why exactly is Doris Day playing hard to get? Martha Hyer and Bill Goodwin deserved better in their supporting roles.It's not a bad film, but it's not a memorable one. Good for Doris Day fans (she was never more beautiful), but overall, a disappointing musical.

Marks for colour, costumes and casting. Miss Day (who obviously has her instincts working if she didn't want to do this)is larger than life, as are the rest of the troupe, including the incredible Nancy Walker, whom I've seen in other musicals. I think she really came into her own as Rhoda's mother, but there's no doubt she is very talented as a singer/dancer too. I found that the leading man was colourless, and the songs lacklustre, if not boring. Phil Silvers threw some much needed levity into the whole thing which could have died quietly. I am just amazed that given the assets this film does have that they didn't do a better job - what were they thinking? And no, it's NOT in cinemascope after the initial scenes. What's going on there? Had I been the backer, I would have walked away.