Good idea lost in the noise

This is a tender, generous movie that likes its characters and presents them as real people, full of flaws and strengths.

If the ambition is to provide two hours of instantly forgettable, popcorn-munching escapism, it succeeds.

It really made me laugh, but for some moments I was tearing up because I could relate so much.

The film itself has an interesting plot and is well-acted by most in the cast. Baker is enjoyable to watch, although I don't think this film lets you in on why Baker was considered so talented in her day. She does a sort of athletic Charleston and a couple of shimmies, but I didn't see what the fuss was about. Perhaps she was someone you needed to see live. Also, this is her debut film, so perhaps it is not a great showcase for her dancing talent. Still, the plot is followable, and Baker has some funny bits including pushing her way into a boat ticket line by using her fanny.The musical accompaniment, new for this DVD, is excellent. If it were available on CD, I'd buy it.There's some interesting extra footage in the Extras section on the DVD, but skip the so-called documentary with the dance experts. Instead of showing clips of what the talking heads are nattering on about, the camera focuses on the talking heads as if we care what they look like. Dull, dull, dull. And they're the kind of talking heads that refer to their subject by her first name as if they all knew her intimately.

If you watch Siren of the Tropics with the mindset of the 21st century, try not to pay too much attention to the melodramatic plot about a tycoon trying to keep his daughter from marrying someone he doesn't think worthy of her. This seems to be an excuse to send the daughter's suitor to a faraway jungle to search for jewelry in order to prove the daughter's worth. It is here that we meet Papitou, Josephine Baker's character, who falls for the suitor after saving his life. Papitou follows the suitor back to France and is spotted by some theatrical agents dancing with orphan children. They decide to form a show with her but she won't perform unless she is promised to see the suitor. They call the suitor's potential father-in-law to arrange a meeting. Since the potential father-in-law knows what would happen if his daughter sees Papitou embrace her husband-to-be, he agrees. If you've seen some dramas involving mixed races made before the 1970s, you may be surprised by what happens here. The main reason to see this is to marvel at Ms. Baker's Charleston dance at the end. If you're interested in seeing early African-American film performances, especially Josephine Baker's, this one is definitely worth seeking out!

Some spoilersThis is now available more or less in full on a Kino DVD. Baker's first film (though it's silent, making do with occasional intertitles); it doesn't quite know what to do with her. She becomes sort of second banana in her own film, much as the Marx Brothers occasionally were - doing their stuff, but secondary to the conventional love stories. She performs her vigorous, loose-limbed dancing in several scenes, in close up and long-shot, and even in silence she has undeniable star quality. She's seen as a child of nature, passionate, honest, comic (there's a long slapstick chase on a steamer when she's alternately black, from hiding in a coal bin, and white, from hiding in flour) and finally self-denying as she leaves the hero she adores to marry his fiancée, kills his scheming rival (where did she learn to handle a gun like that?) dances once more while smiling through her tears, then leaves for the USA. Still, the movie respects her talents; she appears near-naked a couple of times but it's not leering or exploitative; her colour is never an issue; and she gets to do her dances. She's still great.

I only saw the first and last two reels, supposedly all of the file that has survived. Josephine Baker's role is similar to her roles in Zouzou (1934) and Princess Tam-Tam (1935), the innocent from the tropics who is brought to civilization and finds it somewhat wanting. However, she does get to keep a man in the end.Most interesting for Josephine Baker. It includes a short segment of one of her stage dances. Seeing her move in close-up is also a pleasure. The film is an oddity in that it was shot as a pantomime (there are no titles).