Fluffy WWII Musical
Summer is the best time to watch old movies. There isn’t really anything on TV, except reruns. Since I saw the shows I like the first time, I really only watch reruns of crime shows like Law and Order or Without a Trace. But honestly, I don’t need an excuse to watch old movies. It’s just a good reasoning -- especially since I don’t have cable.
And tonight I got to watch another Van Johnson movie. Yes, my curiosity in this popular 1940s/1950s movie star has spread, and I’ve got a couple people supplying me with his movies. Two Girls and a Sailor was actually Johnson’s first top billing movie -- as well as Gloria DeHaven and June Allyson’s first big parts. It’s a pretty fluffy story about two female musicians. The Deyo Sisters – Patsy (Allyson) and Jean (DeHaven) – have an act at a club in what I am going to assume is California during WWII. So the rather thin plot is stretched out by a lot of performances by other musicians and singers, including Lena Horne, Jimmy Durante (who is surprisingly funny!), Gracie Allen, and several orchestras.
The story – albeit thin – is pretty good, but standard. Jean and Patsy have their nightclub act, but after hours, they run a canteen for servicemen in their home. How they manage to afford to supply all the sailors and soldiers with sandwiches and pop is never quite clear, but taking into consideration the size of their apartment, they must be making pretty good money at the club. Jean is the cuter sister and has an admirer who keeps sending her orchids. One night they are inviting young men to their canteen and Jean gets to invite a sailor (Johnson) to the canteen. He isn’t known by his name -- he's mostly just “Hey Sailor.” The girls sing and get to know the sailor and another soldier, Frank (Tom Drake). These are the two rivals for Jean’s affections, but Patsy seems to like the sailor too. What will happen?
The girls mention that they wished they had the warehouse across the street from their apartment, and the next day someone shows up at their door with the keys and the deed. "Someone" has decided that the Deyo Sisters deserve to get what they wish for -- but who is this "someone?" The sisters explore the warehouse, which turns out not to be haunted by ghosts, but rather by Billy Kidd (Durante) who they used to tour with as children. And this isn’t an ordinary warehouse -- it's a theatrical warehouse which makes it so much easier to clean up and transform into a spectacular nightclub/canteen. (It’s an MGM musical, so I didn’t expect any realism.)
Jean continues to get on well with the sailor, much to the dismay of Patsy. She even ends up having a dream about it. It’s a pretty standard dream sequence, although the sailor shows up in an admiral’s uniform, complete with enormous epaulets. The most memorable part of the dream is the catfight between sisters over the sailor. Seriously girls, is he really worth fighting over?
The next morning Billy manages to overhear one of the assistants with the club’s overhauling mention that "someone" can afford to pay extra -- it's J. Dykeman Brown who is paying for this! He tells Patsy, who manages to track down J. Dykeman Brown, who is old enough to be Jean’s grandfather! It turns out that he’s J. Dukeman Brown, and there’s a J. Dykeman Brown II, and finally, J. Dykeman Brown the Third -- the sailor! Johnny has been hiding a secret -- he's worth sixty million dollars! Patsy, of course, is heartbroken, so the oldest J. Dykeman Brown comforts her by saying "At your age I wouldn’t have fallen in love with your sister."
The nightclub opens again, complete with a plethora of musical numbers. Patsy reveals to Jean "someone’s" real identity, and she is more happy with his cash than with him. Jean decides to leave to do a single act in Buffalo, but before leaving, the Deyo Sisters need to do one last act together. Jean realizes that she really doesn’t love Johnny -- she's in love with the Texan soldier Frank who calls her ma’am. (It really is adorable.) She’s going to move to Texas and raise onions with him. Yay. So Johnny is left for Jean to have -- and he’s realized that he’s in love with her, not Jean. All the couples are complete, so all that’s left is for the final big number.
Two Girls and a Sailor is pretty chintzy and predictable, but I enjoyed it. They don’t make movies like this anymore -- musicals like this have gone out of vogue, and nightclubs like the one portrayed in the movie don’t seem to exist any more. It’s a nice look at an era gone by.
And tonight I got to watch another Van Johnson movie. Yes, my curiosity in this popular 1940s/1950s movie star has spread, and I’ve got a couple people supplying me with his movies. Two Girls and a Sailor was actually Johnson’s first top billing movie -- as well as Gloria DeHaven and June Allyson’s first big parts. It’s a pretty fluffy story about two female musicians. The Deyo Sisters – Patsy (Allyson) and Jean (DeHaven) – have an act at a club in what I am going to assume is California during WWII. So the rather thin plot is stretched out by a lot of performances by other musicians and singers, including Lena Horne, Jimmy Durante (who is surprisingly funny!), Gracie Allen, and several orchestras.
The story – albeit thin – is pretty good, but standard. Jean and Patsy have their nightclub act, but after hours, they run a canteen for servicemen in their home. How they manage to afford to supply all the sailors and soldiers with sandwiches and pop is never quite clear, but taking into consideration the size of their apartment, they must be making pretty good money at the club. Jean is the cuter sister and has an admirer who keeps sending her orchids. One night they are inviting young men to their canteen and Jean gets to invite a sailor (Johnson) to the canteen. He isn’t known by his name -- he's mostly just “Hey Sailor.” The girls sing and get to know the sailor and another soldier, Frank (Tom Drake). These are the two rivals for Jean’s affections, but Patsy seems to like the sailor too. What will happen?
The girls mention that they wished they had the warehouse across the street from their apartment, and the next day someone shows up at their door with the keys and the deed. "Someone" has decided that the Deyo Sisters deserve to get what they wish for -- but who is this "someone?" The sisters explore the warehouse, which turns out not to be haunted by ghosts, but rather by Billy Kidd (Durante) who they used to tour with as children. And this isn’t an ordinary warehouse -- it's a theatrical warehouse which makes it so much easier to clean up and transform into a spectacular nightclub/canteen. (It’s an MGM musical, so I didn’t expect any realism.)
Jean continues to get on well with the sailor, much to the dismay of Patsy. She even ends up having a dream about it. It’s a pretty standard dream sequence, although the sailor shows up in an admiral’s uniform, complete with enormous epaulets. The most memorable part of the dream is the catfight between sisters over the sailor. Seriously girls, is he really worth fighting over?
The next morning Billy manages to overhear one of the assistants with the club’s overhauling mention that "someone" can afford to pay extra -- it's J. Dykeman Brown who is paying for this! He tells Patsy, who manages to track down J. Dykeman Brown, who is old enough to be Jean’s grandfather! It turns out that he’s J. Dukeman Brown, and there’s a J. Dykeman Brown II, and finally, J. Dykeman Brown the Third -- the sailor! Johnny has been hiding a secret -- he's worth sixty million dollars! Patsy, of course, is heartbroken, so the oldest J. Dykeman Brown comforts her by saying "At your age I wouldn’t have fallen in love with your sister."
The nightclub opens again, complete with a plethora of musical numbers. Patsy reveals to Jean "someone’s" real identity, and she is more happy with his cash than with him. Jean decides to leave to do a single act in Buffalo, but before leaving, the Deyo Sisters need to do one last act together. Jean realizes that she really doesn’t love Johnny -- she's in love with the Texan soldier Frank who calls her ma’am. (It really is adorable.) She’s going to move to Texas and raise onions with him. Yay. So Johnny is left for Jean to have -- and he’s realized that he’s in love with her, not Jean. All the couples are complete, so all that’s left is for the final big number.
Two Girls and a Sailor is pretty chintzy and predictable, but I enjoyed it. They don’t make movies like this anymore -- musicals like this have gone out of vogue, and nightclubs like the one portrayed in the movie don’t seem to exist any more. It’s a nice look at an era gone by.
posted by Rebecca at 10:22 PM
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