Customer Reviews

Babes in Arms [VHS]

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This classic film stars Mickey Rooney and Judy Garland as teenagers living in Seaport, Long Island, NY just before the Great Depression struck. Vaudeville is dying; thus Rooney's family business as show biz perfomers is very much at stake. When the older folks leave Seaport to put on a show and prove to the world that Vaudeville is not dead yet; they leave the younger folks behind. What to do? Put on a show! Rooney's character trys to woo some fading child star so she can put up the money for the show and bumps Garland from the lead. She inevitably retakes the lead in the show and everything ends happily ever after when out of nowhere some hot-shot producer likes what he saw in the barn show scene. (By the way, one cautionary note: the barn show scene includes a minstrel show; although typical of that era it is not only dated but potentially ofensive to some viewers.) The viewer also gets an extra treat: Margaret Hamilton has a small role as the nasty old lady who runs welfare in the town and wants to send the kids off to a vocational school. All in all, this really is a very goood movie and great fun to watch. I would add that this is an obvious must-have for any Garland or Rooney fan. A BUY!

In the 1939 Mickey Rooney was among the top box office draws in the world. Judy Garland had appeared as a supporting player in two Rooney films, and the two had significant chemistry--more over, Garland had just completed photography for THE WIZARD OF OZ--a film that MGM rightly expected would launch her to international stardom. The time was right to costar the two, and MGM did it with BABES IN ARMS.

The film was released not long after OZ and was an immediate and major hit, becoming one of the most admired musicals of the year. But time has a way of changing our perspective. Seen today, BABES IN ARMS feels a little strange, a little strained, and at times just downright, well, ODD.

BABES IN ARMS was originally a Rogers and Hart show that proved a smash on the New York stage--a slightly satirical script with one of the most powerful scores of the 1930s. MGM specifically purchased the property for Rooney and Garland and then promptly threw out the script, most of the score, and transformed the thing into the tale of young teenagers who decide to put on a show in a barn.

Although well performed, the songs that replaced the original score simply do not measure up to the play's original score, and viewers are likely to be startled by a minstrel show number that find Mickey and Judy romping in blackface. In justice to the film, it should be remembered that while minstrel shows had their heyday in the late 1800s and early 1900s, they remained popular well into the 1950s, and such great stars as Al Jolson and Eddie Cantor performed in full blackface well into the 1930s. While the number is stereotypical, that was in fact the essence of minstrel show; it is not meanspirited, and if nothing else it offers a glimpse into a now dead theatrical tradition.

But weirdest of all is the grand finale "In God's Country," a strange mixture of Hollywood ballyhoo, patriotism, and fear of the European war that would soon engulf the world. In its original form, the number also included Rooney and Garland doing a take off of FDR and Eleanor; although cleverly performed and quite mild in content, this was later cut in re-release, for MGM worried it might be construed as disrespectful during wartime.

The film also has a number of distinct flaws. Director Busby Berkley was most at home with big-budget musicals that had scope for the elaborate dance numbers he favored--he's something of a fish out of water with this more intimate material, and his approach feels heavy handed. Although much admired at the time (he actually received an Academy Award nomination for Best Actor for this film), Mickey Rooney's performance is absurdly manic by modern standards, and Garland's more natural performance is too often overshadowed by his excesses. The script is as weak as the score, few of the supporting performers are memorable (Margaret Hamilton is an exception), and the whole thing has a awkward quality to it.

Even so, it's still possible to see what all the fuss was about. The film does capture an inkling of the famous Rooney-Garland chemistry--a chemistry that would fuel three more "let's put on a show!" musicals, each one more more effective than the last. It is there in every musical number the two perform, in every line, in every scene, a very real and very powerful thing. While casual viewers would do better to select either BABES ON BROADWAY or GIRL CRAZY, in spite of all its flaws, Rooney-Garland fans will likely find BABES IN ARMS an essential.

GFT, Amazon Reviewer

The plot is almost exactly like those in Mickey and Judy's other films together, eg "Strike up the Band." But still, it's better than the junky movies Hollywood makes today.
Margaret Hamilton once again is excellent as the villian, a rich, elegant woman who wants to see Mickey, Judy, and the other children sent to boarding school to get a "proper education." Like "Wizard of Oz" in which she played the Wicked Witch, she seems to be always there though she is only on screen for a matter of minutes.
All in all, this is a good family movie for a rainy Sunday afternoon.

Great old movie, good watching for the times we live in. A lot of good music.

I just saw it on TCM for only the second time in my life. I agree with most of the previous comments, but offer this anecdote. Indeed, much of the score from the stage BIA is not in the film, but that's not the ego of Freed, that's the ego of Hollywood. Hollywood has been tampering with the scores of stage musicals since the year 1. There's been stage-to-screen tampering done with SHOW BOAT, ON THE TOWN, BRIGADOON, GAY DIVORCE, SWEET CHARITY, and even A CHORUS LINE, to name a few. And Rodgers & Hart and Cole Porter were decidedly more sophisticated, adult composers; they had to endure the wrath of the puritanical Hollywood image back then. This is why I've always preferred musicals orignally created for the screen; no one looking for a stage predecessor would be offended. That was just the mentality of all film studios then. As it is, they did keep "The Lady is A Tramp" in the background and allowed "Where or When" to be performed in its entirety, albeit as part of a botched band rehearsal. But I loved the treatment of the title song (with its bonfire-rally choreography), and Judy Garland's torch solo "I Cried For You" is a stunning piece of poignancy which makes you forget that she is only 17 years old. As for the 'dated film' accusations: America just entered the war at the time of this release, and it's probably no coincidence that the film's finale "God's Country" is an especially long musical sequence. I mean, how ageless can it be with Mickey Rooney doing an impersonation of President Roosevelt?!

Mickey and Judy shine in this movie about teenagers who want thier big break in show business. In his Oscar nomitating role Mickey is an aspiring song writer who wants to prove that he is no lionger a kid. A wonderful film for musical fans and of fans of Judy Garland. I strongly recommend watching the movie that help start the careers of 2 of the most wonderful entertainers in MGM and the movie that started the "Backyard Musical" theme of "Let's put on a Show!"

In the year 1939, BABES IN ARMS was MGM's top-grosser, with ticket sales that surpassed GONE WITH THE WIND, GOODBYE, MR. CHIPS and THE WIZARD OF OZ. Busby Berkeley directed this complete rewrite of Rodgers & Hart's Broadway play.

The "let's put on our own show" plot is a convenience for some outstanding numbers, including the title song plus: "Good Morning," "Broadway Rhythm," "Where or When" and "I Cried For You" (a superb Judy solo). There's lots of chestnuts, too: "Ida! Sweet as Apple Cider," "Moonlight Bay" and "I'm Just Wild About Harry." Background music references: "Toot, Toot Tootsie (Goo' Bye!)," "Give My Regards to Broadway," "De Camptown Races," "Ja Da," "Oh! Susanna" and "The Lady is a Tramp," this instrumental being a cowardly way to shoehorn in an otherwise racy R&H song.

All VHS releases of "Babes" are missing the FDR and Eleanor "My Day" sequence that was excised after the president's April '45 death. With the WARNER/MGM DVD box set THE MICKEY ROONEY & JUDY GARLAND COLLECTION, the scene is restored, dubbed from a 16 mm print.


Parenthetical number preceding title is a 1 to 10 imdb viewer poll rating.

(6.6) Babes in Arms (1939) - Mickey Rooney/Judy Garland/Charles Winniger/Guy Kibbee/Margaret Hamilton

Babes in Arms is notable as the first smash hit Garland and Rooney teaming. It was adapated from a stage play for the screen, and probably lost some appeal in the transition. What stands is an okay film with a great cast and some interesting musical numbers.

A group of vaudevillians led by Joe Moran (Charles Winninger) are planning a big comeback to the stage, although vaudeville is losing its audience. Their kids want to help, but are brushed away. Moran's son Mickey (Mickey Rooney) brings the kids together to perform their own show and to prove to the adults that they can hold their own on a stage. Mickey's girl Patsy (Judy Garland) intends to play the lead, but Mickey thinks "Baby Rosalie" (June Preisser) might draw a bigger audience. And they have to battle Mrs. Steele (Margaret Hamilton) who wants to put them all into school.

There are lots of notable songs. The first is "Good Morning," a song used later for Singin' in the Rain. It's in its best form here with the jazz stylings of Garland's vocals and Rooney's piano playing. It's the catchiest song of the film, and the one you'll find yourself singing later. Most of the others are medleys with good and bad parts. Betty Jaynes and Douglas McPhail sing a few songs in their operatic style, which will be less appealing to mass audiences. The blackface routine might offend some audiences today, but it is really a tribute to the minstrel shows that Mickey's father started his career in. Rooney does an impression of Eddie Cantor in blackface, and also his impersonation of Clark Gable and Lionel Barrymore. However, none of the medleys have the energy that most Garland/Rooney numbers have, so they disappoint, possibly because the spotlight is shared with the lesser talented members of the cast.

I THINK ITS A GREAT MOVIE. JUDY IS JUST PLAIN MAGNIFINCENT IN IT, MICKEY IS SO COMICAL IN THE PART IN WHICH HE ACTS LIKE CLEOPATRA AND CLARK GABLE. IT'S A MUST SEE AND MUST HAVE FOR ANY JUDY GARLAND OR MICKEY ROONEY FAN.

I don't know what I was expecting with this film. I actually thought it was a war movie. I knew that it had garnered Mickey Rooney his first Oscar nomination, and well, I'm not that fond of Rooney so I wasn't really too keen on seeing the movie to be honest. But, I do love Judy Garland (and her offspring) and so I decided to check it out (that, and 1939 is on my list of years to embrace everything cinematically).

I was kind of blown away.

While I did find Rooney to be a tad hammy in parts (his true breakout performance was the year before, in `Boys Town', where he should have netted an Oscar), his performance almost seemed perfectly in tune with the direction of the film.

The film tells the story of vaudeville children who rise together to raise money for their families. Their parents were at one time big stars in the world of vaudeville, but with the influx of motion pictures, their careers have dwindled. Wanting a better life for their children, these parents feel it better to push them in a more solidified direction, but these kids have talent and they want a chance to shine as their parents once did. The ringleader of this gang seems to be Michael, a young and tempestuous boy who knows how to write a good jingle and happens to have a commanding presence with the other kids. When their parents all depart for a reunion tour in hopes of reigniting fame, the kids all band together under the wing of young Michael to put on a stage production (inside a barn) in order to raise money and pay their families debts.

Mickey Rooney may have been the star, and he may have been the Oscar nominee, but this film kind of lives and breathes inside the brilliance that is Judy Garland. Coming out the very same year she dazzled in `The Wizard of Oz', `Babes in Arms' was a wonderful vehicle to display Garland's many talents. She sings beautifully; she charms awkwardly (which is what I love so much about her) and she really understands the dramatic dimensions of this film. Her tear filled train ride alone is a major highlight to the film, for it layers her character marvelously.

Some may balk at this film and call it silly, but I don't. It is highly enjoyable and beautifully composed. It may lather on sentiment where it didn't need to, but that was the times and so it can't really be blamed for it. The film is a great movie musical that isn't recognized as profoundly as it should be. When you think of 1939 you think of `Gone With the Wind' (such a glory hog) and `The Wizard of Oz', but in all honesty, `Babes in Arms' is just as good, maybe even better.