Product Details

• Actors: Al Jolson, Claudia Dell, Louise Closser Hale, Lloyd Hughes, Eddie Phillips
• Directors: Alan Crosland
• Format: Black & White, DVD, Full Screen, NTSC
• Language: English
• Region: All Regions
• Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Rated: NR (Not Rated)
• Studio: Warner Bros.
• DVD Release Date: October 21, 2009
• Run Time: 68 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B002TOL4BE
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #187,831 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)
• For more information about "Big Boy" visit the Internet Movie Database (IMDb)

Editorial Reviews

With charisma, outsized singing and a fast horse, Al Jolson rides home a winner in this opened-up screen version of one of his biggest stage hits. The dynamic entertainer puts on blackface makeup to portray likable Gus, a stableman-turned-jockey who overcomes adversity and wins the Kentucky Derby after gamblers conspire to have him fired from his mount Big Boy. The role gave Jolson a chance to immerse himself in two of his great passions: the racetrack and singing, with audience-pleasers including Tomorrow Is Another Day and Liza Lee. The ebullient Jolson didn't like one of the songs in the original stage score, so he gave If You Knew Susie to Eddie Cantor. It became wide-eyed Cantor's biggest hit!

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Less musical than most of Jolson's films..., November 15, 2009

By 

calvinnme - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Big Boy (DVD)

...largely because of the fact that by the autumn of 1930, when this film was released, musical films were a sure fire miss at the box office. However, Jolson still owed Warner Brothers one more film to fulfill his contract. Thus they came up with the idea that Jolson should reenact his role as Gus in one of his Broadway hits, "Big Boy". This would allow Jolson to sing but be more likely to attract audiences familiar with the Broadway show. This required Jolson to do the entire film in black-face as a black man who is a servant on a plantation. If this had been done seriously I'm sure it would leave modern audiences aghast. However, let me assure you that through the entire film Jolson, as Gus, is kidding the audience. Let me also assure you that Gus is smarter than the family that employs him. I doubt most of them could reason their way out of a paper bag without his assistance. Gus' family has been serving the Bedford family for generations. In particular Gus is trainer and jockey for the Bedford family prize horse Big Boy. However, one member of the family has written a bad check to a girl in the city, and a gambler is using that as a threat to the young man so that he can fix the results of the Kentucky Derby. Under fear of being sent to jail if the bad check is reported to the police, the young man gets Gus fired so that a jockey that will throw the Kentucky Derby can be hired to ride Big Boy. It sounds like serious stuff, but believe me the whole thing is performed tongue-in-cheek, at least Jolson's part is.

Just because 1930 audiences had their fill of musicals did not mean they had their fill of Jolson, so at the conclusion of the film Jolson is introduced as himself without makeup to sing one song. I'd recommend this one, but you have to like Jolson and you have to remember that this film was made eighty years ago and that no harm was intended by any of the characterizations.

Also remember that this is a Warner Archive product and is therefore a DVD-R with no extras and no chapter selections. You can only go forwards and backwards in ten minute increments. Although no restoration has been done specifically for the film, the video is in pretty good shape and the audio is excellent. Jolson's songs come through loud and clear. Recommended for the Jolson fan and the early talkie fan. People unfamiliar with either Jolson or early talking film will likely not enjoy this one.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars embarrassingly dated but a vehicle for Jolson nonetheless, May 18, 2011

By 

Matthew G. Sherwin (last seen screaming at Amazon customer service) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Big Boy (DVD)

Although "Big Boy" is painfully out-of-date, it doe serve as a strong vehicle for Al Jolson. Jolson plays Gus, a horse trainer for the wealthy Bedford family, with a lot of heart and his singing and dancing during his numerous musical numbers really is quite something. Indeed, Jolson carries this with the strength of an athlete! The quality of the print and sound is not always the best; but you'll understand what they're saying without difficulty. I hope that Warner Brothers can restore this film in the near future.

When the action starts, we quickly meet Gus (Jolson) who works at Bedford Stables as a horse trainer; and he nurtures a prize horse named Big Boy from its infancy up until Big Boy is ready to run in the Kentucky Derby. The Bedford family including Aunt Bessie (Louise Closser Hale) is fond of Gus especially for his grandfather's loyalty many years prior when a villainous man tried to force one of the Bedford women to run away with him. Annabel Bedford (Claudia Dell) and Jack Bedford (Lloyd Hughes) are fond of Gus, too--but when crooks Coley Reed (Eddie Phillips) and Doc Wilbur (Lew Harvey) blackmail Jack for passing a bad check, Jack Bedford weakens and allows them to frame Gus for mishandling Big Boy just before the big race. Gus is immediately fired--so that unbeknownst to the Bedford family, Coley and Doc's own jockey Steve (Colin Campbell) can ride Big Boy--and make him lose so that their own long shot horse can win the Derby. Coley, Doc and Steve would then stand to make huge profits from their bets on their own horse at the big race.

Look for Jolson to do a fine job on his numbers even if he is in blackface; I especially liked "My Little Sunshine;" "Liza Lee;" "Tomorrow Is another Day" and "Hooray for Baby and Me."

As another reviewer notes, there is little you can do except move back or forward in ten minute intervals with this DVD; there are no bonus features.
Despite the obvious qualities that are remarkably offensive such as blackface, I recommend this film for fans of Al Jolson and musicals from the early "talkie" period. Jolson gets numerous funny one-liners as well, so anyone who enjoys comedy from this era may like this film, too.