Universal was such a second tier studio in the 1940s this musical is very endearing in it's tackiness. It's made with their "names" - Turhan Bey, Susannah Foster, Maria Montez, Donald O'Connor and Peggy Ryan, Ann Blyth - and directed by old Charles Lamont.
The film is a rip off of those 20th Century Fox musicals of the time - they'd star John Payne, Betty Grable, June Havoc, etc and were set in the gay 90s and be about squabbling saloon owners who fall out over a girl. Those had more unity than this which has a more episodic storyline - I think to bring in all the stars.
The leads are Jack Oakie (who was in a few of them at Fox) and Donald Cook. They fall out over singer Maria Montez... only she doesn't appear until an hour in despite her top billing. It's fun to see her - she's slightly more animated here than in her technicolor films. (Having said that it's ashame this wasn't in colour - it would have suited it, and maybe this would be more remembered if it was).
The main plot of the first bit of the movie concerns pianist Turhan Bey (!) in love with singer Susanna Foster. He's creepily possessive, though that was a romance trope at the time - she's injured, he stands by her... then the plot switches to Cook-Montez.
There are turns by Donald O'Connor and Peggy Ryan (singing one song), Ann Blyth. Andy Devine is in it. So too is Evelyn Ankers. Someone plays Lilian Russell. No Lon Chaney Jnr though.
There's plenty of production value. Donald Cook isn't as good as a John Payne or George Montgomery but Jack Oakie is very good, Foster is perfectly cast, Montez and Bey offer novelty outside their normal exotic settings. I actually enjoyed it a lot.
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