Wonder Bar

source: Wonder Bar

Moviecut—Wonder Bar

Wonder Bar

I am very fond of Al Jolson, But the only film I have seen with him in it is this one. I like it quite a lot but I found it very strange; what the hell was a murder story doing in a 1930's musical? Well never mind about that, just enjoy the rest of the film, with its fantastic score by Harry Warren (music) and Al Dubin (lyrics). But there is yet another thing which I wasn't particularly fond of in this film which was Dick Powell who, I think, is overrated. If you don't like minstrels then don't see this film (it has Al Jolson in it). Despite being a great lover of music, I am not terribly fond of some of Busby Berkely's stuff, His dance sequences for example, tend to be a bit over-long. Despite the handicaps that I have written here, this film is very watchable. Enjoy. 8/10

"Why can't this go on forever?" asks gorgeous Dolores Del Rio, later a casualty of Hollywood conservatism, in this uncensored pre-Production Code spectacular from Busby Berkeley that features two men dancing off together as Al Jolson quips, "Boys will be boy, wooo!" Ever-charming Dick Powell sings the memorable title song. This brand of carefree abandon did not go on for long, and this one is a fine example of what fun movies could have been. --Musicals on the Silver Screen, American Library Association, 2013