Simply A Masterpiece

Must See Movie...

A Disappointing Continuation

Let me be very fair here, this is not the best movie in my opinion. But, this movie is fun, it has purpose and is very enjoyable to watch.

This silly remake of No, No, Nanette started out with a very cute and promising premise, but it quickly fizzled out and became just another silly fifties flick. A rich socialite, Doris Day, has given entire financial control to her uncle, S.Z. Sakall, and he's squandered it in the stock market crash. She's just agreed to finance her boyfriend's play, and S.Z. hasn't the courage to tell her she's broke. Instead, they make a bet: If she can go forty-eight hours answering every question with "no" he'll give her twenty-five thousand dollars.It's a futile bet, since he doesn't have the money to give her, should she win, so it's understandable when S.Z. tries to trip her up at every opportunity. But while that gag is cute for about ten minutes, it gets old fast. The love story between Doris and Gordon MacRae isn't very compelling, and the romance between Billy De Wolfe and Patrice Wymore isn't given as much screen time, even though they're much better suited. Billy, S.Z. and Eve Arden are given ridiculous lines and gags to deliver, so you really can't blame them when they hop around the screen acting like buffoons. Screenwriter Harry Cork just didn't give them anything good to do!The only good part of the movie is Gene Nelson, an incredibly talented and overlooked dancer who no doubt hated Gene Kelly. He has a fantastic dance number in which he dances his way up and down the stairs using the banister! I'd recommend just watching that clip on YouTube and calling it a day. The rest of the movie will be a disappointment.

"Tea for Two" retooled an older (I think 1920s) musical.This movie is just fun. No big layers...no cosmic statements on the state of the world...Watch it when you want to just relax, watch a movie (where you don't have to shield your young son's eyes), Hear some charming old tunes.Doris Day is a charming American girl / woman in most of her movies---and is what's called a "triple Threat" She CAN sing, Dance AND act! You Movie makers and PLAYWRITERS---esp if you are post Y2K...Rent or DVR a huge pile of these charming old musicals... Watch & listen - as MOST people still respond and still LIKE the charming musical...Absorb their basic structure. Understand WHY these musicals are so GOOD! And write your own musical!!! If you write the quality script / musical / and pretend that Little Brother or your little girl cousin might walk through the room and see your musical ... there are still millions and millions and millions and millions and millions of us - waiting to see n hear YOUR Musical!!! (Just look how well High School Musical did a few years back!!!)

This film peaks near its beginning with a production number featuring Doris Day and Gene Nelson dancing with both an infinity mirrored wall and the New York skyline showing outside (of some huge windows). The later production number, a blend of "No, No Nanette" and "Tea for Two", is tellingly anti-climatic.The plot is easy - Ms. Day has to say "No" to everything for a day. But, the movie goes on and on with several songs and dances having little/nothing to do with the story. Other characters and sub-plots are thrown in; with all the extra songs and dances, I have no trouble believing everything in this film was not in the original "No, No Nanette". Some of it all is very good - Day and MacRae sing well, Mr. Nelson dances well, and Eve Arden does her thing - but this feels more like a string of songs and scenes than a movie. ***** Tea for Two (9/1/50) David Butler ~ Doris Day, Gordon MacRae, Gene Nelson, Eve Arden

It's on her tombstone at the cemetery in Westwood, a few paces down from Marilyn Monroe. See her movies and you will know why.Also see or hear "Our Miss Brooks" from radio or TV if you can find it. The movie version was not so great.Interesting trivia is that Doris and DeWolfe were great friends and he later appeared on her TV show playing the same type of character. Hmm, wonder if Rock and Paul Lynde ever guested on that show?"Cuddles" S.Z. is adorable as ever here, but it's Eve's line, (you can swear she's staring into the camera) "Does this strike anyone else as being totally imbecilic?" which sums up the movie...