The Age of Commercialism

If you don't like this, we can't be friends.

Although it has its amusing moments, in eneral the plot does not convince.

if their story seems completely bonkers, almost like a feverish work of fiction, you ain't heard nothing yet.

Hollywood Revue is an uneven and imperfect film and lacks the gloss of other musicals later on, however it is a very interesting historical document and I for one found it an entertaining film. Anyone who has a fondness for early Hollywood, MGM musicals, the numerous who's-who of talent on display and programmes high in variety are likely to get a kick out of Hollywood Revue, though understandably as seen with some of the reviews here there will be those who'll find it not to their tastes.The film does have crude editing in places, like in the Joan Crawford number Gotta Feelin' for You, and as with a lot of variety shows/revues not all the skits/scenes work. My least favourites were the ones with Joan Crawford and Marion Davies, Crawford looks painfully uncomfortable and Davies' is sung rather weakly and a little tedious, Your Mother and Mine is well sung but over-caked in sentiment and the song is on the dull side. Orange Blossom Time felt a little overblown and under-rehearsed. This is all personal opinion of course.On the other hand, Hollywood Revue has a lot to like, and most of the skits do work very well. A lot of it does look lovely, Singin' In the Rain's set is simple but looks lovely and there is some very clever camera work in I Never Knew I Could Do a Thing Like That with cute Bessie Love. Much of it is lavishly stage and expertly directed by Carl Reisner, while the dialogue still is humorous and while plot less the film has a great deal of fun and charm. Of the skits/numbers, personal favourites were the spectacular Singin' in the Rain, the rousing Strike Up the Band, the absolutely hilarious Tableau of the Jewels with Buster Keaton and the charming Fountain in the Park. Marie Dressler is clearly enjoying herself and is a lot of fun and while John Gilbert's bleaty voice is enough to make one wince the Romeo and Juliet number entertains with an alluring Norma Shearer and a fun Lionel Barrymore. Laurel and Hardy are a delight to see but their skit should have been longer.In conclusion, a film that is worth seeing for more than historical interest. It's uneven and won't work for a number of people but when it works it is very good and should provides much delight. 8/10 Bethany Cox

All-star talent show of MGM silent stars, many of which in their first talkie. They sing, they dance, they do comedy bits. Most of it is a poor representation of the talent of those involved. Still, I found something quaintly charming and entertaining about it. It's certainly interesting from a film history perspective. Yes, it suffers from the crudeness of sound filmmaking in these early days but I try not to hold that against it too severely.Two of the more entertaining parts were Buster Keaton's sketch and "Singin' in the Rain." But I must admit my personal favorite was the "Lon Chaney's Gonna Get You if You Don't Watch Out" number. The worst was probably Marion Davies. For as much as people bash Joan Crawford's dance routine in this, Marion Davies was a million times worse. She sang off key and did what was supposed to be dancing. Just dreadful. As for Joan, the song she did was fine I thought but yes the dancing was a little goofy looking. The flapper dances were generally graceless to begin with but this was especially silly to watch. The other segment that gets talked about a lot is the "Romeo & Juliet" part with Norma Shearer, John Gilbert, and Lionel Barrymore. This was one of the few parts of the movie done in early Technicolor. I actually don't think this was a bad segment. The part where they do Romeo & Juliet updated for modern language was amusing.Overall, it's not great but it's way better than a lot of the critiques I've read have given it credit for. If you're a film buff you should see it. Everybody else, check it out if you are already familiar with early sound films and aren't going to harp on its technical failings. If you don't have the patience for that then just avoid it and save yourself the headache.

Marion Davies' dance was fun and good. If she was more an actress than dancer, I still feel she did a great job here.Benny marvelous. Hardy a little too cruel to Laurel; it was their schtick but a little too heartless in my book. Love and Page awesome. Green tutu ballet dancers at end just marvelous. Romeo and Juliet color scene just wonderful. I liked the "modern" interpretation at the end of their scene, and couldn't quite catch the pig-Latin.By the way, Love and Page were both WAMPAS Baby Stars, so that in itself was a hoped-for prediction of their future success. I also enjoyed them, and Charles King, too, in "Broadway Melody".Keaton fabulous. Nagel debonair, of course. Dressler hilarious and excellent. Moran perfect comedic timing. The miniaturization of Bessie Love was fascinating, and how she arose in size was very good for that era of cinematography.Joan Crawford just wonderful. IRL she had been a flapper and dancer, so this part was perfect. We get a treat of watching her before she got into those later parts of mean mommy dearest and hard-working floozy.This movie was fun. I enjoyed the three guys routine of Gus, Ike and Charlie, as well as the three ladies routine of Marie, Bess and Polly. I also liked it when this group of six later performed together.This movie was just perfect. Just consider the era, the dance themes and technology of that time period. The Roaring 20s decade was coming to an end. The Stock Market Crash and Great Depression were rearing their ugly heads, and additional song and dance "stupid-nothing" movies (as alluded to by other posters, not me) would soon be appearing. These slap-happy movies would continue on through the Great Depression and ensuing World War Two. WWII musical movies would make it look like the war was just a faraway fantasy, while stateside singing and dancing escapist movies were the rage.Slow production numbers while the stars were setting up their acts got a little on my nerves. This is my only painful critique about this movie.I still loved the movie, and would see it again.15/10.

MGM's stupendously batty all star early talkie extravaganza from 1929 is a gloriously overproduced jamboree of jumping about, vaudeville comedy, tap-dancing, Minstrel antics, embarrassing and tedious comedy, and best of all - some two-color technicolor spotlights allowing for some standout moments. It is all so mad, a complete variety show more than a Follies with an endless parade of the 20s big names trying to be themselves and allow us into their glamorous lives for a few minutes. With wonderfully tinny sound, yelling, reprises galore of terrible songs - YOUR MOTHER AND MINE in particular... an underwater goddess grotto, harem aerobics, Buster Keaton being a caterpillar, people waving their arms about, annoying Ukulele Ike trilling and a finale on Noah's Ark...well yes it is The Hollywood Revue. If you love The Dawn Of Sound era and are fascinated with the Art Deco of the Vaudeville 20s then this film is a major treat. The jewel box and pearls sequence is Erte heaven. Many scenes are introduced by Jack Benny who often appears before some of the most beautiful glittering diamanté and velvet stage curtains you could imagine. Like a toy-box of musical madness, THE Hollywood REVUE OF 1929 is hilarious and annoying by turns but well worth the effort to sit through. A companion piece to GLORIFYING THE American GIRL of 1929 and KING OF JAZZ of 1930. My best tip to get friends to watch it is to play it at your next party as musical wallpaper. No sound, just the imagery playing to your own DVD collection....This is the sort of wonderful visual confection that nightclubs should play on a big wall screen. It is completely insane and unstoppable in its desire to pelt the viewer with musical silliness.. especially towards the end with trios of singing (yelling) stars leaping across the stage yowling at the camera in fantastic costumes. Marie Dressler must have nearly killed herself competing for facial contortion rights against younger and more agile stars.