Meet the People (1944)

User Rating:

5.7/10   

Director:

Charles Reisner

Writers:

Sol Barzman (short story) and
Ben Barzman (short story) ...

Release Date:

11 June 1945 (Sweden)

Genre:

Comedy | Musical | Romance

Plot:

Shipyard worker Bill Swanson writes a wartime play celebrating the American spirit. He meets theatre actress Julie Hampton...

Plot Keywords:

Shipyard | Actress | New York City | Auction | Entertainer

Cast

Lucille Ball	...	Julie Hampton
Dick Powell	...	William 'Swanee' Swanson
Virginia O'Brien	...	'Woodpecker' Peg
Bert Lahr	...	The Commander
Rags Ragland	...	Mr, Smith (as 'Rags' Ragland)
June Allyson	...	Annie
Vaughn Monroe and His Orchestra	...	Themselves
Spike Jones and His City Slickers	...	Themselves
Steven Geray	...	Uncle Felix (as Steve Geray)
Paul Regan	...	'Buck'
Howard Freeman	...	Mr. George Peetwick
Betty Jaynes	...	Steffi
John Craven	...	John Swanson
Morris Ankrum	...	Monte Rowland
Miriam LaVelle	...	Miriam - Acrobatic Dancer

Runtime:

100 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Sound System)

Certification:

Sweden:Btl | Australia:G | USA:TV-G (TV rating) | USA:Approved (PCA #9748) | USA:Passed (National Board of Review)

Company:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Trivia:

In a radio interview, Spike Jones stated that the ape that plays Hitler is the same ape that appears in the Tarzan movies.

Quotes:

William 'Swanee' Swanson: Yeah, I know where to reach you - back in 1912, under a ton a stale ideas.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "The Sopranos: Soprano Home Movies (#6.13)" (2007)

Soundtrack:

Piano Instrumental

Dull plot, boring music, even Spike Jones and Lucille Ball couldn't save it.

I went into this movie hoping for the best. I like wartime musicals in general. Dick Powell and Lucille Ball did good jobs with their roles; however, the writers gave them boring dialog. The love-interest between the two of them was not given any real growth; just suddenly it was there. I did not think much of the music; the best number was the snippet we heard of Spike Jones with "Der Fuhrer's Face." The one complete number that Spike Jones did had little of his great musical comedy; pretty tame stuff,even with the monkey. Bert Lahr's comedy skits were interminable.

There were parts to enjoy: Lucille Ball was quite a looker, and there was a good selection of bit players who really deserved more time on screen.