I loved some of the Andy Hardy films. All of the Hardy films with Judy Garland were great because I just love Judy so much. Especially "Love finds Andy Hardy" with Judy's wonderful tearjerking song "I'm just an in between". And I loved all the backyard Judy/ Mickey musicals i.e. " Babes on Broadway", "Strike up the band", etc. I also loved " Andy Hardy's double life" cause I love Esther Williams and that was her sweet debut.
"The Hardy's ride high" was one of my least favorites of the series for several reasons. Andy makes a very stupid move with a beautiful girl which I explain more later in this review. Judge Hardy was a little more over the top here than normal. His usual honest, sensible character here seemed a little less sensible here than normal, such as his reaction to when Andy told Dad how he spread a bunch of lies about him being a dumb drunk. Dad/Judge didn't even have a reaction, which I didn't quite get. I also don't get how Andy told lies about his dad that extreme, when his dad had always been so good to him. Compared to how a lot of fathers have treated their kids in more recent times, Andy's dad was very good to him. The Hardy's fly to Detroit in this film and are looking at possibly inheriting 2 million dollars. Wow, for 1942, that's like the good life for the rest of their lives and then some. We get a look at the old style passenger propeller planes of the 40s before jet aircraft were invented. And back then, only the very rich flew, which the Hardy's were in this film. The middle classes usually travelled long distance by train back then. We also get a look at a Detroit car factory, Detroit being the city of car building since the early 1900s. General Motors had been there since the 1920s. Anyway, Andy meets this guy who invites him to a chorus girl club. At the club right away, this dancing beauty winks and smiles at Andy, and gives him her address to come over to her place after the show. What is it Micky Rooney had that made him such a ladies man? Even other characters in his films seem to keep asking him that. Anyway, this is the part where Andy makes the stupidest move. He's at the girl's apartment. The place looks very nice and fancy, bottles of liquor, and a maid addressing him formally, "Wont you please come in Mr. Hardy". Then the girl shows up looking so gorgeous, dressed stunningly, and showing Andy the utmost pleasure, interest, gentleness, flirting smiles and warmth. What does Andy do? He runs! He runs away as fast as he can. I DON'T GET THAT. I could somewhat understand him not wanting to cheat on Ann Rutherford/Polly, but she already cheated on him in this film with " Mr. Fancy pants". Besides, Andy and Ann were never that committed, they were always fooling around with other people. They were always "on again, off again". Sort of like Kevin Arnold and Winnie Cooper in the " Wonder Years". Anyway, how could Andy run away from that wonderful beauty who invited him for special, personal, one on one time in her lavish apartment? I don't get it! Then he drops and loses his friend's $170 cigarette case while running away in his sudden case of idiocy. That and Judge Hardy not being all up to scratch in this film is the reason I gave it a 6.
"The Hardy's ride high" was one of my least favorites of the series for several reasons. Andy makes a very stupid move with a beautiful girl which I explain more later in this review. Judge Hardy was a little more over the top here than normal. His usual honest, sensible character here seemed a little less sensible here than normal, such as his reaction to when Andy told Dad how he spread a bunch of lies about him being a dumb drunk. Dad/Judge didn't even have a reaction, which I didn't quite get. I also don't get how Andy told lies about his dad that extreme, when his dad had always been so good to him. Compared to how a lot of fathers have treated their kids in more recent times, Andy's dad was very good to him. The Hardy's fly to Detroit in this film and are looking at possibly inheriting 2 million dollars. Wow, for 1942, that's like the good life for the rest of their lives and then some. We get a look at the old style passenger propeller planes of the 40s before jet aircraft were invented. And back then, only the very rich flew, which the Hardy's were in this film. The middle classes usually travelled long distance by train back then. We also get a look at a Detroit car factory, Detroit being the city of car building since the early 1900s. General Motors had been there since the 1920s. Anyway, Andy meets this guy who invites him to a chorus girl club. At the club right away, this dancing beauty winks and smiles at Andy, and gives him her address to come over to her place after the show. What is it Micky Rooney had that made him such a ladies man? Even other characters in his films seem to keep asking him that. Anyway, this is the part where Andy makes the stupidest move. He's at the girl's apartment. The place looks very nice and fancy, bottles of liquor, and a maid addressing him formally, "Wont you please come in Mr. Hardy". Then the girl shows up looking so gorgeous, dressed stunningly, and showing Andy the utmost pleasure, interest, gentleness, flirting smiles and warmth. What does Andy do? He runs! He runs away as fast as he can. I DON'T GET THAT. I could somewhat understand him not wanting to cheat on Ann Rutherford/Polly, but she already cheated on him in this film with " Mr. Fancy pants". Besides, Andy and Ann were never that committed, they were always fooling around with other people. They were always "on again, off again". Sort of like Kevin Arnold and Winnie Cooper in the " Wonder Years". Anyway, how could Andy run away from that wonderful beauty who invited him for special, personal, one on one time in her lavish apartment? I don't get it! Then he drops and loses his friend's $170 cigarette case while running away in his sudden case of idiocy. That and Judge Hardy not being all up to scratch in this film is the reason I gave it a 6.