Lucky Me
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Movie Reviews of Lucky Me
Movie Review: good story, excellent cast, great entertainment.
Summary: 5 Stars
ONE OF DORIS DAY'S BEST ROLES. GOOD STORY, EXCELLENT PERFORMANCE FROM DORIS DAY, AS USUAL, GREAT ENTERTAINMENT FROM WARNER BROS.Movie Review: "Men who pick up rusty pins marry girls with double chins"
Summary: 4 Stars
So, okay, this isn't the best Doris Day film ever. But Doris Day always had a certain quality about her, a sense of warmth and that girl-next-door cool, that I never felt my time was wasted whenever I sat down to watch her pictures. I liked LUCKY ME, even if the songs aren't classic stuff, the supporting cast not exactly top draw, even if the plot elements are beaten to death, and the humor... well, some of it is by Phil Silvers, reliably insufferable. And why do I like this movie? Two words: Doris Day. Her perkiness always was indomitable. And we all know about her singing.
LUCKY ME is another one of those back-stage musicals revolving around down-and-out stage performers trying to make it big in showbiz. Candy Williams (Day) is a talented but ridiculously superstitious singer eking out a living as part of a less than thriving musical troupe (their latest show is a skunker called "Parisian Pretties" - it draws in an audience of 13 people, which freaks Candy out). When a scheme to get out of paying for dinner backfires, the troupe gets stuck in Miami, forced to work off the bill as part of the restaurant's kitchen staff. But Candy's big break may just be around the corner when she catches the eye of a famous songwriter (Robert Cummings). But then cue all the usual misunderstandings and plot obstacles, starting with Candy's believing that the songwriter's name is actually "Eddie Szczepanski," and that Eddie is an auto mechanic.
Word is that Doris Day only did this film because of her contractual obligations, and checking out the film's hackneyed material, one can see why Doris wasn't feeling this one. The always affable Robert Cummings, whom I normally like, isn't really given much to do as the leading man and I don't think he really clicks with Doris. Meanwhile, fellow vaudevillian-type sidekicks Eddie Foy, Jr. and Nancy Walker can't overcome Phil Silver's strident schtick. And yet, despite the film's second-rate vibe, Doris Day - with her trademark vitality and spunk and warmth - makes this one an entertaining watch. If she was faking it, she fooled the heck out of me. And while none of the songs quite became standards, her vocals are a treat on "The Superstition Song," "The Blue Bells of Broadway," and my favorite song here, "I Wanna Sing Like An Angel, Dance Like The Devil." There's just something neat about how Doris presents this song and how the lyrics start out just so: "Now did you ever stop to think what happens to those freckle-faced Tom Sawyers? They grow up lawyers..."
The DVD's bonus stuff has the 20-minute nostalgia short "When the Talkies Were Young," the Oscar-nominated Looney Tunes cartoon "Sandy Claws" (featuring Tweety Bird & Sylvester the Cat), and the theatrical trailer. Also, if you look fast you might even catch Angie Dickinson making her feature-film debut (she's a brunette at the big birthday bash). So, you see, there are some things about this 1954 musical comedy that make it more than just strictly for Doris Day completists. I say, 3.5 stars out of 5.
Movie Review: Unlucky Viewer
Summary: 2 Stars
My wife and I are fans of Doris Day's and usually find that most of her movies are quality affairs. However, we found this movie to be a complete misfire and unworthy of Doris' talents. It seemed like a rush job in order to get the first cinemascope movie musical into release. The songwriting team that contributed a fine score for Calamity Jane for Doris came up empty in the inspiration department when they penned the tunes for Lucky Me.
The movie plays more like a circa early 1940's musical than a mid 1950's one, and is not nearly as sophisticated as other musicals of the period. All but a few jokes fall flat. The movie starts out quite well with a particularly cute, well-dressed and perky Doris singing the "Superstition Song" as she bops down the sidewalk of a beautiful city street in beautiful color while trying to avoid the things (sidewalk cracks, ladders, etc) that will cause bad luck, all the while creating disasters in her wake. But, after a promising start, it is downhill from there. As we neared the scene of the party near the end, the movie became like a train wreck. We were appalled by what we were seeing, but could not stop until we saw how it worked out.
It is a tribute to Doris, that, as bad as this film is, she remains delightful throughout and tries to sell every song and dance, no matter how banal. Phil Silvers got very few laughs out of me, Nancy Walker was wasted and Eddie Foy, Jr was mildly amusing. Understand that my wife and I mainly watch classic films, so we are not approaching this from a modern "all old films are boring" point of view.
We might never have seen this film if it had not been part of the otherwise excellent Doris day Collection vol.2. I almost wonder if Warners' would have sold any copies had it not been included in the set. I would avoid this one, unless you are a Doris Day completist or want to see what an early cinemascope musical was like.
Movie Review: Doris Horror
Summary: 1 Stars
The DVD cover artwork clearly says, "Doris Day and Cinemascope never had it so good!", and what do Warner Bros give us? A pan-and-scan version of the film, which means we lose exactly HALF (!!!) the film. (Cinemascope is 2.66:1, pan-and-scan is 1.33:1). Shame on you, Warners, shame!