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Let's Dance is a Betty Hutton movie. Fred Astaire may have equal billing, but Hutton dominates the picture. Her mixture of tomboy boisterousness and unrelenting brashness makes the casual and easy-going Astaire seem as relevant as Percy Kilbride trying to catch up with Marjorie Main. During the Forties, audiences loved Betty Hutton. She was hugely insecure, which probably accounted for her need to give 150 per cent, when 90 per cent would have served her better.

With Let's Dance, It's almost startling to see how Fred Astaire has difficulty establishing his presence against Hutton's unremitting energy. It doesn't help that the songs, written by Frank Loesser, are tailored more to Hutton's strengths than they are to Astaire's. None of the songs are noteworthy, and they often blend heavy rhythmic repetition, loudness and jitterbug style with ample opportunity for Hutton to mug and exaggerate. Even the one romantic song, "Why Fight the Feeling," is given to Hutton first to deliver as a comic vamp. Loesser had written for Hutton before and he knew her strengths.

The story is about Kitty McNeil (Betty Hutton), an entertainer for the troops, who marries a rich, socialite Army pilot in London in 1945. He dies shortly after, shot down, but not before Leaving Kitty with child. Fast forward five years later when Kitty and her son are living with the boy's very rich great grandmother. The woman, snobbish and high in society, believes Kitty is unsuitable as a mother to the boy. But Kitty escapes the mansion with her son and, after a few tribulations, gets a job as a cigarette girl in a nightclub. But guess what? Her partner during the war years had been Don Elwood (Fred Astaire). They had sort of loved each other. They met by accident in a cheap diner after Kitty had kidnapped her son. It was Don who helped her get the job in the nightclub where Don did some dancing while he tried to establish himself as a financial whiz. The story goes on and on. For Kitty, she must fight off her son's great grandmother and the woman's lawyers. She has Don to help her. Of course, all the people in the nightclub, from the owner to the cooks to the dancers, fall for the little boy and try to help Kitty, too. All the while she and Don are edgily moving closer...a kind of boy and girl love each other, boy loses girl, then repeat three times. Finally, boy gets girl along with a five-year-old stepson.

But this is an Astaire movie, sort of, so what of the singing and dancing? "I Can't Stop Talking About Him" is the opening number, sung and danced before the troops in 1945 by Kitty and Don. Kitty is in a bright pink dress, Don in drab Army brown. Your eyes tend to focus on Hutton and the dress. Hutton sings the song and she and Astaire dance. It's all in the Hutton style, loud. Astaire dances a rehearsal number with two pianos, clambering over and under them and playing some piano himself. "Jack and the Beanstalk" is a hip version of the old fairy tale which Astaire sings to Kitty's little boy. It's not that bad, and Astaire gets to make a long bean stalk out of a newspaper while singing it, but it's little more than specialty material. "Oh, Them Dudes" is a raucous cowboy song and dance with Hutton and Astaire gussied up like old-time mustachioed cowboys. Astaire did this kind of thing better with Judy Garland in Easter Parade's "Couple of Swells" and would do it better again with Jane Powell in Royal Wedding's "How Could You Believe Me...." "Why Fight the Feeling," Astaire has said, was a song he liked a lot. In Let's Dance, it just doesn't get a chance to establish itself. The movie's finale, "Tunnel of Love," is another loud production number tailored much more to Hutton than Astaire. They sing and they dance, but Hutton is mugging all the way.

Let's Dance features some pleasant comic turns by Roland Young and Melville Cooper, as well as solid character actors such as Ruth Warrick, Shepperd Strudwick, Barton MacLane and George Zucco.

This film was hurried into production to take advantage of Fred Astaire's availability, part of the agreement MGM signed with Paramount in order to get Betty Hutton on loan to do "Annie Get Your Gun" at Metro. It is such standard fare that it pales when one thinks of Hutton's great triumph earlier in the year with "Annie." She and Fred Astaire were poorly matched given his sophistication and her frenetic singing and dancing. If only the musical comedy had some decent songs it could have gotten by on those alone. Unfortunately, there are few songs and they are mostly unforgettable, save Astair's dance routine on, over and under a grand piano and with a hat rack. There is a comedy song and dance number, "Them Thar Dudes" in which the two stars dress up as a couple of western dudes - both with fake mustaches - and sing and dance a fun and funny number. However, Astaire looks positively pained having to slum as low as this while Hutton steals the song because it is up her alley. There is an embarrassing number for Hutton when she starts singing a love song while her dress - in the rear - gets overheated. This film shows how brilliant Hutton was when she was given good material. The most accessible, direct and embracing singing voice of her time, Betty Hutton always surpassed her material when singing but, as with this film, was given to slapstick and overacting when clearly a director did not have control over her. Such is the fate of this film.

The film is engaging because it has at its core the old "mother running with her child from the evil relatives while the Knight is on his way and may or may not make it in time" plot. Because of the material Hutton comes off as Hutton while Astaire suffers badly, saved the minute he begins to tap his feet or open his mouth to sing. Two legends in a mediocre film make it a must see if you are a fan of either or both of the legends.

I don't know what movie others are watching BUT! Just watch the opening number and you can see the chemistry between Astaire and Hutton! Them dudes will blow you away at how original it is and I do not see anyone doing this number today. Sure it's not hard drama but Astaire movies usually are not meant to be so. Astaire is and will be one of the greatest dancers ever! Not my opinion but fact. Perhaps those who trash this movie just like it because Hutton has top billing, coming off her success in Annie get your gun. Your either a Hutton fan or not and for me this is one of those hidden jems! Watch it and judge for yourself and at a very reasonable price on a certain jungle site it is worth the money! TRUST ME!

With a little editing and a better finale, Let's Dance could've been a great musical. It starts out with a bang, and rides along on a fun and energetic high for the first 2/3 of the film. Then, the storyline of Hutton trying to retain custody of her child starts to drag on too long. As if to make up for the slow last third of the movie, the director then tacks on a short and overly simplistic ending, as if he wasn't sure how to get out of the film. Even with these problems, though, I was pleasantly surprised by how much fun this was. Hutton had tremendous energy as a comedienne and singer, and she sparkles through most of the film. Astaire also seems to be having a great time and shows a zany side that's quite delightful. There are several good musical numbers and two "must-see" dance pieces. In the first, Fred dances around, under, on top of and inside a piano, and he also gets to show off his lesser-known but fairly impressive skills as a pianist. This number has to rank among his all-time most enjoyable. The second great number has Fred and Hutton dressed as cowboys in a saloon, and it's a hilarious and wonderful routine. I cringed a bit when I read that Astaire was doing a cowboy number, but he's just as great in boots and blue jeans and he was in top hat, white tie and tails. There's some very good comedy writing in the film, and the secondary actors all do a fine job. Despite its slow and repetitive last section, Let's Dance is definitely worth watching. And some of the dance numbers deserve repeated viewing. An unexpectedly fun and funny film.

The movie only gives us about five musical numbers, but they are each wonderful. "Them Dudes Are Stealing Our Dance" has to rank in the top ten of best musical numbers for both of them. There really isn't any romantic chemistry between Astaire and Hutton. She was 30 years old and Astaire was 51. I suspect the age difference was the problem, he really was old enough to be her father. The plot is a little too simplistic and there aren't many surprises. Betty is more interested in keeping her child from the hands of a vindictive mother-in-law than in her romance with stock broker-entertainer Astaire. What is great in the film is Betty Hutton's performance. She is hilarious, energetic and in super form dancing and singing. She did it between "Annie Get Your Gun" and "The Greatest Show on Earth". If you liked her in those movies, you'll like her here. The film is light and fluffy and entertaining as hell.