Killer Diller

Don't be fooled by the other reviewers. Although this film contains an impressive array of talent, the material they present leaves a great deal to be desired. Nat King Cole's 3 numbers are pretty lame and not even close to his later efforts, though he does impress with his piano playing. 'Moms' Mabley is not a bit funny, though I remember her as a very entertaining talk show guest from my youth. Actually, the best performances are from a couple of fat guys who impress with a lively tap dance and a Four Tops takeoff, and the jazz band itself, especially in the number featuring the bass player. The print itself is pretty poor quality, and the wonderful Butterfly McQueen is totally wasted in the wraparound plot.

Even a z grade DVD from a battered 16mm print full of joins can NOT dampen my enthusiasm for this jaw dropping roster of vaudeville talent captured on film from the front row of The Lincoln Theatre Somewheres-ville 1947. Like Boardinghouse Blues the previous year, this film is basically a camera in the front row capturing an all black talent show...but God Almighty! what astonishing talent! The swing music and the orchestrations will keep this on play for days only to pause and gawp at The Clark Bros..two handsome slick young tappers who almost out-tap the Nicholas Bros in two high speed routines I needed to watch 77 times just to stop applauding in the privacy of my own lounge room. See 25 year old Nat King Cole and his trio and a hilarious Flip Wilson style deadpan comedian called Moms Maberly as a dry witted housewife, droll in the extreme (I almost expected her to exclaim "The Devil made Me Do It!") delivering a hilarious and well timed song called "Don't Sit On My Bed". More talent on show than any MGM musical costing a zillion dollars more, KILLER DILLER lives right up to it's name. There is a story there somewhere about a rascally invisible comedian or is that a magician who keeps disappearing with someone's girlfriend....almost like THE NIGHT THEY RAIDED MINSKY'S but gloriously all Negro and wall to wall talent! a real wow!

The plot doesn't matter much, although it is fairly important to understanding the ending (which I failed to pay attention to.) But it isn't necessary in order to enjoy the classic performances from some of the 1940s biggest acts, my favorite being Nat King Cole's silky melodies with his early King Cole Trio. But the Clark Brothers are showstoppers, and their tap routine here is no less entertaining than the Nicholas Brothers in Stormy Weather, another personal favorite. Some of the comedy material may be extremely dated, but I couldn't help but think if "Moms" Mabley's set was performed by my Grandmother...now THAT is what killed me. What surprised me most amidst all the notable performances was that any of the humor survived these 57 years, making it a barely hour-long curiosity for the brave jazz, dance, or history buff.

This is another of the filmed vaudeville shows that played to black theaters in the 40's and 50's. These films have just enough plot to string together some musical and comedy acts with varied amount of success. I've seen several of these films now thanks to bargain DVD companies and this is one of the best.

The nominal plot has a theater owner needing a magician to replace one thats disappeared. A booking agent send over a beaten ratty looking gentlemen who makes mischief between the owner and his girlfriend. The owner wants to see the magic act and the magician obliges by making the girlfriend disappear not to mention the police who come to investigate. A chase begins, which gets paused as some one remembers that the show must go on, so the doors are opened and the audience enters. What follows are some dynamite musical and comedy acts including Nat King Cole and Moms Mabley (who appeared in other films like this to better effect, but I'm quibbling). Its a great deal of fun and unlike most other films of this type there really isn't a bad act in the bunch. The film ends with the magician doing his thing...but to say any more would be telling.

Definitely a film worth searching out. No only one of the best films of this type, its also just a very good filmed piece of entertainment. Certainly the sort of thing that will bear repeated viewings, which is probably the best thing I can say about any film.

Very interesting movie made when there were all black films made exclusively for all black theatres in the 40s. The films featured popular black acts of the day.

The director of this movie also directed a number of all black movies including Hi De Ho, which is a classic.

The story is thin, but the action keeps moving forward at a good pace. Most notable is a young Mom Mabley (actually in her 50s with teeth!) and Nat King Cole, as well as Butterfly McQueen.

Parenthetically, the Wiki listing of Mom's Mabley is very confusing. It says she came out as a lesbian in 1921 at aged 27, which is not only hard to believe, but also doesn't explain how she had a bunch of kids and grand kids.

It's not a great movie, but is worth watching as a way to remember how things were in the past during segregation when producers found a profitable market with all black audiences. Interestingly, some of the action might be considered racist or stereotyped today, but one must remember that these acts played this way for black audiences and these movies were not even seen by whites until recent years when the movies were release on DVD!