Mardi Gras

This is one of the many teen-oriented comedy films of the mid-1950s along with movies like ''Gidget'' or ''Bernardine'' (with Pat Boone).

''Mardi Gras'' is set in a military school with some cadets that try to win a date with the queen of the Mardi Gras parade, and Pat Boone's character wins it. So he and his fellow buddies follow him to Hollywood and attend the parade. But the studio wants to capitalize the parade queen's affair with the cadet for having some publicity.

There are some nice songs, few sang by Pat Boone, like ''Bourbon Street Blues'', ''Bigger than Texas'' and ''I'll Remember Tonight''.

This was Edmund Goulding's last directorial effort, and there is a nice cast of fresh juvenile actors of those years, like Gary Crosby (Bing's son) and Tommy Sands as Boone's sidekicks. Also Dick Sargent (here billed Richard) as a fellow cadet and in one of his first movies, dancer Barrie Chase, who has a dancing moment in the movie, Sheree North in her last 20th Century Fox movie, and French movie star Christine Carere in one of her few movies made in America.

It's not a great movie, but who cares? It's great fun for all ages!

The story begins at Virginia Military Academy, where the students are apparently chosen based on singing ability, as Pat Boone, Tommy Sands and Gary Crosby are all singing friends. Their other friend is Dick Sargent...and his singing appears to be someone else actually doing the singing. I wasn't surprised by Boone or Sands...they are famous for their singing. But Gary Crosby is quite good and sounds a LOT like his famous father.

As for the plot, the VMI marching band has been invited to a Mardi Gras parade and Barry, Tony and Dick (Crosby, Sands and Sargent) come up with a money-making scheme...to arrange for a date with a famous French actress, Michelle Marton (Christine Carère) with whoever wins the raffle...which is Paul (Boone). And, would you believe it, Michelle and Paul eventually fall in love and the studio want to play this up for publicity purposes.

The songs are all very pleasant and peppy. However, none are all that memorable. This is made worse by having a few too many songs as well. Trimming a few and perhaps getting one or two blockbuster tunes might have made the musical aspect of the movie work. Overall, I think the bests things going for the movie is the location shoot in New Orleans as well as Boone, who comes off pretty well in the story. Nothing especially life-changing or amazing, but a pretty decent time-passer.

Studious cadet at a military academy wins the student raffle to travel down to New Orleans at Mardi Gras time to hopefully meet a popular starlet from Hollywood. Despite an original story by Curtis Harrington (!) and the Oscar-nominated musical direction from Lionel Newman, "Mardi Gras" seems cramped and uninspired. Pat Boone does some good work in the lead, but his blandly 'charming' cohorts are hardly appealing: Gary Crosby shamelessly pokes fun at father Bing, while Tommy Sands seems to disintegrate after his early solo and Richard (Dick) Sargent stands around with his arms folded. The early scenes at the academy work best (think "Taps" with music), however these characters are not worth following and their adventures do not reap big returns. *1/2 from ****

This movie is great for young girls. it is definitly not a guy movie. It has a lot of morals in it, which may not meet with the new generation today. it is fun to watch and good music. Great to watch during the mardi gras celebration time in new orleans. nice clean movie.

A traditional musical made at 20th just as traditional musicals were dying, and supposedly infused with vigor by casting it with several young heartthrobs: Pat Boone, Tommy Sands, Gary Crosby, Dick Sargent. But it's pretty tired. The first half-hour is an unexciting display of military academy life, with our four cadets marching, kidding each other, and affirming their good-natured camaraderie. Then they hit the Mardi Gras, where they're raffling off to their fellow cadets a date with movie star Christine Carrere. Pat wins, and their love affair is troubled by you're-a-movie-star-I'm-a-cadet, and her manager, Fred Clark, and his secretary, Sheree North, contribute supposedly witty sayings. Sheree proves, again, she should have been a much bigger star--she's pretty, she can sing and dance, and she's a natural comedienne--and there's also a comely Barrie Chase in a supporting part. The Sammy Fain-Paul Francis Webster score is miles below what they wrote for "Calamity Jane," and the wholesomeness-mixed-with-1950s-salaciousness may give you whiplash. A couple of nice numbers, though, and it's the last movie directed by Edmund Goulding, who made some great ones. Worth a look, then, but expect to be underwhelmed.