Rock-a-Bye Baby

I've read the preceding comments and they pretty much tell the story of why this is a classic Jerry Lewis film. However, I think one of the reasons I love this one so much is that it also captures a feel for what life was like growing up in the fifties (as I did). In many ways it typifies the fifties mindset, but also exemplifies the entertainment of the period. Things were so much more family-oriented. Sex wasn't non-existence in films, but it was more often handled tastefully. Language was wholesome and the humor didn't depend on "shock" (such as the name of Navin Johnson's dog in The Jerk).

I find the segment in Hill Valley of the fifties in Back to the Future especially enjoyable as Robert Zemeckis does a great job of re-creating the era. Watching Rock a Bye Baby, which is authentically of the era confirms that. (In fact, the court house and town square in both of these films appear to have a striking similarity to one another.)

Although the story owes a lot to The Miracle of Morgan's Creek as inspiration (and even gives Preston Sturges credit), it really has its own unique flavor as well. Like a son who bears a resemblance to his father but also has his own personality. In many ways I think that Frank Tashlin has improved upon it. The subplot with the sister and its resolution are wonderful additions.

Over all I think it is a great film and can't wait till it's available on DVD (Is anybody listening?).

I used to love Jerry Lewis films as a kid, and although I prefer the Lewis/Martin combos to his solo efforts, this would have to be one of my favorites.

I never used to like this, I found the slapstick unfunny, but it has grown on me over the years. Although the first 15-30 minutes aren't great, once Lewis is looking after the triplets there is a lot of fun to be had here, and Lewis plays his character with great pathos, in fact some parts of his performance are enough to bring tears, the way he portrays Claytons unrequited love for Carla.

The film also includes some lovely songs, particularly the Italian lullaby he sings with Papa Naples.

Recommended!

This is another typical Jerry Lewis comedy. Overall, it will make you laugh. But more, this is a musical that makes you laugh. Jerry Lewis hits a home run for his typical audience. No surprises here, if you are a fan of his work, this is a treat. Then again, the supporting cast including Marilyn Maxwell, Connie Stevens and Salvatore Baccaloni make it more than just a Jerry Lewis comedy. Baccaloni is perfect. At first you hate him and then love him. Connie Stevens is beyond beautiful. She is as sexy as she can be for the decade. She plays the perfect girl next door who is head over heels for Jerry. The trick is, it is Jerry who is playing hard to get. This adds to the wonderful genre that Lewis created in his comedies. This is a nice story that offends nobody. This is hard to do when making a successful comedy. Somewhere, usually someone is the butt of the joke. Here, Jerry is the butt as well as the rest of the cigarette (wink wink).

I have to admit I've never been a rabid Jerry Lewis fan (even with a French last name, I can't join some of my relatives on the Continent in idolizing him), but, in looking back, I've seen more of his movies than I might have preferred. This one, though, was a lot of fun, possibly because it was a delightfully vulgar remake of a Preston Sturges classic.

The VistaVision/Technicolor production values are first-class; the supporting cast is able to withstand Jerry's frantic goofiness (especially Marilyn Maxwell, who gets to perform the wacked-out production number, "White Virgin of the Nile," and Ida Moore as Jerry's elderly landlady, avidly and simultaneously consuming every product being advertised on the TV she is constantly watching); and Frank Tashlin's direction pilots Jerry through the plot's crazy machinations with just the right touch of cartoon-like unreality.

If you're a Lewis fan, it's a must-see; if you aren't you may still find it an enjoyable way to spend a mindless 103 minutes.

It might be redundant to say that Jerry Lewis did his best work with Frank Tashlin as director, either by himself or with Dino. He was a comic genius, but it took another genius to bring out the best in him.

Paramount dusted off the Preston Sturges classic The Miracle Of Morgan's Creek for Lewis in his early years as a solo entertainer. When he was with Dean Martin, Paramount was always remarking earlier hits for the team so this was in tradition. It took a lot of rewriting because Lewis's raucous type of comedy is far different than Eddie Bracken's more gentle schnook like character. Still Jerry does generate a lot of whimsy and pathos in his character of Clayton Poole.

It seems years ago Lewis had a big old torch for Marilyn Maxwell who left town and became a Hollywood Star. Maxwell's younger sister Connie Stevens is also crushing out on Lewis, but he can't see for the glare in Maxwell's spotlight.

Marilyn is now in a family way expecting triplets as a result of a marriage to a bullfighter who died in the arena after the honeymoon. It was all a blur and she can't remember where she got married, only that she did.

Her agent Reginald Gardiner fixes up the answer, have her go away to quietly give birth, then send them to her old friend Lewis to take care of. Later she can adopt. Hey, it worked for Loretta Young back in the day.

Of course Jerry gets fond of the three and goes to extraordinary lengths to tend to the kids. His scenes with the infants are both Tashlin and Lewis at their best.

The only real criticism I have is Lewis's best comic moment is unfortunately right at the beginning where he gets involved with a some loose chimney bricks, a runaway firehose, and a great deal of chimney soot, wreaking havoc for the whole neighborhood. Something that good should have been saved for last.

Rockabye Baby is not quite the classic of Miracle Of Morgan's Creek, but it's right up there with some of Jerry's best.