Folias Transatlânticas

For the most part, Benjamin Stoloff's "Transatlantic Merry-Go-Round" is a typical 1930s musical. There's nothing particularly special about it.

Except for something that I found out while reading about the cast members. I already knew about Sidney Blackmer (Lee Lothar). But while reading about Patsy Kelly (Patsy), I saw that, yes, she also appeared in Roman Polanski's adaptation of Ira Levin's novel.* Patsy Kelly was also one of the few openly LGBT performers of that era; I wonder how many bigots watched this movie back in the day and didn't know that they were watching a movie starring a lesbian.

Yeah, how many people would even think to mention all those things? Anyway, the movie is what it is. A lot of attractive women, but nothing that I would call art.

*Yet another person who appeared in "Rosemary's Baby" was Emmaline Henry, who played Amanda Bellows on "I Dream of Jeannie". Talk about a weird link between two eras!

This little gem of a movie is getting harder and harder to find. It is almost 70 years old. All of the stars in this film may have been well known then but they, except for Jack Benny, are almost all unknown to viewers today.

The story is centered around a well known actress and a thief that fall in love on the cruise. She has connections to a crime boss and is trying to protect her criminal brother from the same crime boss he owes money to. The thief begins by stealing on board the boat and swindles and steals from just about everybody he sees along with his partner who works on ship as a steward. A police detective on vacation begins to figure what the thief is up to and later on attempts to solve the murder of the crime boss. In the end all the loose ends are tied up and the thief and the actress resolve their differences and move forward with their relationship.

The story is good and the support case is great. Jack Benny plays a well know radio personality that is providing the ship board entertainment along with the rest of his cast and staff. He is the quick witted, street smart good guy that has everyone pegged and helps to direct the other passengers in the right direction.

This film has several good musical numbers, typical of the day, and the comedy holds up well by todays standards. If you are able to locate this film or see that it is being aired give it a try. My guess is that you will be glad that you did.

All due credit to screenwriter Leon Gordon: this picture may be a bit of a hodgepodge as it tosses together murder and drama with comedy, and tinges of a musical, but when it's firing on all cylinders, it's pretty sharp. I don't think it's unreasonable to say that some of Gordon's best wit here is turned toward the humor, as to my pleasure this earns some hearty laughs at a few different points. This isn't to say that the feature is otherwise lacking, though the wide array of characters to whom we're introduced rides a needlepoint of being smart and engaging at some times, and dull and insubstantial at others. In fairness - meaning no disrespect to filmmaker Benjamin Stoloff, but the strength of his direction in this instance is highly variable in my opinion, and maybe that has more to do with the wavering quality of the viewing experience than Gordon's writing. With no particular rhyme, reason, or pattern, some scenes are tight and hold our attention, others just flounder (sometimes it's hard to know what tone is intended for a moment); some are ill-fitting as they present, and others pass by so blithely that one risks checking out from the movie altogether. Suffice to say that 'Transatlantic merry-go-round' is a bit of a mixed bag.

It's not outright bad, mind you, but in no time at all after it begins there develops an irregular ebb and flow in which we as viewers are alternatively locked in, and struggling to actively keep our eyes on a film that isn't especially absorbing or convincing. For example, the musical numbers may be well done in and of themselves, and the last and largest such sequence is indisputably a minor delight with its choreography and camera tricks. Yet at best these feel like an empty concession to the fact that such inclusions were broadly popular in cinema in the 30s, and at worst come across as a bad joke; other inserted diversions are even more questionable as they present. Each of the characters and story threads herein are suitably worthy for exploration, some more so than others, yet they're often treated with a passivity that renders them bland and sterile. The cast is fine, but no one specifically makes an impression; those behind the scenes turned in good work, not least with regards to the sets, costume design, and of all things the editing, though even these aren't really anything to proverbially write home about. Meanwhile, it's not necessarily the fault of this 1934 title that the sound design and image quality are less than pristine - these may just as well be a reflection of the limitations of the production, or of technology of the time, or maybe a smidgen of degradation in prints from so many decades past. Nonetheless, these facets aren't a major point in this carousel's favor, either.

There is, truly, some cleverness in 'Transatlantic merry-go-round,' most of all in the dialogue and scene writing. I did enjoy myself in some measure while watching. The problem is just that very little of the resulting picture makes a mark, and even as the various pieces come together in the last third it's overall fairly forgettable. Other aspects, like Sydney Howard playing "Dan the Drunk," grow rather stale over ninety minutes; the climactic scene of The Reveal feels too jumbled and clamorous for its own good. Under such circumstances, it's hard to give the movie much of a recommendation. It's passably entertaining for a lazy day, but I think one has their sights set entirely too high if one is going out of their way to watch. Make a note of it, sure, and set it aside for when you want something light and uncomplicated that doesn't inspire or require significant investment. Like a merry-go-round in real-life, that may be the best way to get most out of this film.

... then it would be an even better film than it is. It is all about how the lives of several passengers intertwine on a transatlantic journey. Sally Marsh (Nancy Carroll) has gotten her old friend Chad Denby (Jack Benny) to hire her on to his entertainment troupe for the voyage so that she can get her brother Ned out of town in a hurry. Underworld kingpin Lee Lother (Sidney Blackmer) , his henchmen, and his girl are on the ship, and Lother has past ties to both Sally and Ned. Actually, Lother's best girl is actually married and thinks she has pulled a fast one on her husband with this cruise, when in fact he knows what is going on and is on the same ship with murderous intentions.

So the protagonist who weaves all of these people together? Grifter Jimmy Brett, played by top billed Gene Raymond. The problem is, Jimmy is a louse, and yet the film seems to be saying we should be rooting for him. But how could I? He makes his partner in crime (Sid Sliver) work his way across the Atlantic so Jimmy can stay in first class, he is willing to steal from anybody anywhere anytime, and just because he is getting romantic with Sally, a genuinely nice gal, I'm supposed to cut him a break? Well, I'll let you see how this all works out.

Don't expect cheapskate Jack Benny of 1940 and later. At this point he is still working on his radio persona after only two years of transitioning from film to radio and doing the occasional film. Also Patsy Kelly, part of Benny's entertainment troupe, is practically background noise she is so restrained compared to her usually noisy assertive character.

Keep an eye out for the Busby Berkeley type dance number in the film, because like Berkeley's filmed dance numbers over at Warner's, the audience couldn't possibly appreciate it unless they were hanging from the ceiling, and this is not the Poseidon Adventure.

"Transatlantic Merry-Go-Round" is a Gene Raymond film with Jack Benny on hand for comic relief. Sadly, however, despite Benny as well as Patsy Kelly in the film, it's not humorous at all. In fact, it's a rather dull film filled with weird production numbers and a difficult to like leading man.

The story is set aboard an ocean liner. One of the passengers, Jimmy Brett (Gene Raymond) is a crook....and he spends much of the film trying to get the better of a gang of crooks. During the course of the film, there is also a lot of entertainment emceed by Benny....and most of it is downright silly. After all, no ship would have had such elaborate and over-the-top musical numbers...complete with camera tricks to make things appear...which makes no sense for a live show. Eventually something happens...a man is murdered and late in the movie it becomes a murder mystery...an overly wrought and silly one at that.

None of this is particularly entertaining nor interesting...and apparently Raymond's character is supposed to be a hero, but being a crook is hardly heroic. Overall, a film which looked like a comedy but ended up being a very dull movie. Not much to recommend this one.