Mississippi

I got lucky and copied Mississippi from I think AMC, about a hundred years ago. My wife and I LOVE IT!...for Joan Bennet...Bing...Gail Patrick...and of course WC.

The film and its characters has a sense of purity, of well, virginity about it that is hard to define yet easy on the eyes.

Every now and again, my wife will imitate WC's classic: "...cutting my way through a wall of human fleeeesh..." and we will sit down to watch it yet again. And love it all over again.

Mississippi may not be one of Field's best movies, but it ranks as one of our favorites.

I haven't seen Mississippi in years but would buy it if released to video. Sometimes less is more and that is the case with W.C. who is hilarious in a supporting role. I suspect the movie would raise the PC bar higher than it's owner cares to leap, but if you get a chance to see it and you are a Field's fan it is well worth the time.

I've seen this about twice, but many years ago. Perhaps a corny, old fashioned melodrama, but you get the combination of a very young Bing Crosby singing sweetly, and a very funny W.C. Fields. In one scene, Fields' character is setting in the Cabin bragging (telling lies,of course) about his exploits as an "Indian Fighter". A "Cigar-Store Indian" is being carried along the deck, and as it passes his window, he does a double-take, and proclaims: "Of course now, the Red Man and I have smoked the pipe of peace". I believe that circa 2001 some people find this racist. I felt that scene actually MADE FUN of his blustering attitude, and gave all people of good nature a laugh on the character.

I love W.C. Fields films. This was THE reason I watched "Mississippi"...to see and hear Fields. However, I've hesitated for some time because I really LOVE Fields but am not exactly a huge fan of musicals....especially comedy musicals. "Mississippi" certainly is a comedy musical with a romantic subplot as well. As a result, often the comedy certainly is secondary...well, perhaps tertiary, as there's also a plot involving a Quaker and his perceived manliness. Some folks like this sort of thing, but like the Laurel & Hardy films "March of the Wooden Soldiers" and "The Devil's Brother", I am a bit cold about this sort of hodgepodge...so my hopes for "Mississippi" were rather low.

The story is set mostly on a riverboat filled with entertainers (much like in the movie "Showboat"). Fields plays the captain of the ship (though he calls himself 'The Commodore') and has a few funny interludes here and there. But the main plot involves Tom Grayson (Bing Crosby)...who is engaged with Elvira. However, when Grayson is challenged to a duel over nothing of great importance, he refuses. After all, he's a Quaker AND the matter simply didn't seem worth killing a man over anyway. Well, in antebellum Southern society where Elvira lives, a man isn't a man unless he blows another man's brains out over the least little afront and so she breaks the engagement because Grayson is supposedly a coward. This provides an opportunity for Lucy (Joan Bennett), as she secretly loves Grayson...but she's being sent off to a girls finishing school and he's headed for a job on the riverboat. In the meantime, aboard the boat, the Commodore begins telling everyone that Grayson is the notorious Colonel Steele...a singing killer!!!

While towards the end of the film Crosby doesn't act very Quaker-like, I was surprised that I enjoyed this film and it's various plots. The singing wasn't great, even if the songs were by Rodgers & Hart, but the two subplots were pretty enjoyable. It's well worth seeing...though I would have preferred all Fields and nothing else! By the way, I am pretty sure today that many would be offended by this film. It depicts a highly idealized view of the South and slavery. It also has Fields using a pejorative slur that IMDB won't even allow me to write in this review! A word that was perfectly acceptable back in 1935...but certainly not in 2020. I say watch it...but just be aware of this.

Have been trying for years to find a copy of this one. Saw it a few times and enjoyed it more each viewing when it was on TV back in 60s Los Angeles. Crosby playing the 'Killer' Col Steele/Tom Grayson is a totally different Bing at times, although he does manage to belt out a few tunes. If you liked Gail Patrick in 'My Man Godfrey' you'll also enjoy her in a very similar role here, as the sister who does not appreciate a good man. But the real treat is Fields as the riverboat captain. He's only a supporting character here but his scenes with wooden Indians and his recollection about shooting off a man's nose are hilarious. FIND IT IF YOU CAN AND ENJOY!