Lilly, A Teimosa

Too bad that JUDY GARLAND was at her most attractive, photographed with great skill and looking fabulous--while coping with a script that had to be an insult to anyone's intelligence--even way back in 1943!

VAN HEFLIN proves that he had a certain comic flair (although a little exaggerated) and was certainly worthy of a better role than the one he copes with here. Supporting players Spring Byington and Fay Bainter lend solid support--but it's all just too weak in the story department for anyone to overcome the ridiculous script.

Judy manages to get through the material in good shape--showing comic skill in many scenes and emotional maturity in others. The ending is rather predictable and is followed by a show biz finale that seems to be tacked on to give the film a plush fade-out in which Garland has a change to dazzle us with her musical talent. Which she does.

But, all in all, lacks the charm and credibility it should have had to make it truly worth watching. Among the supporting players, Connie Gilchrist and Richard Carlson do some nice work. Carlson is surprisingly gifted at comedy and should have attempted more such roles.

Worth noting: the doorknob business is the only original touch in the whole show!

The film itself is a lopsided affair with some heart and decent performances. It also features the Bob Crosby and Tommy Dorsey orchestras in a couple of notable musical sequences. Although this is Judy Garland's show, MGM strangely showcases operatic star Martha Eggerth a little too much and her presence mostly drags the film into headache territory. Thank God Garland makes up for it with a couple of terrific numbers of her own that show off her flair for comedy as well as singing and dancing.

The story doesn't hit target centre overall but it's not terrible and things do move at a nice pace, and Van Heflin turns in his usual capable performance. Garland simply outshines the material and it's a shame the writers missed so many opportunities for a more balanced and meaningful story.

Not a great film, or maybe even one of Garland's best, but she's great in it and her fans won't be disappointed.

Presenting Lily Mars may have provided Judy Garland with one of the easier roles she had while at MGM because Lily Mars is definitely a character she could identify with. A young girl with talent enough for ten, she knows she has what it takes to make it in the theater no matter how much producer Van Heflin from her home town discourages her.

I really liked Judy in this one as the girl determined to make it in the theater. Because it is Judy Garland with the talent of Judy Garland you in the audience know she has the right stuff even if it takes Van Heflin nearly the whole movie to be convinced.

Both Judy and Heflin hail from the same small town, Heflin's dad was the town doctor who delivered her and Heflin while he may have moved away and become a big producer on Broadway, their respective moms, Fay Bainter and Spring Byington have kept in touch. That's her entrée, but Heflin's constantly barraged with stagestruck kids, but never anyone quite like Lily Mars.

No real big song hits came out of Presenting Lily Mars for Garland, though she sings all her numbers. The best in the film is a revival of that gaslight era chestnut, Every Little Movement Has A Meaning All Its Own. Judy sings it with Connie Gilchrist playing the cleaning lady in a Broadway theater where Heflin's show is being produced. Gilchrist was a star back in the days of the FloraDora Girls and she and Judy deliver the song in grand style with Connie. It's the best scene in the film as Gilchrist encourages Judy to keep at it. Composer Karl Hoschna had died a long time ago, but lyricist Otto Harbach was still alive and I'm betting he liked what he heard.

European musical star Marta Eggerth is in Presenting Lily Mars as the show's star who's at first bemused, then angry and finally, understanding of Garland and Heflin. She did a couple of films with MGM and then went back to Europe for more work on the continent. I'm betting MGM didn't quite know what to do with her and her thick Hungarian accent, though Louis B. Mayer never met a soprano he didn't like.

Van Heflin does well as the patient producer who puts up with a lot from Garland and Eggerth. Heflin was just coming off his Oscar for Johnny Eager the previous year and he and Garland wouldn't appear to be an ideal screen team, but they're not bad together.

Presenting Lily Mars is a fine showcase for the talents of Judy Garland. And she didn't have to share the screen in another backstage film with Mickey Rooney.

Presenting Lily Mars is one of a genre of film that sadly seems to have disappeared with the studio system. Ok now that you know my bias, here are some reasons I think this movie does stand out.

1. Although the basic plot - Lily Mars (Judy Garland) goes to New York, becomes a star, and wins the heart of her director (Van Heflin) is a pretty stock Hollywood story of the period, the writers do vary the theme her a bit more than usual. Although Lily gets her big break when the star quits, she isn't successful and has to swallow her pride and go back to playing a minor role in the show.

2. Judy Garland (enough said!)

3. The supporting cast includes some really great performances. Spring Byington as Lily's mother is truely wonderful, as is Fay Bainter (the mother of the director - John Thornway (Van Heflin)). The standout supporting performance though goes to character actress Connie Gilchrist as Frankie, a one time actress turned theater custodian.

Worth a watch for sure. One of those movies that are designed to make you feel better about the world and your dreams.

First of all, she never looked better... sort of the apotheosis of all that evil energy MGM spent in turning Frances Gumm into Judy Garland. Blondish (and not a wig), thin (but not too thin), energized and comic (working her mannerisms rather than the reverse), and she sounds great. Moreover, Hollywood and Tarkington were made for each other, and the payoff works here as well. Clever americana, with truly inspired set pieces surrounding Judy's attempts to get "discovered" by "local boy makes good" producer, Heflin.

The tacked-on, mega-production ending is a real clunker and can leave a bad aftertaste. Avoid the ending if you can pull yourself away. But for this grandiose, ill-fitting finale, an almost perfect Garland musical and as good as she gets (which is the best singing actress ever to grace the screen).

One more point in Garland's favor: she plays the perfect "straight man" in two comic scenes with her on screen younger sister. Given Garland's reputation, let alone the instincts of any actor not to be upstaged, one can't but admire her generosity. Her self-confidence and generosity in these scenes make the film that much funnier and stronger.