Bright, fun Technicolor musical comedy starring the ravishing Virginia Mayo and Ronald Reagan. It's a loose reworking of The Male Animal. Mayo plays a burlesque dancer and aspiring writer who enrolls in the college where her former high school teacher (Reagan) is now a professor. As you might expect, she isn't welcome with open arms by the conservative college administration. Ronnie's in her corner though and fights for her right to an education. This is really Virginia Mayo's show the whole way. Aside from looking gorgeous she does a fantastic job playing the level-headed dancer who wants to make something more of herself. Opening burlesque number is a treat her fans will love. Virginia Mayo is one of two actresses that readily spring to mind when I think of the beauty of Technicolor; the other being Esther Williams.
The college campus set was pretty. The grass was so green it looked like AstroTurf! Reagan's house was also pretty. I love Technicolor. One odd thing is that in an upstairs bedroom there is a picture of an old rival of Ronnie's on the wall. This seems to be there just to start a conversation between Ronnie and his wife (Phyllis Thaxter) over this guy. Just seemed odd. Why would there be a picture of the guy on the wall? Reagan hates him and he used to be an old beau of his wife's. This part of the story is the film's biggest drawback as Reagan's wife seems very tempted to throw him over for this jerk. Kind of a somber part of an otherwise upbeat movie. It also leads to the worst acting in the film: Ronnie's drunk scene. Cringeworthy. Anyway, it's a nice film with some songs and humor. The songs are nothing special but pleasant. See it for Virginia Mayo and the glorious Technicolor.
