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Bright Lights

  • 1935
  • Approved
  • 1h 22m
IMDb RATING
6.3/10
272
YOUR RATING
Joe E. Brown in Bright Lights (1935)
ComedyMusicMysteryRomance

Joe and Fay Wilson are a happily married vaudeville team. But when a reporter discovers, that one of the chorus girls in the troupe is a slightly eccentric heiress, who bugs sometimes out to... Read allJoe and Fay Wilson are a happily married vaudeville team. But when a reporter discovers, that one of the chorus girls in the troupe is a slightly eccentric heiress, who bugs sometimes out to do something strange (e.g. being a chorus girl in vaudeville), the manager decides that J... Read allJoe and Fay Wilson are a happily married vaudeville team. But when a reporter discovers, that one of the chorus girls in the troupe is a slightly eccentric heiress, who bugs sometimes out to do something strange (e.g. being a chorus girl in vaudeville), the manager decides that Joe had to do is act on Broadway -with the heiress- and the heiress falls in love with him,... Read all

  • Director
    • Busby Berkeley
  • Writers
    • Bert Kalmar
    • Harry Ruby
    • Ben Markson
  • Stars
    • Joe E. Brown
    • Ann Dvorak
    • Patricia Ellis
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • IMDb RATING
    6.3/10
    272
    YOUR RATING
    • Director
      • Busby Berkeley
    • Writers
      • Bert Kalmar
      • Harry Ruby
      • Ben Markson
    • Stars
      • Joe E. Brown
      • Ann Dvorak
      • Patricia Ellis
    • 15User reviews
    • 1Critic review
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • Photos7

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    Top cast42

    Edit
    Joe E. Brown
    Joe E. Brown
    • Joe Wilson
    Ann Dvorak
    Ann Dvorak
    • Fay Wilson
    Patricia Ellis
    Patricia Ellis
    • Claire Whitmore
    William Gargan
    William Gargan
    • Dan Wheeler
    Joseph Cawthorn
    Joseph Cawthorn
    • Oscar Schlemmer
    Henry O'Neill
    Henry O'Neill
    • J.C. Anderson
    Arthur Treacher
    Arthur Treacher
    • Wilbur
    Gordon Westcott
    Gordon Westcott
    • Wellington
    Joseph Crehan
    Joseph Crehan
    • Post Office Attendant
    William Demarest
    William Demarest
    • Detective
    The Maxellos
    • Acrobat Act
    Sam Ash
    Sam Ash
    • Ticket Clerk
    • (uncredited)
    Irving Bacon
    Irving Bacon
    • Postal Worker
    • (uncredited)
    Sammy Blum
    Sammy Blum
    • Vaudeville Team Member
    • (uncredited)
    Glen Cavender
    Glen Cavender
    • Backstage Worker in New York
    • (uncredited)
    Virginia Dabney
    Virginia Dabney
    • Chorus Girl
    • (uncredited)
    William B. Davidson
    William B. Davidson
    • The Ventriloquist
    • (uncredited)
    Sayre Dearing
    Sayre Dearing
    • Party Guest
    • (uncredited)
    • Director
      • Busby Berkeley
    • Writers
      • Bert Kalmar
      • Harry Ruby
      • Ben Markson
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

    User reviews15

    6.3272
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    Featured reviews

    10Ron Oliver

    Brown's Peak

    Dazzled by the BRIGHT LIGHTS of Broadway success, a burlesque actor is blinded as to what's really most important in life.

    The film career of Joe E. Brown, Warner's rubber-faced comedian, essentially reached its zenith in this very enjoyable little comedy/drama obviously tailored for Joe's considerable skills. All too soon a change of studios would sidetrack Brown into cheaply made movies which would inevitably dim his celebrity. But here, in this backstage show biz story, his talents may still be enjoyed at full throttle.

    Although the movie was directed by Busby Berkeley, it includes none of his celebrated dance extravaganzas, focusing instead on personality rather than pulchritude. The film is fortunate in that Brown, presented as a Broadway star, is genuinely funny when engaging in his slapstick humor. Whether dangerously balancing on a balcony rail as part of his stage act, using his tremendous mouth to great advantage while telling a party story about a 'little mousie,' or engaging in impressive nightclub acrobatic stunts with The Maxellos, Joe is never less than hilarious.

    Although the focus is firmly on Brown, he is given able support from the rest of the cast: Ann Dvorak as his patient, long-suffering wife; Joseph Cawthorn as a fatherly theatrical troupe manager; William Gargan as an energetic press agent; and lovely Patricia Ellis as a stage bound heiress. William Demarest appears for a few seconds as a determined detective. Best of all is Arthur Treacher, wonderful as Brown's impeccable new valet.

    Movie mavens will recognize sour faced Clarence Wilson as a train station clerk.
    morrisonhimself

    Ann Dvorak steals this with extraordinary performance

    Joe E. Brown is usually just annoying, but in "Bright Lights" he is often annoying but he is also frequently amazingly impressive, both as an actor and especially as an acrobat.

    He has a lot of fairly moronic dialogue, as the star of burlesque and later Broadway, and, worse, as the character who is a performer. Sorry, but most of his allegedly comic routine is more silly than funny.

    Ann Dvorak, on the other hand, is not only more beautiful than usual -- and that's saying a lot! -- but she displays dancing ability I've never seen before, and with really attractive legs, and that gorgeous face expresses more emotions than most other actresses I've seen in a while.

    She has impressed me for years but, in this performance, she just steals my heart, captures my imagination, and assures my eternal admiration.

    In many ways, this is a routine programmer, but Ann Dvorak makes it memorable, and one to watch again.
    GManfred

    Marital Dilemma For Joe E.

    I think that was one of the problems I had rating this Joe E. Brown picture - it was too out of character for him. Normally, he was too wholesome, corny and even innocent to entertain thoughts of infidelity, and was too focused on succeeding in some sort of endeavor to be a horndog. I don't think the screenplay did him any favors as far as his on screen image was concerned.

    He and his wife (Ann Dvorak) are on tour with a vaudeville act which takes in a runaway heiress (Patricia Ellis) who begs for a job. She catches on, catches Joe's eye and soon they become a team, making Ann Dvorak odd man out. It is a comedy tinged with sadness for much of the picture and seemed an ill-advised project for a movie star whose trademark was as a good-natured bragging bumpkin.

    There are some very funny moments when he is in character as a drunk in the crowd supposedly heckling his wife, who is onstage singing and dancing. Some funny lines and visual gags. It would have been better all around if the humor had been sustained throughout the movie instead of lapsing into a romantic triangle drama.
    Sleepy-17

    Shimmering early Joe E. Brown rags-to-riches

    If seen as a comedy, this one doesn't have enough laughs, but as a showbiz boy-gets-famous-and-cheats-on-wife tale, it works. Brown is fantastic as a brash, egotistical jokester who rises to the top. The photography is great with director Berkely in top form when he's shooting vaudeville routines from directly overhead. Some of the antics look like they were made up on the spot, and the final scene where Brown returns to see his wife's performance is like something done by Fellini.
    Sleepy-17

    Incandescent rendering of timeless Boy-Gets-Famous-and-Fools-Around

    This film is only funny in a couple of spots, it features mostly static camera, routine burlesque performances, and dated humour. But Joe E Brown is incredibly confident and energetic, generating charisma by the barrelful. Patricia Ellis is quite fetching as the Bad Girl who tries to pry him from Ann Dvorak. Busby Berkeley stages some incredible shots from the ceiling of the theater where the characters are performing, and much of it is so spontaneous it seems like they're making it up on the spot. A lousy comedy, but a very interesting film. The ending scene where Brown returns to his wife's stage performance is as moving as an ending from early Fellini.

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    Storyline

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    Did you know

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    • Trivia
      Because wishing a fellow performer "Good Luck" is considered temping the evil eye and insuring bad luck, the term "break a leg" is ALWAYS used. However numerous times performets wish each other good luck in this movie
    • Connections
      Featured in Daffy Duck in Hollywood (1938)
    • Soundtracks
      She Was an Acrobat's Daughter
      (1935) (uncredited)

      Lyrics by Bert Kalmar

      Music by Harry Ruby

      Sung by Joe E. Brown

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    FAQ13

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    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • July 27, 1935 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • Broadway Joe
    • Filming locations
      • Warner Brothers Burbank Studios - 4000 Warner Boulevard, Burbank, California, USA(Studio)
    • Production company
      • First National Pictures
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Tech specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      • 1h 22m(82 min)
    • Color
      • Black and White
    • Sound mix
      • Mono
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.37 : 1

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