Playmates

Agents Patsy Kelly (as Lulu Monahan) and Peter Lind Hayes (as Peter Lindsay) decide to get their famous clients - legendary actor John Barrymore (as John Barrymore) and popular band-leader Kay Kyser (as Kay Kyser) together for a profitable publicity stunt. The plan is to have Mr. Barrymore teach Mr. Kyser to perform Shakespeare on stage. At first, both resist. But, Kyser relents and Barrymore needs money. This film features Kyser's very popular band members, sweet singers Harry Babbitt and Ginny Simms along with Beatle-Ish Kabibble, guest star Lupe Velez, Sully Mason, and others...

More importantly, this was Barrymore's last film appearance; he died shortly after its release, and "Playmates" is considered evidence of the once highly-respected actor's sad decline. This is true, for the most part, but you've got to love Barrymore's reciting of Hamlet's "To Be or Not to Be" speech. The Great Profile's reaction after saying "there's the rub" for Kyser in "Playmates" is a must for Barrymore followers. His performance of "Hamlet" on stage was considered one of Barrymore's greatest roles, but there was, sadly, no filmed version; note, a tantalizing "Hamlet" color screen test scene is available on popular video sites.

***** Playmates (12/26/41) David Butler ~ John Barrymore, Kay Kyser, Patsy Kelly, Peter Lind Hayes

I read the reviews on IMDb before watching this movie, as I often do. I may be in the minority here, but it seemed to me like John Barrymore was having a ball in this movie, hamming it up outrageously and poking fun at his public image. I can understand how some think it is sad or demeaning, but it doesn't seem that way to me. Lupe Velez was typecast, as she often was, but still very funny. Patsy Kelly seemed to play the same character in every movie, better in some than others, probably mostly due to the writing. I thought she was good in this and quite funny. Overall, this movie has lots of silliness, some good laughs, and enjoyable music. To those who need more than that, you probably shouldn't be spend your time watching Kay Kyser movies.

John Barrymore's career came to an ingloroious end when he was top billed by Kay Kyser and was acting basically as a stooge for Kyser and the rest of the cast of Playmates. Most especially Patsy Kelly who plays agent to an actor named John Barrymore.

Peter Lind Hayes is Kyser's agent and the two of them cook up a plot to help the both of them. For his radio show with studio audience Kyser is to be taught Shakespeare by one of the Bard's most noted exponents.

Kay Kyser was a very big name on radio and in record sales for the whole decade of the Forties. Occasionally he did a film like Playmates and he never played anything more than Kay Kyser which is what the movie-going public wanted from him.

The music is fine, it's always nice to hear Harry Babbitt and Ginny Simms sing. Poor Barrymore though. This was what he was reduced to at the end. At the same time he was doing this in his final career engagement he was also being a stooge for Rudy Vallee on his radio show The Fleischman hour.

There's another Hollywood tragedy here as well. Lupe Velez plays a female bullfighter not too much different from her Mexican Spitfire character. In two years she would be dead by suicide. Lupe was a major star at the beginning of sound, but she liked to party hearty and she ended in B films.

Playmates is good for fans of Kay Kyser, but poignantly sad for those who like John Barrymore and Lupe Velez.

Painful self humiliation from a fallen star. Barrymore here plays himself as a has been Shakespearean star so desperate for a Radio contract that he agrees to appear opposite Kay Kyser and band in a festival of the bard's plays.

John was on his last legs when he made this, as testified by a bloated and sometimes drunken appearance and he's treated badly by the script and cast (all his tax and drinking problems are trotted out as "humour" and in a dream scene Barrymore is even shown as a bull defeated by toreador Kyser). Yet this film does have a certain weird amusement value if you catch it in the right mood and if you can forget it's his final film..

Barrymore works very hard to make the most of this script, bellowing and posturing his way through the proceedings. It's a million miles from subtle but with his snorts and grunts and bulging eyes he certainly holds the attention and even generates the odd laugh. Occasionally there's a flash of his old talent. At one point he delivers part of Hamlet's To Be Or Not To Be soliquey in an attempt to demonstrate how Shakespeare should be performed. The film and the scene to this point lead us to expect that Barrymore will send the speech up.

Instead in the midst of the frantic mugging Barrymore gives a heart felt and totally straight reading of the scene. It lasts a minute and is intensely moving. There's genuine rawness here and John himself seems quite overcome. (It's extraordinary they kept this in) For a few scenes after this we get to hear his voice giving further beautifully modulated readings from Romeo and Juliet before the movie goes back to it's demeaning purpose.

Patsy Kelly is one of the other talents who help save this farrago from complete disaster.

Playmates (1941)

* 1/2 (out of 4)

John Barrymore plays himself in this his final movie, which sees the great actor go out on a rather bad note. In the film Barrymore is pretty much playing his real life problem as he can't get any good press so his agent (Patsy Kelly) comes up with a scheme to say he's going to teach bandleader Kay Kyser how to be a Shakespearean actor. As with Barrymore's THE GREAT PROFILE, this so-called comedy has more frowns than anything else as it's rather sad seeing Barrymore having to spoof himself and make fun of his rather serious alcohol problem, which would claim his life the following year. With that in mind, it's sometimes rather hard to laugh at certain jokes that are clearly aimed to spoof him and his drinking. It's also rather obvious that he's quite bloated here and in many scenes he appears to be drunk so this here too will stick in your mind while watching the film. I will add that he isn't a complete wash out like many reviews would have you believe. Yes, he's incredibly over the top but no one does that quite like Barrymore and in his own charming way the performance is rather charming. His first appearance in the film will certainly put a smile on your face and you can't help but feel, at times, that he's really giving it all and giving a complete work out of a performance. We also get to see him act out Hamlet and give the famous "To be or not to be..." line. That alone is worth sitting through this otherwise forgettable film. The biggest problem is the actual screenplay that has one joke and it's not a very funny one. Barrymore teaching Kyser to do Shakespeare. That whole joke isn't funny and that means the film itself isn't going to be funny. We do have some mildly amusing moments but the pacing is incredibly bad and the 94-minute running time drags by rather painfully. Kyser gets a couple good musical numbers and he has his own bit of charm in terms of his performance. Kelly gets a few good lines with Lupe Velez and May Robson giving some support. In the end however, this is a pretty poor film that would sadly be Barrymore's last. Fans of his might want to check it out but others would be better served to see the actor in some of his better roles.