Odelecol Pretty good movie overall. First half was nothing special but it got better as it went along.

FuzzyTagz If the ambition is to provide two hours of instantly forgettable, popcorn-munching escapism, it succeeds.

Jenna Walter The film may be flawed, but its message is not.

Zlatica One of the worst ways to make a cult movie is to set out to make a cult movie.

JohnHowardReid Louis B. Mayer and William Randolph Hearst had a terrific row, as a result of which Hearst pulled up stakes and moved his entire unit from M-G-M to Warner Bros where he was personally welcomed by Jack Warner. My guess is that Warner interceded for Hearst with Mayer and that Marion Davies was blamed for the split. In any event, Mayer and Warner remained on extremely friendly terms and here we see Mayer lending his top star, Clark Gable, to Warner, something I don't think he ever did for anyone else. Mayer and Warner were also staging a friendly competition as to who could underwrite the most expensive musical number. Mayer won, but number two comes mighty close. Coney Island is a delight too. Yes, the screenplay does tend to strain its metaphors, but it's sharply acted by both Hearst's mistress and Mayer's top star. The wonderful musical interludes were brilliantly directed by Bobby Connolly, and these were allied to a noisy, fast-talking screenplay with the sort of wisecracks that most people (including me) find highly amusing. Busby Berkeley was the original choice to direct both the movie itself and the musical numbers, but when Marion Davies heard of Busby's reputation as a slave driver, she said no-no! So Bobby Connolly was hired for the musical numbers and dapper clotheshorse Lloyd Bacon (who was always nice to the ladies but would scream and fling one of his $200 hats at actors who missed their cues) became the director.

PWNYCNY This movie is hilarious. It is also an excellent musical. Thus, the movie gives you laughs and song; can't go wrong with that combination. There is chemistry between Clark Gable and Marion Davies, who play the title characters. Gable's comedic ability is once again evident. He was a great comic actor. As for Marion Davies, no could have done her role better. The story is amusing; Roscoe Karns again shows that when he came to comic roles, he was among the best. The story itself is amusing and endearing. Every character is likable. The movie depicts working class people in a positive, upbeat way. The entire supporting cast is excellent, especially Allen Jenkins. As entertainment, this movie delivers. The movie gives you laughs, music, a wonderful plot, and characters to whom the audience can relate. If that isn't enough, then maybe watching movies isn't for you.

calvinnme I really loved Marion Davies in her silent films, but I've never liked her talking pictures that much as a whole. In this case, the plot is plucked from about a half dozen other 30's films that came before it, but the film does have Clark Gable going for it as well as those terrific contract Warner Brothers players.The premise is rather unbelievable. Waitress Mabel O'Dare is fired from her job for feeding a hungry unemployed publicist. He decides to help Mabel out by getting her a job in a Broadway show. The leading man pretends to be the show's producer as a gag, and tells Mabel she has the lead without even auditioning her. Unbelievable point number one - Mabel believes him. Unbelievable point number two - when she shows up and finds out she has no job, not even a spot in the chorus, the leading man and the producer feel so bad for her they do give her the lead, even though she's never danced or sung professionally before.All of this I could live with, but then you have prizefighter Larry Cain (Clark Gable) and Mabel hating each other throughout two-thirds of the film for a multitude of mutual insults and injuries to one another. However, a single home-cooked pork chop by Mabel and her revelation to Larry that she used to be a waitress has him proposing inside of ten minutes? This is too much to swallow even for one of the screwball comedies of the thirties.Finally there is the most tiresome part of the film, and that is the musical portion. There are two numbers that try to copy Busby Berkeley to some extent, but dance director Bobby Connelly doesn't seem to understand that you can't top Berkeley simply by building a taller set and a larger crane. Your numbers have to have some substance. The whole thing is haunted by the ghosts of the largely failed musical films of the late 20's and very early 30's with tableaux and spectacles that are just plain boring.I'd say it's almost a toss of a coin as to whether or not this one is worth your time. I gave it a 6/10 mainly because I'm such a sucker for those Warner Brothers films of the 1930s.

jpheifer-1 This is a wonderful screwball comedy. Marion Davies is lovely and Clark Gable is lovelier. This is a movie that could easily be re-made today, as stars still have handlers and hangers-on who place their own interests at higher priority than the "cash cow," a.k.a. star, with whom they are associated.The dialog is great and well-delivered. Everyone gets a good line in. I found myself fast-forwarding through the song and dance numbers--never been a song and dance fan. The costumes are fairly plain, but elegant. There are some unfortunate sleeves and a laughable head-gear for poor Marion at the end of one of the numbers. And, you get to see Clark Gable in shorts.