GamerTab That was an excellent one.

Stometer Save your money for something good and enjoyable

GurlyIamBeach Instant Favorite.

Allison Davies The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

arfdawg-1 The Plot. Bob Preston, publicity man for Superba Pictures, uses his publicity skills in an attempt to make this fiancée June Dale the most famous movie star in the world. But in doing so, he forgets that women want to be attended to for themselves, not as objects of fame.I was looking forward to seeing this picture giving the stellar reviews. Unfortunately it's actually a poor excuse for a movie. Starring a bunch of unknowns, made by an unknown studio and directed by a largely unknown director whose only claim to fame that I can tell was co-directing The Marx Brother's Coconuts 5 years earlier.Groucho said he didn't understand comedy.It's a strange movie where in one musical number people where masks of famous Hollywood stars like Keaton and Gable and Chaplin. It just never really comes together. It's not horrible, but it's not really interesting enough to recommend.

ksf-2 Right at the opening credits, we can see this one is badly in need of restoration. Alpha Home Movies has taken a scratchy, faded copy and put it on DVD, now available on Turner Classics page. I gave up waiting for this to come on TCM and ordered the DVD online. Some biggies in here... Franklin Pangborn, William Haines ( the second to last film that he did!) and the "Wampas Baby Stars"... the up and coming movie starlets chosen each year. We're sixteen minutes in, and there isn't really much of a plot yet... just an odd modeling show for the Wampas starlets. They are accompanied by guys wearing masks of movie stars of the day. One of the models (Judith Allen as "June") pretends to be almost kidnapped, and of course the papers put the story in big headlines. She gets a couple big breaks, and gets a contract and a husband, Bob. "Shaw and Lee" do a bit as piano movers... that bit goes on WAY too long. "Gordon" (John Miljan) is also after June, and never misses a chance to try to get between her and Bob. It's sort of a "behind the scenes" in Hollywood. All's well that ends well, I guess. It's mildly entertaining, but having seen it, I can see why no-one is in a hurry to restore it. Pretty simple plot, but the real story here is the collection of stars, at various stages of their career arc. Written and directed by Joseph Santley. According to IMDb, Santley had appeared in Pony Express in 1907, at the age of 17 !

MartinHafer Years ago, I read a book that said that William Haines' huge career of the late 1920s and into the 30s came to an abrupt halt because folks pushing for the new Production Code were also concerned about at least cosmetically cleaning up the image of the Hollywood stars. And, since Haines was rather open about being gay, his contract with MGM was dropped and he became a has-been. Well, perhaps this isn't 100% true. First, apparently Haines landed on his feet and became a very successful interior decorator. Second, the once boyish good looks of Haines were not at all evident by 1934. Now, in films like this one and his final picture (also made in 1934), he looks like a very ordinary bank teller sort of guy--with a receding hairline and a bit of a paunch--and quite a bit like Grady Sutton! I think time just caught up with the guy and that would explain his fading from the screen. This would explain why he was now making films for tiny Mascot Films. So, is the paunchier and more ordinary Haines any good in this film? And, since it's from Mascot is it any good at all? Well, at least it is not horrible!While Haines is the star of this picture, the real stars are the Wampas Baby Stars. Who are these folks? Well, each year from 1922 to 1935, a group of young actresses were chosen by this organization as the stars to look for in the future. A few of the up and coming stars did go on to great fame (such as Clara Bow, Mary Astor and Ginger Rogers)...most just faded into obscurity after the year of promotions was finished. Considering the 1934 lot was the last selected, you wonder if perhaps this film finished them off!The story itself has to do with Bob (Haines) and his attempt to make his girlfriend, June Dale, a star with Superba Pictures. The studio head is played by Joseph Cawthorn and it's obvious he's meant to be a Samuel Goldwyn-type. He looks almost exactly like Goldwyn and his language is filled with malapropisms just like those attributed to Goldwyn. However, Bob loses sight of June and has practically lost her by the end of the film.In between there are lost of appearances by the Wampas girls...singing, dancing, lounging around the pool. They seem to be doing just about everything...except acting!! The weirdest moment, however, is the ultra-bizarro song and dance number where the women's partners are all guy wearing super-creepy masks of current Hollywood stars. Then, the women remove the masks and hold them high...much like they were lifting up severed heads following a guillotining!!! It's so sick and strange, it alone makes the film worth seeing. I also liked the funny dance number late in the film when the ladies are dancing...as are the workmen who are nearby. Goofy but also very self-aware and funny. Now I am not saying it's a good film overall...it's very episodic and second-rate. But for folks with a lot of patience, it's worth a look.

David Atfield In film mythology it is usually assumed that William Haines' final films, made for the little known Mascot Pictures, were low quality disasters. So I was pleasantly surprised to find that this movie is actually a very enjoyable comic romp through the back-lots of Hollywood. Sure, it's no masterpiece, but it is a lot of fun.Haines, looking great, gives his usual exhaustingly energetic performance as a high-powered Hollywood publicist. One can only speculate on how much he may have enjoyed the scene where he tells off a pompous studio head, just a year after his famous fight with Louis B. Mayer. The studio head though seems to have been based more on Carl Laemmle than Mayer - and Joseph Cawthorn does a fine job in the role (he looks remarkably like Laemmle too).There is some fairly unfunny comic routines from a couple of piano-movers that could have been cut, but the dance routines are pretty good - one involving some excellent caricatured masks of famous movie stars. Lots of pretty starlets, a fast-paced plot, and the glorious William Haines - what more could you ask for?