THIS IS THE ARMY

Irving Berlin

THIS IS THE ARMY (aka Irving Berlin's This Is the Army/1943.) Director: Michael Curtiz.

There were several all-star revue super-patriotic movies put together during WW2, and most of them had thin plots, but this one has perhaps the thinnest. In WW1 soldier and entertainer Jerry Jones (George Murphy of No Questions Asked) puts together a show featuring Army boys for purposes of morale and patriotism. When WW2 comes around, his son Johnny Jones (Lt. Ronald Reagan of Million Dollar Baby) puts together his own show and takes it on a tour. A minor sub-plot has to do with Johnny resisting marriage to his fiancee Eileen (Joan Leslie of Hollywood Canteen) because he's afraid to leave her a war widow.

Robert Shanley

It would be easy to dismiss This is the Army as outdated propaganda were it not for the fact that there's a lot of talent on display, as well as some memorable songs by Irving Berlin and others. (For instance, I believe "Mandy" was composed by Victor Herbert.) The film was made to raise money for Army Emergency Relief, and it accomplished its task and became a hit at the box office. The highlights include Kate Smith singing "God Bless America," Irving Berlin and chorus doing "This Time is the Last Time:" singer Robert Shanley performing "American Eagles" and others; the sailors getting their due in "Cheers for the Navy;" Earl Oxford singing "I Left my Heart;" and at least one other dark-haired male vocalist who does a couple of numbers as well. There is also a group of black tap dancers who do a splendid Harlem-based number. Apparently everyone in the cast was in the armed forces at the time.

Corporal Tilestone Perry as Lynn Fontanne

A strange thing about the movie is the sheer amount of drag in the film, so much so in fact that you keep expecting RuPaul to strut out on stage any second. Yes, these are all Army boys in the show, but surely they could have enlisted some Waves or Wacs or Army nurses to play the female parts, as the men forced to do drag, although they seem like good sports, also look debased and rather gross; it's rather insulting, in fact, and the drag routines aren't especially funny in any case. Guest stars in the film include everyone from Frances Langford to Sgt. Joe Louis to Ross Elliott to Delores Costello (whom I didn't even catch!) and many others. If this film taught me nothing else, it's that the word "nerdy" dates back to at least 1943. The best non-musical sequence, inspired by a similar moment in the classic silent film, The Big Parade, has a mother thinking of her boy, overseas, when he's at various ages.

Verdict: More drag than anyone should have to sit through but some fun moments and notable musical numbers. ***.