Unless I have any last minute changes, I think my dark and violent quota is officially fulfilled. So, to fully kick off the lighter and brighter side of Gadget:
Follow the Fleet (1936) -- Remember a couple picks ago when I mentioned that I could easily put together a top 20 using only films from 1932-1945? Well, I could take that a step further -- I could easily put together a top 20 using only
musicals from 1932-1945. Easily. I was exposed to just about every style/era of film and music as a child, thanks to my parents, and the early musicals became an obsession for me before I was even old enough to know what was going on. And, while I can't remember back far enough to know which of these films I saw first, or which was the one/the moment that inspired this obsession (and, when I was younger that's definitely what it was), I do know that
Follow the Fleet is THE film that made me want to be a dancer. I wanted to move like that. I also know that Fred and Ginger are THE reason that, when I did start dancing, I made sure to dedicate a lot of time to both tap and ballroom -- I wanted to be ready just in case I was ever approached by a dapper gent who'd romance me with a spontaneous, yet immaculately choreographed, fox trot. And, who knows? It could still happen. With supporting performances from Randolf Scott and Harriet Hilliard
(her first scene is as a school teacher who's quickly told she looks far too intelligent to land a man... ah, the 30's... I've yet to figure out if she took that advice in order to get Ozzie), cameos from Betty Grable and a VERY young Lucille Ball, as well as a capuchin monkey in a sailor suit... well, how could I not choose this one?
