Louis B. Mayer's latest soprano Jane Powell made her debut in a fluffy technicolor musical Holiday In Mexico where Jane is the daughter of US Ambassador Walter Pidgeon and getting into Deanna Durbin like situations, all of which are solved by a few high notes.
I will say that MGM gave us a good variety of types of artists in Holiday In Mexico. Jose Iturbi and sister Amparo on the classical piano with a bit of boogie woogie, Ilona Massey with some Hungarian schmaltz, and Xavier Cugat's Latin Rhythms.
It's all romance here, Jane conceives a crush on Iturbi with her love of classical music. While that's going on Walter Pidgeon gets something going with an old flame Ilona Massey he met before World War II. Jane's resentful of a new stepmother and Pidgeon has to proceed softly.
Roddy McDowall is in the cast also as the British Ambassador's son and he takes the part that later would be filled by Scotty Beckett in Powell's films, the geeky brother or suitor. He and Jane dressed to the nines in top hat, white tie, and tails for him and a gown and borrowed mink coat for her to sneak into a nightclub is the high point for McDowall.
It's all good clean G-rated fun and you come for the music in any event. Powell got off to a good start at MGM with this one.
I will say that MGM gave us a good variety of types of artists in Holiday In Mexico. Jose Iturbi and sister Amparo on the classical piano with a bit of boogie woogie, Ilona Massey with some Hungarian schmaltz, and Xavier Cugat's Latin Rhythms.
It's all romance here, Jane conceives a crush on Iturbi with her love of classical music. While that's going on Walter Pidgeon gets something going with an old flame Ilona Massey he met before World War II. Jane's resentful of a new stepmother and Pidgeon has to proceed softly.
Roddy McDowall is in the cast also as the British Ambassador's son and he takes the part that later would be filled by Scotty Beckett in Powell's films, the geeky brother or suitor. He and Jane dressed to the nines in top hat, white tie, and tails for him and a gown and borrowed mink coat for her to sneak into a nightclub is the high point for McDowall.
It's all good clean G-rated fun and you come for the music in any event. Powell got off to a good start at MGM with this one.