Stage Door Canteen

From Zanecorpwiki

Except for the fact that it's on film, Stage Door Canteen is hardly a movie in the modern sense. The majority of the movie is simply filmed performances by 1940's stage stars, the rest is war propaganda. This isn't to say the film is bad. The performances are by and large excellent. That, and the historical significance are quite interesting. The drama of the film, as it is, is pretty thin however.

The 47 Ronin, which I serendipitously watched right before this film, is the opposite side of the coin in so many ways, which is all the more interesting because they are both produced, in varying degrees, in support of the war. While one can hardly imagine that the entire approach to and conception of WWII are encapsulated in these two films, their diametrically opposed approaches are none-the-less fascinating.

Most of the film is light hearted fun. The rest if rather heavy handed propaganda about how great America, how our equipment and training are superior to the enemy, and how all our virtuous young men are willing to gladly lay down their lives in the service. Of course, only the women ever cry or consider the negative aspects of war. Of course, never explicitly, but sometimes you see it in their eyes.

As it's hard to consider this film as a movie, it cuts the review a little short. However, if you're interested in seeing the cream of early 1940s stage or a snapshot of US mainstream culture and early US propaganda techniques, then this is the film for you.

Silly observation: when the girls are reminiscing in their apartment, the Alabama girl brushes her two front incisors for two seconds and then declares her love of the new toothpaste and walks away. Dental hygiene sure has come a long way.