weezeralfalfa Of course, the thing that sticks most in my mind about this film is the long, spectacular, controversial, minstrel show at the end, which most reviewers gloss over as an embarrassing reminder of a best forgotten period in American theater when white folks made up to resemble black folks and to enact accepted stereotypical diction, singing, and behavior of black folks was considered acceptable theater content. Even occasionally into the early '50s, blackface musical and comedic numbers were occasionally included in new films. As a liberal-minded WASP, I find very few of these performances sufficiency offensive on racial grounds to warrant their deletion from present day viewing. However, I have to take exception to portions of the minstrel show in this film. The characterizations of African Americans by Judy, and especially Mickey, at times,is hilarious, and largely based on stock characters in minstrel shows. Mickey's manic banjo playing sequence in black face of "Alabama" is one of my most vivid film memories. However, I can readily sympathize with those who are horrified by his facial expressions during his total banjo-playing performance...a warning to potential viewers! Incidentally, despite appearances, apparently, Mickey didn't play what we hear from the banjo. Apparently, it was dubbed by world famous banjo player Eddie Peabody. Many aspects of this production, I don't find offensive, and exhibit a striking example of Busby Berkeley's instinct for the visually spectacular, combined with either familiar exciting or soothing music, in different phases of the total production. The exuberant last portion, sung and danced to "The Robert E. Lee" is another especially memorable experience....Actually, the first film in this series of 4, from '39 to '43,; "Babes in Arms" included a very similar minstrel show up to the banjo playing portion. I guess B.B. decided he wanted to redo it with an expanded program and with some overhead shots, making it into the finale big production...After getting better acquainted in Judy's apartment, Mickey and Judy do their classic soft shoe-like "How About You" alternating solo or duet act, beginning with only singing, graduating to dancing and tumbling on the furniture, much like Don O'Connor and Debbie Reynolds in the much later "I Love Melvin"... After a period of drama about how to get a block party OKed by authorities, as a hopeful springboard to Broadway stardom, we have the unforgettable, long, often superenergetic "Hoe Down" production. Mickey, especially goes manic during portions of this no-doubt BB-inspired production. As with the minstrel show, a Ray MacDonald solo tap dance routine is included in the middle, providing a breather.In the middle of the film, we have a program that acknowledges that the UK is fighting for its life against the Nazis. Some well-off Brits have sent their children to the U.S. for safe keeping. These are the children of the 'settlement housing'. Newly composed "Chin Up!, Cheerio!, Carry On!" is the rousing highlight of this segment.Between this segment and the minstrel show , there is a long period of mostly haggling and uncertainty about how to obtain the financing and acquire access to an adequate theater for the minstrel show. During this period, also Mickey and Judy don several theatrical outfits and pretend they are other actors, in the 'ghost' sequence. Mickey also does a terrible impersonation of Carmen Miranda, despite her reported help. He just didn't have the looks to carry this off.As for the first two films of this series of 4 films, the director was Busby Berkeley and producer Arthur Freed, but future husband Vincent Minnelli directed Judy's solos... The songs were a mixed bag of old and novel ones, with several teams of composers and lyricists involved with the new ones. As an overall assessment, I have to balance the highlight musical numbers against the often too long and uninteresting periods of background drama.Who would have thought that Mickey would outlive Judy by 45 years, despite their both eventually developing unstable careers and personal lives. Mickey was still occasionally active in theatrical productions through most of his life, and passed away just recently, 74 years after starring in this film!

dimplet The best part of this movie is the debut of Margaret O'Brien at age 4, standing on a table:"Please, wait, don't send my brother to the chair! Don't let him burn! Please. Please, warden, please!"That was probably the only moment in this film with anything close to real emotion. (She is so full of life, she puts other actors in the shade.) It was also the only moment of real humor. I say "probably" because I quit at about 50 minutes. Normally, if a movie doesn't grab me by 10 minutes, I'm out. But this is Judy Garland and and Mickey Rooney, RIP. How bad can it be?Well, if I were locked in a movie theater in 1942 with a bucket of popcorn, I guess I would have seen it through to the end -- if I were a teenager. If I weren't, I doubt I would have bought a ticket. But today, when we watch a movie, we have the pause and eject buttons. It's funny, but as you get older, time seems to move faster, generally. But the first 20 minutes of Babes on Broadway seemed to last two hours; 50 minutes seemed like two years. At this rate, I'm not sure I will live long enough to finish it.The movie seems so lifeless, so devoid of emotion, so flat. I really don't care about the characters or the story. If I were a teenager back then ... or even a teenager watching this on an old black and white TV set. Except I don't even recall doing that, and I would watch just about any old movie back in the Sixties with many NYC stations to choose from. If I did see it, it left ZERO impression.The premise of the movie is contrived, and despite the time taken to set it up, not very interesting. Then we switch gears about 50 minutes into a string of song and dance numbers. The music is not very good, and bears no relation to the storyline, aside from the story being they are putting on a musical revue block party. If there's one thing that turns me off, it is a musical with music that is not integrated to the story. Who cares? Well, I guess some people like musicals with dancing and big production numbers, regardless. The music, right from the beginning, is cloying, mechanical tunes turned out by the MGM production team, dressed up with fancy orchestration. The exception is "How About You?"Busby Berkeley knew how to put on big dance numbers, and he should have stuck to that. He seems to lack feeling, heart, soul. Here, it is all glitter and hyperactivity. I like Fred Astaire tap dancing, but I'm not going to sit through a sort of talent show amateur hour, no matter how skillful. I think the studio gave Berkeley the second rate stuff to direct, figuring he could keep them afloat with the dance numbers. Maybe I am being unfair -- without sitting through the last hour, I will never know. But the problem with these reviews is that too often we only hear from the ones who liked it enough to sit through it. Babes on Broadway is treacle by the gallon. So, if you like treacle, you'll love it. As for me, Babes on Broadway makes me nauseous.It also makes me sad. As I looked at all the young men in the movie, I couldn't help wondering how soon they would be drafted, how many would be killed or maimed in battle over the next four years. It was odd timing for such a story about young people wanting to make it on Broadway. I wonder how this went over with audiences at the time. Unless they were under 14, it was just a matter of time before they would be in uniform, as the war progressed. Was this on their minds? Hollywood is about escape, so perhaps Babes provided some relief from the impending doom of WWII. But, unlike so many wonderful old Hollywood movies, it doesn't work as escape now. One reason, perhaps, is that Babes on Broadway violates the basic principle of musicals: it tries to be realistic. Musicals need an element of fantasy and unreality: it makes you suspend the disbelief that people can break into song and dance in their daily lives. But Babes is stuck in the old formula, of having actors play actors and perform musical numbers as part of the story. The Wizard of Oz and Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs had demonstrated an alternative mode for musicals. This is the route of enduring escapist fantasy. But in Babes, the plot exists only as a pretext for performing song and dance numbers. This is not for me. I'm outta here.

gkeith_1 Very famous dances and dancers. 'Hoe Down'. Judy a great dancer; she had very smooth and well timed technique. Mickey as type of Carmen Miranda, swaying and sashaying. Minstrelsy spectacular had great dancing, even though racist by today's standards. I loved all the front row men tap dancing while sitting in chairs. Minstrelsy was big in real life in around the 1880s, and I feel that some of the routines were respectful to African Americans -- yet some character dialogues were just a little too stereotypical. Maybe the minstrelsy part could not be made today.Ray McDonald had fabulous dancing. He always did, including in "Till the Clouds Roll By" with June Allyson. I guess there was not enough room in the movie dancing field for his talents, what with Fred Astaire, Gene Kelly and the later blossoming of Bob Fosse, Bobby Van, Tommy Rall, et al. In early 1941, the U.S. had not yet entered World War Two, but 'Fritz' was bothering the Europeans. The Great Depression was ending (and maybe studio budgets were now higher), but it seems that great dancers had to make room for the greatest superstars. Even Frank Sinatra was taught to tap dance.In a similar vein, Judy Garland IMO took the place of Deanna Durbin and Shirley Temple, regarding singing and dancing. There was not enough room in the superstar heaven for all three, and Judy always won out. If they all three helped take the U.S. through the Depression, and helped make big money for the studios, in the end only one major star (Judy, I feel) was affordable. Mickey Rooney (RIP) always felt Judy was used and abused, and yet Durbin and Temple must have always felt cheated because their careers were short-circuited. Remember that Temple was supposed to be Dorothy in "The Wizard of Oz". It seems that after that, her career downslided, World War Two was coming, and Judy was left to carry the 1940s musicals a lot. I don't remember Shirley singing and dancing in "Fort Apache".Look again at Mickey Rooney. He went into the war. When he came out, his career had to be kickstarted again. Gee-Gosh-Dad-Andy-Hardy was a thing of the past. Mickey managed to stay within the entertainment industry in one way or another, and later acted in character parts. I saw him in "Night at the Museum", and I thought that he was excellent.Mickey and Judy in "Babes on Broadway" were fabulous. They always seemed to play well against and with each other. Their costuming was wonderful and at times hilarious. I especially liked the 'ghost sequences' in this movie, where they portrayed Richard Mansfield, Fay Templeton, Sir Harry Lauder, Sarah Bernhardt, George M. Cohan, et al.10/10

utgard14 Mickey and Judy want to put on a show (surprise) to help orphans. Only Mickey has an ulterior motive -- to impress a big shot producer and get a gig on Broadway. When Judy finds out, it looks like splitsville for the duo. Nice Busby Berkeley musical although it's way too long to have such a thin plot. But the musical numbers with Judy and Mickey are what people care about and most of those are energetic and fun. Film debut of Margaret O'Brien in an adorable bit. Donna Reed has a small part as a receptionist. Mickey and Judy are both perfect, playing parts similar to many others they played. By the way, I love the posters the kids create to advertise the show. One slogan reads: "Do you want rickets on your conscience? Get the kids to the country." Certainly sounds more sincere than some celebrity-endorsed causes in recent years.What seems to get the most reaction here on IMDb is not surprisingly the minstrel number at the close of the show with all of the actors in blackface. Yes it's dated and offensive but some of the comments here are way over the top. One imbecilic individual even said Mickey Rooney shouldn't have been allowed to work again! Put the Kool-Aid down, kid.