True to the Army (1942) User Reviews (2)

Judy Takes Refuge

[bkoganbing · 5/10 · 12 February 2009]

Here's real movie trivia teaser. What is the only role that Miriam Hopkins, Betty Grable and Judy Canova did movie versions of? The answer is that under different names they played the same part in She Loves Me Not, True To The Army, and How To Be Very Very Popular. I'm sure that the classical movie fan cannot conceive of any part where these three could be cast in.

But in 1942 Paramount decided to use the plot of She Loves Me Not and switch it from a college to the military as per our wartime period. Judy Canova is a hillbilly trapeze performer in a carnival who from her vantage point sees the mob carry out an execution. The police want her as a material witness, but the mob wants to rub her out. On the run Judy decides to go to the army base where her true love Jerry Colonna is stationed.

At the same time Broadway musical star Allan Jones and Colonna's friend is at his wit's end trying to put on an army morale show as was done in countless musicals of varying quality at the time. Canova disguised as a soldier auditions for the show and Jones has to help Colonna protect her secret. He also wants to get his commanding officer Clarence Kolb's daughter into the production and who wouldn't want the lady of a thousand taps, Ann Miller in any show.

If you've seen She Loves Me Not you've got an idea of the general plot outline. The film is distinctly Canova and Colonna's show with Allan Jones and Ann Miller taking a back seat. I'm thinking that had to be because Canova was drawing more people to the box office than Allan Jones was at the time. Colonna was also a household name by dint of his status as a regular on Bob Hope's radio show.

True To The Army has an unmemorable score, but the numbers are nicely staged for a B musical. William Demarest is also in the film and plays the part of a crusty sergeant, one he could do in his sleep.

It's an OK film, but geared for the fans of the quartet of stars.

Fluffy patriotic fun

[Muffy-5 · 30 January 2003]

This war-time gem is as fluffy as you'd expect: the plot is thin, the relationships are cliche'd, and the acting is pretty much by-the-book. But it's also a heck of a lot of fun, and the musical numbers are top-notch.

You've got a homely, backwoods circus performer named Daisy (Judy Canova) who is more than a little stupid, and her equally dim-witted and goofy boyfriend Pinky (Jerry Colonna) who trains pigeons and dabbles in magic. Daisy and Pinky provide the slapstick, and boy to they dish it out. In Pinky's case it works -- he knows when to be subtle and when to stop a gag -- but Daisy comes off as sloppy and her timing is a little off. I'll give her this, though: she can look like a man when she needs to.

Meanwhile, at the base, Stephen (played by Alan Jones) is the romantic lead and the excuse to bring in musical numbers: he's a former Hollywood producer and is trying to put on a show...you know, those shows featuring amateurs and shoddy sets until the opening night 3 days later, when everybody is a pro and the sets are gorgeous. His love-interest is Vicki Marlow (Ann Miller), the worldly and wise daughter of the General.

The plot itself isn't all that important: gangsters want to kill Daisy, Stephen wants to put on a show featuring Daisy and Vicki, but to keep Daisy on the base he needs to disguise and protect her (from medical doctors and hooch dancers), and to get Vicki into his show he needs to woo her (which is one of the more bizarre moments in the movie: Ann goes from disliking him to loving him in the space of about 2 seconds, and his method of pitching woo seems to be to insult a girl) What is important are the occasionally inspired comic routines and the snappy songs, not to mention Ann's breathtaking taps.

The highpoints -- for me -- were the two Ann numbers ("Jitterbug Lullabye," a sweet and clever song & dance duet, and a percussive solo where she taps, claps, types, and twirls along with a machine gun and a wall-clock. This is possibly the most enjoyable and relaxed tap number I've ever seen her do: it's technically brilliant but not so frantic that her sense of fun is obscured), and the final "Wacky For Khaki," wherein Judy more-or-less drops the bumpkin twang and shows us that she really CAN sing AND be funny.

The comedy treads some familiar ground but does have it's moments: Pinky's magic tricks and odd banter are delightful, and Ann's deadpan delivery is great as well. This all comes together in a somewhat anti-climactic ending. And the army looks like a really fun place. "True to the Army" is exactly what it was meant to be: fluffy patriotic fun with great songs and distinctive leads. View it in that light and you'll have a great time.