Betty Garrett

  • My Sister Eileen (1955)

    ByChristian Sauvé Movie Review

    (On Cable TV, October 2022) You can rank My Sister Eileen as a second tier 1950s musical and few will bat an eye. It’s a colourful Columbia widescreen production featuring none other than Jack Lemmon and Janet Leigh toward the beginning of their careers, then-blacklisted Betty Garrett, seven musical numbers and a comic tone that firmly establishes the film in the lineage of classic musicals. So far so good—but the trouble starts when you start looking for reasons why My Sister Eileen is distinct or worth noticing. Aside from an amusing climactic conga line number and choreography by Bob Fosse (who also gets a small role), the rest of the film struggles to establish itself. Whether it’s a familiar plot (two sisters move to New York, try to make it big—a remake of a previous film, but also very reminiscent of other similar movies), a by-the-numbers development or a visual style that doesn’t go much beyond the competent, this is a pure genre film: It belongs to a genre, understands how it works and executes it competently, but remains notable more as an example of genre than something defining or elevating it to its highest standards. Pure-genre works have the advantage of being well-made and watchable… but they may not stick in mind for a long time.

  • Neptune’s Daughter (1949)

    Neptune’s Daughter (1949)

    ByChristian Sauvé Movie Review

    (On Cable TV, December 2020) I’m not that taken by Neptune’s Daughter as a film, but it does have a few interesting elements. The plot has something to do with an aquatic dancer (Esther Williams, obviously), a South American polo player (the great Richardo Montalban), a bumbling masseur taking on another identity (Red Skelton, equal to himself) and the dancer’s lovesick sister (Betty Garrett, confusingly playing a “Betty Barrett”). With such a blend of acting sensibilities, it’s perhaps inevitable that the film splits in halves – a romantic duo between Williams and Montalban, and a comic strand headlined by Skelton and Garrett. The romance has the advantage of being more broadly appealing than the often-thick comedy, but those who are receptive to the comedy will find it much more entertaining than the more ordinary romantic couple. This is best exemplified by the duelling interpretation of “Baby It’s Cold Outside,” which somehow makes its debut here: a bit dull on the romantic side, but considerably more entertaining with the comedians. Despite Montalban getting a good role as a romantic lead, the film is still filled with stereotypes that wouldn’t pass muster today, or at least be heavily questioned – especially Mel Blanc’s rare on-screen role and voice he’d later use for Speedy Gonzales. Technicolour cinematography does improve the film. If you’re going down the list of the Williams or Skelton films, Neptune’s Daughter is clearly not top-tier material. But it still has enough to be entertaining if you’re in the right frame of mind.