Tonight's Movie: Bathing Beauty (1944) - A Warner Archive Blu-ray Review

MGM's delightful BATHING BEAUTY (1944) has just been released on Blu-ray by the Warner Archive Collection.

This Blu-ray release of the film which made Esther Williams a star is an absolute treat, starting with the print, a 1080p master from a new 4K scan of the original nitrate Technicolor camera negatives. When Esther climbs onto a diving board in a bright pink swimsuit early in the film, it's hard not to swoon over how incredible both she and the entire movie look.

Esther plays Caroline, a college gym teacher visiting California, where she plans to marry her fiance, a songwriter named Steve (Red Skelton, reviewed yesterday in THREE LITTLE WORDS).

Steve's colleague George (Basil Rathbone) deviously breaks up the wedding for reasons of his own, prompting broken-hearted Caroline to return to her old job in the East. Steve follows her, hoping to reconcile, and in desperation ends up enrolling at Caroline's school in order to be near her. The only problem with that plan is it's an all-girls college...!

The silly story is simply an excuse for a string of wonderfully colorful musical numbers featuring the likes of Xavier Cugat and His Orchestra with Lina Romay, Harry James and His Orchestra with Helen Forrest, organist Ethel Smith, and singer Carlos Ramirez.

The movie also gives Jean Porter and Janis Paige, who play students, the chance to shine in a musical number. I'll add here to watch for future Western leading ladies Karin Booth and Beverly Tyler as students in other scenes.

Watching this film, it's very easy to see why Williams became a star. She's confident, funny, and very beautiful. The finale is one of her best swim numbers, featuring fountains and swimmers in kaleidoscopic patterns; I first knew it thanks to THAT'S ENTERTAINMENT! (1974) and have loved it ever since.

I like Red Skelton in very limited doses, and he's kept under fairly good control here by director George Sidney. The nice supporting cast includes Nana Bryant, Donald Meek, Margaret Dumont, Ann Codee, Bill Goodwin, Dorothy Adams, and Jacqueline Dalya.

The movie's gorgeous settings and colorful scenes, filmed by Harry Stradling Sr., must have been wonderful escapism for World War II audiences when this film was released in the summer of 1944. A closing card informs viewers that men and women serving in combat zones would be seeing the film free of charge.

I smiled for most of the movie's 101 minutes and very much recommend this disc for anyone who loves MGM musicals and/or Esther Williams movies.

Disc extras include the TCM PRIVATE SCREENINGS interview of Esther Williams with Robert Osborne; a trailer; the Tom and Jerry cartoon MOUSE TROUBLE (1944); the short MAIN STREET TODAY (1944; 20m) featuring Ray Collins and Henry O'Neill, directed by Edward L. Cahn.

The disc also includes a song selection menu.

Thanks to the Warner Archive for providing a review copy of this Blu-ray. Warner Archive Blu-rays may be ordered from Movie Zyng, Amazon, and other online retailers.

Tweet