Line #5 Film/TheHollywoodRevueOf1929


1	[[quoteright:310:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/hollywood_revue_of_1929.jpg]]
2	[[caption-width-right:310:[[CoversAlwaysLie Never mind the poster]]; it's ''"Revue"'', not ''"Review"''.]]
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4	''The Hollywood Revue of 1929'', directed by Charles Reisner, might just be the oddest film ever to get an UsefulNotes/AcademyAward nomination for Best Picture.
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6	In 1929 Creator/MetroGoldwynMayer was at a crossroads. The studio had resisted talkies for as long as it could, continuing to produce a large number of its movies as silent films in early 1929 while the rest of Hollywood had already quit the medium completely. The writing was on the wall, though, so MGM elected to introduce several of its biggest stars to talking films at the same time, with a single all-star film. Thus, ''The Hollywood Revue of 1929'' was born.
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8	The film is essentially a feature-length {{variety show}}, filled with sketch performances and musical numbers featuring almost every major star under contract to MGM at the time, nearly all of whom were making their talking film debut. While a box-office smash in its time, and as mentioned an early Oscar nominee, the film is now remembered chiefly as a curio and as a snapshot of Hollywood in transition. Some of the cast members thrived with the coming of sound pictures (Creator/JoanCrawford, Creator/NormaShearer, Creator/LaurelAndHardy), while others saw their careers go right down the toilet (Creator/JohnGilbert, William Haines, Karl Dane, Creator/BusterKeaton).
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10	Besides its AllStarCast, the film is probably best remembered for featuring the song "Singin' in the Rain" (which was introduced on stage in ''The Hollywood Music Box Revue'' earlier that same year, thereby predating the film ''Film/SinginInTheRain'' by over 20 years).
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12	Creator/WarnerBros quickly responded with ''Show of Shows'', which served the same purpose, the primary differences being that WB was the first studio to embrace talkies and its film was shot almost entirely in Technicolor.
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15	!!Tropes:
16	* AllStarCast: InUniverse this is discussed, as it was the whole point, the film existing in order to introduce audiences to MGM's stars in the talkie format.
17	* AnnualTitle: 1929 being the year that MGM finally gave up and went over to talkies.
18	* BananaPeel: Which serves as something of a BrickJoke. Laurel and Hardy are trying to do a magic trick where they turn an egg into a banana. After Stan accidentally smashes the egg, Ollie throws the banana away in disgust. Later, naturally, he slips on the peel.
19	* TheCameo:
20	** Creator/LionelBarrymore, Creator/JoanCrawford, Creator/MarionDavies, Marie Dressler, Creator/JohnGilbert, William Haines, Creator/BusterKeaton, Creator/LaurelAndHardy, Bessie Love, Anita Page, Creator/NormaShearer, and lesser stars.
21	** In fact, pretty much the only stars in the MGM stable who did not participate were Creator/GretaGarbo and Creator/LonChaney, both of whom shunned publicity. Chaney still gets a song devoted to him and his characters, "Lon Chaney's Gonna Get You If You Don't Watch Out", while Garbo is mentioned in some stage patter.
22	* CreatorCameo: Gus Edwards, who wrote all of the songs except for "Singin' in the Rain", also appears in a couple of the musical numbers.
23	* {{Fanservice}}: Lots of scantily clad chorus girls and dancers. Perhaps most noticeable when Beth Laemmle does a dance during number "The Pearl Ballet" clad only in a two-piece bathing suit.
24	* HaveAGayOldTime: Ukelele player Cliff "Ukelele Ike" Edwards tells Conrad Nagel that in order to romance women, "Today you've got to make love with words and music."
25	* TheHost: Creator/JackBenny and Creator/ConradNagel, officially billed as "masters of ceremonies", introduce the various acts.
26	* IncredibleShrinkingMan: For no obvious reason, Bessie Love's musical number begins with Jack Benny pulling a tiny Bessie Love out of his pocket and setting her on the ground. After some stage banter, she grows to human size and the number commences.
27	* MinstrelShows: The opening number is "The Palace of Minstrel", sung by a minstrel chorus.
28	* TheMusical: There are some comedy bits, like Creator/LaurelAndHardy as incompetent magicians and William Haines ripping apart Jack Benny's suit, but most of the film consists of MGM stars singing and dancing. Joan Crawford sings a song!
29	* NoPlotNoProblem: Later all-star revue films like ''Thank Your Lucky Stars'' or ''Hollywood Canteen'' would come up with some kind of plot as an excuse to hang the musical numbers around. Not this one, which like other early film musicals has no plot whatsoever and is nothing more than a filmed stage show.
30	* SittingSexyOnAPiano: Joan Crawford does this during her musical number.
31	* SplashOfColor: John Gilbert and Norma Shearer's performance of the balcony scene from ''Theatre/RomeoAndJuliet'' is shot in early Technicolor, as are the last two numbers, "(You'll Be Mine in) Orange Blossom Time" and the reprise of "Singin' in the Rain".
32	* StageMagician: Laurel and Hardy's skit consists of the two of them performing [[FailureIsTheOnlyOption a truly terrible magic act]].
33	* VarietyShow: Or the film equivalent thereof, as a series of performers appear in different sketches for the camera.
34	* TheVoiceless: In Laurel and Hardy's skit, Stan remains silent.
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Context Film / TheHollywoodRevueOf1929