Up in Arms (1944) – full review!

Samuel Goldwyn decided to highlight the unique talents of his contract player Danny Kaye in a series of lavishly produced musical comedies that would also include the Goldwyn Girls. This was the first such production (Kaye’s first starring and feature length role) and coincidentally one of the Goldwyn Girls is Virginia Mayo who though uncredited in this one would star with Kaye in several of the others. Directed by Elliott Nugent this musical comedy was based on the Owen Davis play The Nervous Wreck about a hypochondriac as the earlier Goldwyn production Whoopee! (1930) starring Eddie Cantor had been. Writers Don Hartman (Road to Morocco (1942)) Allen Boretz and Robert Pirosh wrote the screenplay. The film received two Oscar nominations one for the Best Song “Now I Know” (Ted Koehler’s first Academy Award nomination) sung by Kaye’s co-star Dinah Shore and another for its Score though the highlight of the movie is Kaye’s performance of the “Lobby Number” a satire of big movie spectaculars. The cast also includes: Dana Andrews Constance Dowling Louis Calhern Elisha Cook Jr. and Lyle Talbot. George Meeker Margaret Dumont Charles Halton and Henry Hayden (very briefly) are among those who also appear.

The story is actually told in flashback with Kaye’s character being lauded as a war hero. A narrator then tells the story behind the story – Kaye plays Danny Weems a hypochondriac who took a job as an elevator operator in a medical office building to be close to the doctors. Danny keeps up on all the latest maladies and maintains a supply of pills for all his self-perceived symptoms. The doctor’s in the building like those played by Hayden and Halton try to avoid him like the plague. However Danny’s got a crush on another Mary Morgan (Dowling) even though her nurse Virginia Merrill (Shore) has a crush on him. To complete the circle Danny’s relatively new roommate Joe Nelson (Andrews) has met and fallen in love with Mary. Though the feeling in mutual Joe and Mary don’t want to hurt Danny’s feelings so they haven’t told him yet. Meanwhile Virginia wishes Danny would realize that she exists and would love to be his gal or better yet fiancée! The four of them go to a theater where Kaye hilariously performs the aforementioned “Lobby Number” for Dumont and the others.

Much to the doctors’ relief Danny gets drafted (1A). Fortunately so does Joe and the two end up in boot camp assigned to Sergeant Gelsey (Talbot). Eventually both along with recruits played by Cook Jr. George Mathews (as Blackie who kisses his pinup picture of Veronica Lake) Benny Baker and others are assigned to same ship under Colonel Ashley’s (Calhern; Meeker plays his aide) command. Virginia and Mary enlist as officers; the former is also assigned to Ashley’s ship while the latter finds herself accidentally shanghaied by Danny. So much of the comedy setups involve hiding Mary from the Colonel. Naturally Miss Shore gets to sing songs and more of Kaye’s antics are featured. Since one knows the end already there is only its realization to occur. Danny is caught for smuggling Mary on-board; he eventually learns that she loves Joe. Virginia pleads for Danny’s freedom but later he is locked up (e.g. in the brig) on an island where he’s freed while being captured by some Japanese soldiers. However Danny’s captors become his captives in a rather ridiculous and definitely not politically correct sequence that involves Kaye impersonating a Japanese interrogator (complete with too thick glasses).

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