Gold Diggers of 1933 (1933)

GOLD DIGGERS OF 1933  (1933)  ¢ ¢ ¢ 1/2
    D: Mervyn Leroy
    Joan Blondell, Ruby Keeler, Dick Powell,
    Ginger Rogers, Aline MacMahon, Warren William,
    Guy Kibbee, Ned Sparks, Sterling Holloway
A bunch of chorus girls sharing a flat and trying not to starve as they search in vain for theater work. A producer who has a great idea for a show, but no money to put it on with. A boyish songwriter across the way who's working on some terrific tunes and just might know how to finance a Broadway production. The quintessential 1930s musical isn't the escapist fantasy you might expect, despite its flamboyant Busby Berkeley production numbers. The Depression hangs over everything, from the opening song (Ginger Rogers singing "We're In the Money" in pig Latin) to "Forgotten Man", the somber, show-stopping finale. Even with its chorus girls dangling costume coins and playing neon violins, the underlying spirit is dark.