Sergio Orta Movies
- 1944
El Globo de Cantolla (The Balloon of Cantella) is a frothy musical concoction, ideally suited to Mexican wartime tastes. The toothsome Mapy Cortes stars as Luisa, one of three amorous daughters of a wealthy mamacita. Though their mother has already chosen three husbands for her daughters, Luisa and her sisters (Josefina Martinez and Martha Elba) prefer to do their own shopping. Amazingly, our heroine falls in love with her mother's selection, Roberto (Jose Cibrian) -- especially after he describes a huge musical show he plans to stage, with Luisa as star. Even without English-language subtitles, El Globo de Cantolla is easy to follow; after all, the plot is virtually interchangeable with any of the 20th Century-Fox "South of the Border" musicals being produced at the same time. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Mapy Cortes
- 1942
Cult-favorite director Anthony Mann's second filmic effort was the unprepossessing Universal mini-musical Moonlight in Havana. Allan Jones stars as hotshot baseball player Johnny Norton, in Havana for spring training. It turns out that Johnny has a beautiful singing voice, but only when he's suffering from a cold. Enterprising nightclub manager Barney Crane (William Frawley) attempts to inflict poor Johnny with cold germs, resulting in unchecked zaniness whenever our hero recovers sufficiently to lose his voice. The film's 63-minute running time manages to accommodate the drunken comedy relief of Hugh O'Connell and Jack Norton, and an abundance of musical numbers, courtesy of Allan Jones, Jane Frazee, the Horton Dancing Group, the Jivin' Jacks and Jills and Grace & Nicco. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Allan Jones, Jane Frazee, (more)
- 1942
Victor Mature and Lucille Ball top the star-studded cast of RKO Radio's Seven Days Leave. Mature plays Johnny Grey, an eternally smiling GI who suddenly falls heir to $100,000. There's just one catch: Johnny must marry heiress Terry (Ball), whom he's never met, within a seven-day period. Once this familiar premise has been set up, the film segues into an unending parade of supporting comedians and specialty performers, including Harold Peary (in his traditional "Great Gildersleeve" radio persona), Ralph Edwards (shown hosting his popular airwaves quizzer Truth or Consequences), announcer Charles Victor (likewise emceeing his Court of Missing Heirs radio program), singers Ginny Simms and Marcy McGuire, south-of-the-border entertainer Mapy Cortes, and bandleaders Freddy Martin and Les Brown. Also on tap are a brace of future TV favorites, Peter Lynd Hayes and Arnold Stang. The choreography is by director-to-be Charles Walters, making his Hollywood debut. Seven Days Leave should not be confused with the 1944 RKO Radio "B" Seven Days Ashore. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Victor Mature, Lucille Ball, (more)
All that MGM's Ziegfeld Girl lacks is Technicolor; otherwise, the film has talent and "sock" entertainment value in abundance. The story focuses on three showbiz hopefuls-Judy Garland, Hedy Lamarr and Lana Turner-and the efforts to attain the lofty status of "Ziegfeld Girl." Garland is compelled to leave her family vaudeville act; she bids her dad Charles Winninger a tearful farewell, and later falls in love with Turner's brother Jackie Cooper. In her bid for success, Lana forgets all about her faithful boyfriend James Stewart, who turns to bootlegging to come up to the financial stature of Lana's new beau, socialite Ian Hunter. Lamarr nearly dumps her impoverished violinist husband Philip Dorn as she climbs the ladder of success. There are happy endings in store for two of the three female leads, but we'll let you watch the film yourselves to find out who wins and who loses. Featured in the cast are Tony Martin, Edward Everett Horton, Eve Arden, Dan Dailey, and, in a poignant cameo as a wardrobe woman, the "ever popular" Mae Busch. Song highlights include "Minnie from Trinidad", "You Never Looked So Beautiful Before", "I'm Always Chasing Rainbows", "Laugh? I Thought I'd Split My Side", "Caribbean Love Song", "Whispering", "Mr. Gallagher and Mr. Shean" (performed by Charles Winninger and the surviving half of the Gallagher-and-Shean duo, Al Shean-who happened to be the Marx Bros.' uncle), "You Stepped Out of a Dream" and "You Gotta Pull Strings." ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- James Stewart, Judy Garland, (more)
- 1938
Sucedio en la Habana (It Happened in Havana) had to be the most ambitious Cuban film of the 1930s: in any event, it was one of the most successful. Mixing equal portions of music, comedy and romance, director Ramon Peon follows several festive protagonists on what amounts to a guided tour of Havana's celebrated nightspots. The huge cast consists of practically every "big name" of the Cuban stage and screen, and also calls upon the talents of a veritable battalion of songwriters. Indeed, one critic noted that the opening credits alone took four minutes to roll across the screen! Despite a huge budget and an all-star cast, the film is surprisingly shoddy at times; particularly badly handled are the song solos, which feature some of the clumsiest lip-synching ever captured on film. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Luana Alcaniz, Juan Torena, (more)
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