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4.7/10
Senior Film Conservator
A definitive 4.7/10 rating for a film that redefined the boundaries of cult cinema. Dangerous Nan McGrew remains a cornerstone of transgressive art.
You should watch this if you have a soft spot for the 1930s when movies were still figuring out how to talk. 🎙️
If you hate squeaky voices or plots that make zero sense, you’ll probably want to skip it.
It’s a weird little thing that feels half like a stage play and half like a cartoon. Helen Kane is the main reason to be here, and she's basically a human firecracker.
The movie starts with a traveling medicine show. You know, those old-timey wagons where people sold fake potions and did acts.
Nan is the star, and she's a sharp-shooter. She literally shoots things while singing, which is a talent I didn't know I needed to see.
They get stranded in the Canadian northwest during a blizzard. They end up at this fancy hunting lodge owned by a wealthy woman named Mrs. Benson.
It’s very Christmas Eve, very snowy, and very claustrophobic. It reminds me a bit of the vibe in The Gold Rush, but with way more singing and way less eating of shoes.
If you don't know who Helen Kane is, she was the inspiration for Betty Boop. Her voice is high, squeaky, and she does this 'boop-a-doop' scatting thing constantly.
It’s either the most charming thing you’ve ever heard or it’ll make your ears bleed. Personally, I found it kind of infectious after the first ten minutes.
She has this energy that just doesn't fit the stiff 1930s camera work. She’s moving around, making faces, and basically carrying the whole movie on her back.
Then there’s Eustace Macy, played by Stuart Erwin. He plays the saxophone and he’s Mrs. Benson's nephew.
He falls for Nan, and their scenes together are... awkward. Not like romantic awkward, but 'the script didn't give us much to say' awkward.
There is a scene where he’s tooting his saxophone and it goes on for way too long. I actually checked my phone during that bit because the song just wouldn't end.
It’s one of those moments where the movie tries to convince you this guy is a catch. He’s fine, I guess, but compared to Nan, he’s like a piece of unbuttered toast.
Suddenly, the movie decides it needs to be a crime thriller. Enter 'Doc' Foster, played by Frank Morgan.
Yeah, that Frank Morgan. The guy who eventually becomes the Wizard of Oz. Here, he’s a bank robber trying to hide out at the lodge.
He’s actually pretty good at being a snake. He has this smooth way of talking that makes you forget he's the bad guy for a second.
The transition from a musical comedy to a 'catch the criminal' plot is very clunky. It’s like the movie forgot what it was halfway through filming.
I really liked the set design of the lodge, even if it looks like it's made of cardboard and hope. ❄️
You can tell they were struggling with the microphones. Characters have to stand very still when they talk, or the sound gets all fuzzy.
In one scene, you can hear the actors' boots hitting the floorboards so loudly it sounds like thunder. It’s those little technical mistakes that make these old movies feel more 'human' to me.
The medicine show crew is a bunch of oddballs. They feel like they stepped out of a movie like The Painted Lie or some other forgotten melodrama.
The movie is only about 70 minutes long, which is a blessing. It doesn't overstay its welcome, even if the pacing is all over the place.
It’s not a masterpiece like some of the big hits of the era. But it’s got a lot of heart and some very strange choices.
I liked it more than I expected to. It’s definitely better than some of the drier stuff from the same year, like maybe Old Ironsides which can be a bit of a slog.
If you want to see where Betty Boop came from, or just want to see a guy get chased through the snow by a squeaky-voiced girl with a rifle, give it a go. 🔫
It’s messy, loud, and weirdly sweet. Just don't expect the plot to make a lick of sense by the end.
IMDb 5.9
1921
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