Me and the Boys Review: A Quick Jazz Treat for the Curious

Okay, look. If you’re hoping for some deep narrative or mind-bending plot, Me and the Boys isn’t it. But if you’re into early jazz, or just curious about how films sounded way back when, this little short is actually kinda neat. Skip it if you need explosions or a big story. This one’s for the niche crowd, definitely.

What you get here is pretty straightforward. Estelle Brody, she’s the main event, singing a couple of tunes. First, she’s sitting by a piano, then she gets up and moves around a bit. The 'boys' are right there, playing their instruments. You can tell they’re good; it’s Ben Pollack’s band, after all. 🎶

It’s really interesting to just watch these early sound experiments. The floor is covered in a rug, which means no tap sounds even when Brody’s dancing. A practical choice, I guess, but it makes you notice the silence in a different way. Like, was that a big problem they were trying to fix?

The camera work is pretty simple. It stays mostly fixed, letting you take in the whole scene. But there's this one moment, a really tight shot of the drummer. It's almost a surprise, like, 'oh, we're zooming in now!' It pulls you right into the music for a second. 🥁

Cinematic perspective: Exploring the visual vocabulary of Me and the Boys (1929) through its definitive frames.

Brody returns for her second number in a different costume. It’s a nice touch, keeps things from getting too static. She’s got a presence, even in such a short piece. You can see her trying to connect with the camera, which is basically the audience.

This isn’t about big cinematic moments. It’s more like catching a live performance, just preserved on film. It feels very much like a snapshot of a particular time in entertainment. It doesn’t try to be anything more, which is kinda refreshing, honestly.

It’s hard to call this a 'movie' in the modern sense. More like a filmed vaudeville act or a very early music video. If you’re a jazz historian, or really into the beginnings of sound in film, you’ll probably find this little artifact fascinating. For everyone else? Maybe just a quick curiosity. It's short enough not to bore you, though.

Didja notice?

• Estelle Brody’s outfits are pretty snazzy for the era.
• The musicians look super serious, concentrating hard.
• The whole thing probably ran less than ten minutes, blink and you miss it!
• That close-up on the drummer really sticks with you.
• No big 'story' at all, just pure performance.