Sweet Music: A messy, charming relic from the thirties

Is it worth your time?

Look, if you have a soft spot for 1930s musical chaos, you’ll probably find something to love here. But if you hate long movies where people just sort of wander through musical numbers while the plot goes on vacation, stay far away. It’s a bit of a marathon, honestly.

Rudy Vallée is just… Rudy Vallée. He’s got that specific, stiff charm that either works for you or makes you want to check your watch. Personally, I found his constant critiques of Bonnie kind of exhausting. Like, dude, maybe just let her dance without telling her how to move her feet every five seconds?

There are moments where the film feels like it’s about to fall apart entirely. The scene with the Frank and Milton Britton Comedy Band? It goes on for an eternity. It’s supposed to be funny, I think, but mostly it just feels like the director forgot to yell 'cut' for about ten minutes.

Oddly specific things I noticed

• The radio station sequences look like they were filmed in a closet.
• The way people in the background of the dance scenes just sway without actually dancing is weirdly hypnotic.
• There is a transition shot that looks like it was cut with blunt scissors.

The chemistry between the leads is… well, it’s there, I guess. It’s a bit like watching two people who are being forced to dance together by a very demanding teacher. It’s not exactly Luxury Liner, but it has a weird, frantic energy that I actually kind of dug.

The whole thing feels like it’s trying to be a massive, sprawling epic of the music business, but it keeps tripping over its own feet. Still, it’s a fascinating snapshot of a time when entertainment felt a lot more like a circus. It’s definitely not as focused as something like The Poor Rich Man, but it’s got way more brass.

I left the movie feeling like I’d just eaten way too much cotton candy. My brain was a little fuzzy, my ears were ringing from the band, and I wasn't entirely sure what I just watched. But I wasn't mad about it. 🎷