BATHING BEAUTY

New Zealand Listener, Volume 12, Issue 304, 20 April 1945, Page 18

BATHING BEAUTY

(M-G-M.)

STHER. WILLIAMS,’ twice national swimming champion of the U.S.A. and subsequently star of Billy Rose’s Aquacade at the San Francisco World

Fair in 1939, makes a pretty big splash in her first starring film. With technicolour, two dance bands (Xavier Cugat’s and Harry James’), and glowing good looks to support her, Miss Williams is never completely out of her depth. The same cannot be said of Red Skelton (her co-star), or Basil Rathborie, or the scriptwriters who prepared a silly story about (continued on next page)

_ , (continued from previous page) @ song-writer who passionately pursues Miss Williams into the girls’ college where she teaches, and even succeeds in becoming one of the pupils. It has to be admitted, though, that Red Skelton’s familiar dumb-show impersonation of 2 girl at her toilet is still wortg a hearty laugh, as is also his excursion into ballet during an eurhythmics class. You will, I think, need to be a pretty, staunch admirer of Mr. Skelton to be amused by much else in his acting. But you would not necessarily have to be a jive addict to admire some of the musical items-especially Harry James’ virtuosity on the trumpet in "Hora Stoccata," by Heifetz, or Ethel Smith’s gymnastics on the organ. Still, allowing for all this, Esther Williams is really the beginning and end of the picture especially the end. It is then that she takes to her natural element and waltzes, yes literally waltzes, through the water as premier nageuse of an aquaballet. Logically, the music accompanying this feat should be "Over the Waves," but M.G.M. preferred something by Strauss.