Another Classic I Haven't Seen Yet #3 - Gold Diggers of 1933 (1933, duh)

"We're in the money"

So I watched this late last night and went to sleep right after. But boy do I have a lot to say about it. Rewind to 1933, when cinema was still young and no one really knew what they were doing yet, a genius director and cinematographer got together and made this gem.

The musical numbers transport you from the stage they’re performed on to a quasi-reality in which the music’s content is being played out. I haven’t seen it done this well since 2003’s Chicago. Again, and I can’t stress this enough, this was 1933. It’s fantasy and abstraction were on point for these musical numbers.

It was also kind of progressive for it’s time. It wasn’t pre-code (AKA pre-pearl clutching, God fearing ‘muricans that tried to ruin cinema)…but it was before the thought police started enforcing it. The women are smart, and take idiot rich guys for a ride (well, until they mutually fall in love and get married, because this is 1933). And it was ok to show a woman in something other than an evening dress.

The biggest surprise was the ending, The “Forgotten Man” number. It explained the state of America during The Depression better than any other movie has attempted to explain society at the time of it’s filming ever did, IMO. This was after the ‘happy ending’…it was unafraid to end on a downer, and make a statement.  Thus, this movie is now in my list of favorites.