OVP: Up in Arms (1944)

Film: Up in Arms (1944)
Stars: Danny Kaye, Dinah Shore, Dana Andrews, Constance Dowling, Louis Calhern
Director: Elliott Nugent
Oscar History: 2 nominations (Best Scoring, Original Song-"Now I Know")
Snap Judgment Ranking: 1/5 stars

I'm trying to watch a few of the Criterion films that are leaving this month before they adios, and amid the middle of a coronavirus quarantine, one of the films that I ended up chancing upon was 1944's Up in Arms, which is a movie about, well, a hypochondriac.  The 1944 war musical, one of many films that were built around Danny Kaye's unique sensibilities, was a flick I had never heard of until I saw it was one of those random Oscar nominees I hadn't gotten around to (the music awards used to allow well over five nominations in the early 1940's, so they end up with a lot of movies that got "Oscar-nominated" solely around this loophole).

(Spoilers Ahead) The film is about two buddies, Danny (Kaye) and Joe (Andrews), who are in love with the same girl Mary (Dowling), who really only has eyes for Joe (just based on looks, she has a point).  Mary's friend Virginia (Shore), though, is madly in love with Danny, even though Danny is, well, an acquired case.  He's a raving hypochondriac, frequently harassing doctors to examine him at the hospital where he's an elevator operator and constantly letting his neuroses project onto the people around him.  All four of them are drafted into the army (since it is World War II, after all), and comedy ensues when Danny & Joe stow Mary on their ship when she isn't drafted to come with them.  As the film unfolds, Danny accidentally makes himself into a hero when he convinces a group of Japanese troops to surrender (by dressing up as their commander...yes, this is one of many "yellow face" movies of the 1940's), and ends up falling for Virginia, so both couples can live happily ever after.

The movie has the occasional moment.  By far my favorite was a strange fourth wall break about two-thirds of the way through the movie.  The women on the set, not just Shore & Dowling but a whole host of "Goldwyn Girls" are dressed in skimpy daywear, showing off their figures and legs, are parading on the deck of the ship making it look more like a luxury liner than a vessel of war.  One of the two men observing says "I don't remember this from the last war," and the other guy said "I don't remember it from this war either," while both men look at the audience shaking their heads, indicating that a boatful of beautiful women is not what American soldiers should have-in-mind when they get drafted.

But this is one of the few moments that isn't bogged down in Danny Kaye's madness.  Kaye was a major star for much of the 1940's and 50's (we'll get to another one of his films I caught recently later this week), but he's also an acquired taste.  Much like Robin Williams could make any interview work, but sometimes felt exhausting in a movie (especially when the material wasn't up to the rapid fire snuff of the leading man), Kaye's films occasionally are too indulgent to the actor, even if it's clear he's a gifted comedian.  His number about Hollywood musicals notwithstanding, I found the whole exercise to be exhausting, the same indulgent sound gags and ridiculousness repeated for some 2 hours.  With no one else, not even the usually game Shore, able to get much screen-time, I left honestly more tired than anything else.

The film's two Oscar nominations aren't worthy either.  The torch song "Now I Know" was sung not by Kaye but by Shore, and while few people of this era could belt a sad tune quite like Shore, it feels quickly disposable.  The same can be said for the overall score of the film.  The one exception is "Theater Lobby Number," which is funny, showy, and actually gives Kaye a reason to be what he is.  But the rest of the movie is fluff, and overlong.