Littered with over twenty name stars, Stage Door Canteen was Hollywood's contribution to boosting the troops' morale in the thick of WWII. Everyone got together, playing themselves, and gave a song, dance, or speech at the Stage Door Canteen, for the soldiers in the movie as well as the soldiers in real life. Katharine Hepburn, Helen Hayes, Ethel Merman, Harpo Marx, Ray Bolger, Ralph Bellamy, Tallulah Bankhead, Jean Hersholt, Paul Muni, Merle Oberon, George Raft, Gypsy Rose Lee, Elsa Maxwell, Ethel Waters, Ed Wynn, Helen Broderick, Jane Darwell, Martha Scott, William Demarest, Allen Jenkinis, Sam Jaffe, Xavier Cugat, Benny Goodman, Kay Kyser, Guy Lombardo, and many others lent their name and talent to show American boys that Hollywood was behind them all the way.
Sprinkled in among the countless acts is a fictional story of three soldiers, named Dakota, California, and Texas, to symbolize the average American soldier, who visit the variety show and fall in love with three girls who work there. Romance is strictly forbidden at the hotspot, but the three couples make plans for after the war anyway, inspiring thousands of war-torn couples across the nation.
If you're able to get in the WWII mindset, or if you like Americana films, you might enjoy this one. If you just look at it as a regular movie, it's not that great. It's over two hours, and with a very simple story to carry you through dozens and dozens of acts by people you might not have even heard of, you might find it a little long in the tooth.
Sprinkled in among the countless acts is a fictional story of three soldiers, named Dakota, California, and Texas, to symbolize the average American soldier, who visit the variety show and fall in love with three girls who work there. Romance is strictly forbidden at the hotspot, but the three couples make plans for after the war anyway, inspiring thousands of war-torn couples across the nation.
If you're able to get in the WWII mindset, or if you like Americana films, you might enjoy this one. If you just look at it as a regular movie, it's not that great. It's over two hours, and with a very simple story to carry you through dozens and dozens of acts by people you might not have even heard of, you might find it a little long in the tooth.