Review of Let's Face It

Bob Hope and Betty Hutton are two of my favorite all around entertainers from 'The Golden Age of Hollywood'. Herein, I finally found a film where they costar, albeit a rather short one at 76min.. It was released in the middle of WWII, thus the special appropriateness of Hope characterized as a private in the army, always getting into trouble, and the thumbing of noses at the Nazis, via the U Boat caper("Tell that to your paperhanger").......Based upon the 1941 Broadway play of the same title, most of Cole Porter's songs were deleted, transforming it from a musical comedy into more of a screwball romantic comedy. Four of Porter's songs were retained, plus 3 new songs composed by Jule Styne, were added. Betty does one song featuring her signature rapid fire nonsensical dialogue. She sings another, alternating with Hope. Hope and 2 GI buddies do an eccentric dance. Also, a pair of dance specialists do an elegant floor dance, with some comedic moments, ending with the man twirling the woman around and around his body.......I haven't read of this screenplay being labeled a screwball romantic comedy, perhaps because of the subsidiary musical content. But, to me, it clearly fits in that category. At one point, we have 3 sets of 3 women converging on 2 sets of 3 men in a house, the characters being a menagerie of spouses, girl or boyfriends, or first time dates. The set of dates for the 3 husbands soon exit when they encounter their wives. The other four sets retire to a nearby nightclub, where the 3 wives sit with their official dates: the 3 GIs(including Hope), while the 3 husbands sit with Betty and her 2 girlfriends, who are the girlfriends of the 2 GIs with Hope. The 2 groups sit across from each other, carrying on, trying to make the other group jealous. If that doesn't constitute screwball romantic comedy, I don't know what does!....... Hope and Betty are a romantic pair, whose wedding keeps being put off for various reasons, including lack of money. Betty, as Winnie, runs a 'fat farm', where overweight women come to shed pounds via a rigorous exercise program plus very restricted diet: namely milk(reduced fat content?). This 'farm' is located near the large army base where Hope lives. His job is to deliver packages to the base, in his jeep. But, he also often makes extra money delivering rich snacks and disserts, on the sneak, to certain of the fat farm participants. When Betty catches him delivering his contraband, she remarks "So you're the one who's been stuffing these 2 turkeys" Then, "I'm trying to deflate these blimps, and you come along and inflate them again" Does the Hope/Betty romance weather the several messes that Hope gets himself into? See the film to find out. It's presently available at YouTube......Some of the costars include Eve Arden, as one of 3 matronly women dates for the soldiers, including Zasu Pitts, and Phyllis Povah. Marjory Weaver and Dona Drake play the 2 friends of Betty, who show up with Betty to replace the dates the husbands brought.