"When My Baby Smiles at Me" was the biggest money-maker for Twentieth Century-Fox for the year. It also resulted in an Oscar nomination for Dan Daily. However, when seen today, you may have a hard time believing either. To me, the film really suffers from when it was made and the message of 'stand by your man' seems very dated and inappropriate.
Betty Grable and Dan Dailey star as a husband-wife stage dance team. Of the two, he is the star but he's also an alcoholic, albeit a happy one. But after repeated promises to reform and stop chasing other women and getting drunk, she seems to have had enough and films for divorce. But, she also cannot bring herself to leave him completely and by the end she essentially decides to dedicate her life to cleaning up his messes and keeping him sober enough to keep working.
The film is a singing and dancing extravaganza and the plot seems far less important. Had the plot really explored alcoholism in a meaningful way and had the missus actually take it seriously, it would have worked much better. But the accept it because you love him plot just left me flat and I would hope and pray my daughters would never buy into such a silly message.
Overall, the singing and dancing are pretty good. Otherwise...the story simply isn't especially well done or something I'd recommend.
Betty Grable and Dan Dailey star as a husband-wife stage dance team. Of the two, he is the star but he's also an alcoholic, albeit a happy one. But after repeated promises to reform and stop chasing other women and getting drunk, she seems to have had enough and films for divorce. But, she also cannot bring herself to leave him completely and by the end she essentially decides to dedicate her life to cleaning up his messes and keeping him sober enough to keep working.
The film is a singing and dancing extravaganza and the plot seems far less important. Had the plot really explored alcoholism in a meaningful way and had the missus actually take it seriously, it would have worked much better. But the accept it because you love him plot just left me flat and I would hope and pray my daughters would never buy into such a silly message.
Overall, the singing and dancing are pretty good. Otherwise...the story simply isn't especially well done or something I'd recommend.