In the Navy (1941)

one of my absolute favorites!

Best movie of this year hands down!

This movie was so-so. It had it's moments, but wasn't the greatest.

If you're interested in the topic at hand, you should just watch it and judge yourself because the reviews have gone very biased by people that didn't even watch it and just hate (or love) the creator. I liked it, it was well written, narrated, and directed and it was about a topic that interests me.

Dick Powell plays a popular crooner who disappears and joins the Navy, where he meets bumbling sailors Abbott & Costello. They help him avoid being caught by a tricky reporter (Claire Dodd) trying to get a scoop. We saw Abbott & Costello try their hand at the Army in Buck Privates and now we see how they fare with the Navy. A few of the duo's funny routines this time are the shell game, the lemon bit, and "7 x 13 = 28." Lou's especially lovable in this one ("Anything but a barber!"). Dick Powell does fine with an unchallenging role. Claire Dodd and Dick Foran offer fun support. Some of my favorite parts of the movie involve the Andrews Sisters, who not only perform songs as they did in Buck Privates but get to do some acting, too. Patty Andrews is the object of Lou's affection in this one and the two have some cute scenes together. The funny climax featuring Lou impersonating the ship's captain was changed to a dream sequence because the Navy objected, thinking it made them look bad that a moron could take control of a battleship. It's a lighthearted, fun movie with plenty of laughs and enjoyable songs ("Gimme Some Skin, My Friend" is a highlight). Not A&C's best but lots of fun.

This is the second morale film that Universal put out in 1941 as the U.S. was building up its Armed Forces in anticipation of involvement in the war. World War II had officially begun Sept. 1, 1939, with Germany's invasion of Poland. But, Nazi Germany had taken over other countries before then. And, Japan had begun an invasion of China four years earlier. Germany invaded France on May 10, 1940, and Great Britain had declared war on Germany. That was the state of the world a year before "In the Navy" reached theaters in the U.S. It was anyone's guess when America might be drawn into the war. Few people could imagine how that would happen just six months later when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor.As in "Buck Privates," Bud Abbott and Lou Costello don uniforms of a service to give the folks at home a look at service in the modern Navy, but with their comedy and hijinks added. The movie is built around a plot of an idolized crooner who is tired of the adulation from fawning women. So, he disappears to join the Navy incognito. Dick Powell plays that role nicely as Thomas Halstead. His love interest turns out to be a Paparazzi-type woman reporter/photographer who's trying to get the scoop on where the heartthrob singer has gone. Claire Dodd plays that role well as Dorothy Roberts. Along with Powell's couple of songs, the Andrews Sisters round out the entertainment in this comedy-musical romance. They don't have any hit tunes in this film, but the Andrews Sisters make any film more worthwhile viewing. They have one very different number – a Hawaiian luau song that is set to a swing beat. "In the Navy" doesn't have Bud and Lou in boot camp, but already serving in the Navy. The antics here are aboard ship and when hosting civilians. Bud is Smokey Adams and Lou is Pomeroy Watson. As in most of their films, the comics have some routines that they might have done in vaudeville. The Marx Brothers also did things like that in their movies. In most cases, it provides the best comedy of the films – for those who use this technique. The laughs here come from Lou getting the best of Bud for once. Bud again film-flams Lou in a money sketch. But in another one, Lou and Shemp Howard (as Dizzy) catch Bud in a version of a shell game. Then Lou has a long sketch in which he teaches Bud the basics of math. He can multiply, divide and add to show that 13 times 7 is 28. We also have a very funny sequence of ship maneuvering – naturally, with Lou in charge. But it turns out to be just a dream by Lou – otherwise the Navy wouldn't give its blessing for the film. So, after six years in the Navy, Lou and Bud will see sea duty, being assigned with Tommy to the Battleship Alabama. I suppose Universal wanted to use a fictitious name so as not to embarrass any sailors on a real ship of the time. And, with the Alabama in this film going to Hawaii, this fictitious ship would likely have been at Pearl Harbor when the Japanese attacked it six months later. Perhaps providence had a hand in guiding the naming of the ship in this film. As it turned out, the Navy did later have a battleship named the U.S.S. Alabama. On Feb. 16, the next year, the Alabama was launched at the Norfolk (VA) Naval Shipyard. It first saw duty in the North Atlantic and Baltic Sea area, assigned to the British Home Fleet. Then, in August 1943, the Alabama sailed to the South Pacific. It saw combat in many of the war battles of the Pacific after that and earned nine battle stars It was decommissioned after the war. Since 1964, the Alabama has been in Battleship Memorial Park as a museum on the coast at Mobile, Alabama.Universal made one other movie with Abbott and Costello ("Hold That Ghost") after release of "Buck Privates" in February 1941. But the first film had received a great reception by the public, and the growing world tensions had many expecting the U.S. involvement in the war at any moment. So, the studio rushed the comedy duo and others into production of "In the Navy" and held back release of the "Ghost" until after this one. After "Ghost" they would do one more service film -- about the Army Air Corps. I think it's very interesting to see the scenes in this film of Hawaii. Some more recent books and films about World War II and the U.S. involvement try to give more drama to the Japanese attack of Dec 7, 1941, by saying that most Americans had never even heard of Pearl Harbor. That may be, but anyone who saw this movie, would probably have known about it. And, with the growing public interest in the armed services and the news commentaries about American defense and preparedness, it's likely that many more of the public at least knew that Pearl Harbor was the U.S. Navy base in Hawaii. One other interesting thing about this film is the frequent use of the slang term "gob" for enlisted sailors. One doesn't hear that term much today. I think it was used most often by the British, and apparently by Ameicans around that time. Besides its entertainment value, "In the Navy" is another WWII era film with some historical interest and value.

Somewhere, hidden within what seems like a ton of singing and dancing numbers and the requisite romantic subplot, there's actually a very fine Abbott and Costello comedy to be found. Not that I have anything personal against the Andrews Sisters--but the time devoted to their singing numbers is time I would rather see Bud & Lou work their magic. But--when given the opportunity--Bud & Lou do a stellar job with such classic routines as the Lemon Bit & 7x13=28. And fans of the Three Stooges may get a kick out of seeing Shemp Howard in this film--although he rarely gets an opportunity to flex his comedic muscles--reportedly Shemp did a lot of funny stuff in his A & C appearances that got left on the cutting room floor. Still, I enjoyed when during the Lemon Bit, Shemp ask Bud if he's mad then advises him to suck on a lemon.Another highlight--and maybe the funniest scene in the entire film-- is Lou's dream sequence where he masquerades as the Captain of the ship.Overall, if you can bare all the singing and dancing, then "In the Navy" rates as a fine Bud & Lou comedy that could have been great if a lot of the fat was trimmed--but then again, I could say the same for a lot of Bud & Lou's early features.

Maybe Who's On First is Abbott and Costello's best known routine, but the one that is my favorite has Lou successfully proving to Abbott and everyone else that Thirteen times seven does equal twenty eight. That is the centerpiece of this film and I never fail to split a gut when I see it.In the book the films of Dick Powell it says that Powell grabbed this role with relish because it reflected him in real life. At that time Powell was desperately trying to get out of crooning roles and do straight drama. And that's just what Russ Raymond, Powell's character, is trying to do here. He enlists in the Navy under the name of Tommy Halsted with reporter Claire Dodd hot on his trail and the accompanying story. That's the thin plot of this film, but with Abbott and Costello at the top of their game, plot, shmot, who cares. Good laughs for all.