Cuban Pete

Okay, I can't really review the movie too much but then again, there's not really too much movie to review. It's typical studio musical fodder (and pretty low-budget at that) with the plot serving merely to convey us from one musical number to another. But what numbers! The movie's sole reason for existence was to showcase the hot, new (1946) Cuban sensation...Desi Arnaz! We got glimpses of his act in 'I Love Lucy' reruns but here, we get to see just how hot he was.

My lasting impression of this movie is of Desi leading his orchestra through some wild, propulsive, Latin rhythm, Conga drum slung over his shoulder, sweat streaming down his chest and disappearing beneath his half-buttoned shirt, whipping his long black hair out of his eyes and yelling at the top of his lungs. He was, in short, a rock star! One can imagine why he would have been tempted to stray from Lucy...women were probably throwing themselves at his feet. This was one sexy guy! When you see the movie, feel free to fast-forward (I doubt this is going to find it's way to DVD) to the musical numbers. They're all you need to see but you'll probably want to see them two or three times.