Rio Rita

Lovely old musical based on a smash 1927 Broadway show produced by Flo Ziegfeld.

Stale plot but it doesn't matter what with great leads by John Boles and Bebe Daniels. Nonsense about a bunch of vigilantes seeking the notorious "Kinkajou." But the songs are terrific and both Boles and Daniels have great voices. It must have been a big surprise to film fans to see Bebe Daniels in this film. She had been a star for a decade and emerged as the great singer. Their duet on "Rio Rita" is excellent.

Along for the ride (and from the Broadway play) are Bert Wheeler and Robert Woolsey (their film debut) who are very funny here. Contrary to general knowledge, they were NOT a vaudeville team. They had never even met before being hired for the Broadway production. But RIO RITA started a long and very funny teaming of the two in many films.

Dorothy Lee is also good in this film as the "boop-a-doop" voiced girl friend of Wheeler. Their duet on "Sweetheart, We Need Each Other" is a delight and when they break into a tap dance routine, they are just perfect. Lee (in her second film) is especially good, but I don't remember much dancing from her other films.

The existing 104-minute print is from the cut down 1932 re-release of the film. The original 140-minute version is not known to exist, although a complete print once existed at New York's Museum of Modern Art.

The pirate ship finale was filmed in 2-strip Technicolor and exists.

Also in the cast are Helen Kaiser as Mrs. Bean, Don Alvarado as Roberto, Georges Renavent as the general, Eva Rosita as Carmen, and Richard Alexander as Gonzales.