Keep Your Powder Dry

It seems that the film boards made a concerted effort to boost the image of women as tough and capable leading up to and continuing through World War II. "Keep Your Powder Dry" is an effort to display three women who overcome their disparate backgrounds, their petty differences, and their civilian prejudices to achieve a greater good by contributing to the war effort. A character in the film puts it this way, "...subordinate your personal feelings for the good of the corps."

This is a consistent theme in movies throughout this era. In John Ford's "Pearl Harbor" a German mocks the notion that the weak and decadent American women could take the place of men in industry to free them for service as soldiers. In "Cry Havoc" we witness the courage, trials, and sacrifices of women on Corregidor. Here in "Keep Your Powder Dry" we learn of the candidates' perseverance through the trials of boot camp, motor pool training, and OCS school (though the examples that they show are weak).

It is a little difficult to suspend reality far enough to buy the notion that Lana Turner could become dedicated to life in the WACs, having arrived by way of Park Avenue, but an effort is made by the screenwriter to show her recognition of the shallow and narcissistic lifestyle that she found there. It occurs rather late in the film, however.

Still, for WWII movie buffs, and fans for the movies of the forties, this one is a must see.

Socialite Valerie Parks (Lana Turner) has trouble accessing her trust fund. She is informed that she should join the Women's Army Corps (WAC) to show her maturity in exercising responsibility. Other ladies are joining for different reasons. Leigh Rand (Laraine Day) is honoring her military general father. Housewife Ann Darrison (Susan Peters) is following her husband who is deploying overseas. Lt. Col. Spottiswoode (Agnes Moorehead) is their commander.

It takes awhile before there is some drama. I do like the drama and the idea of these women trying to change who they are. It's one of the basic selling point of the military. The young people go in with issues and they come out having figured it out. It's "An Officer and a Gentleman". This does come with some over-acting from that era. The ending is a little abrupt. Ann has her tragedy but it's almost forgotten with the other two's story. I like this even without the real war influence.

Before Goldie Hawn in Private Benjamin, before Rosalind Russell Waved At A WAC. there was Lana Turner in Keep Your Powder Dry. Ironically all three of these women played women of some social standing who for similar reasons join the Women's Army Corps.

Turner is a rather flighty nightclub loving trust fund baby who in the opinion of her guardians is just to irresponsible to control her own money. To show them her sense of responsibility Lana joins the WACs and this is also an act of patriotism as well. What could impress trustees more than being a patriot during World War II.

Her fellow WAC trainees are Laraine Day who is an army brat , daughter of General Henry O'Neill who is following a family tradition. The third is Susan Peters who reminds one a lot of Jennifer Jones in her role in Since You Went Away., the girl everyone wants to come home to. She has a husband in the service already and she feels this is the best way to support him.

Turner and Day are instant rivals, Peters is a good soul who is friend to both. Keep Your Powder Dry is essentially the story of their relationship dynamic and the changes in it.

Some others in the cast are Agnes Moorehead as a severe but understanding post commandant, Lee Patrick as a former vaudeville entertainer who becomes an army cook, and Jess Barker as one of Turner's idiot nightclub companions.

Another nightclub companion is Natalie Schaefer and you can see how in the next generation she could become Mrs. Thurston Howell IV. A really spot on performance.

Keep Your Powder Dry may have started as WW2 flag waver, but it holds up very well over the generations both as comedy and drama.

The unlikely prospect of anyone who looks like Lana Turner giving up her comfy civilian life to wear an army uniform is the hardest thing to swallow about this service film about three women from different walks of life who learn to become army buddies. Turner, of course, is given the glamour treatment and must have made hundreds of girls think they would look terrific in khaki.

Nevertheless, it's an enjoyable enough item sparked by some very competent performances by the mostly female cast. It's the feminine prototype of countless serviceman films produced during the war years of World War II, given non-serious treatment with a story centering on three new WAC recruits. Laraine Day plays an army brat, a girl who constantly flaunts her superiority over the other recruits and for most of the film engages in a tug of war with Turner. While Turner was given the full glamour treatment, Laraine Day succeeded in playing her unsympathetic role to the hilt, for the first time showing a harder edge to her screen personality. The film is enjoyable fluff, with good work by Susan Peters and Agnes Moorehead.

My article on Laraine Day appears in the Spring 2001 issue of FILMS OF THE GOLDEN AGE--and one on Lana Turner is due for publication at a later date.

This is a great little movie with plenty of laughs and tears. Lana Turner is in stunning form as Val, for some reason she really reminds me of Marylin Munroe a lot in this movie. The rest of the cast is great too, especially Laraine Day and Susan Peters. The story is based around the idea of three women from different social circumstances joining the WAC. The combination of Laraine Day with her army family background and Lana Turner as a model, creates for some incredible tension and electric scenes between the two. These two actresses really spark off each other wonderfully and they have some really dynamic exchanges. All the while with Susan Peters trying to play peace maker and remain neutral. A really heartbreaking ending really adds good balance to this movie also. I feel some of the other reviews were a little harsh on this film, treating it rather whimsically, this film has great dialogue and some very whitty exchanges, the likes of which you won't find on celluloid these days. I find it so hard to believe people can pass off a great little gem like this as boring and uninteresting. Anyway at least it has me here to champion it. :)