Incannerax What a waste of my time!!!

Lawbolisted Powerful

Chonesday It's one of the most original films you'll likely see all year, which, depending on your threshold for certifiably crazy storylines, could be a rewarding experience or one that frustrates you.

Ariella Broughton It is neither dumb nor smart enough to be fun, and spends way too much time with its boring human characters.

vincentlynch-moonoi It's all very subjective, of course, when one tries to decide who is the "best American actor" (historically). But for me, it's always been a toss up between Spencer Tracy and Cary Grant, with the edge going to Cary Grant because he was equally comfortable with comedy and drama. But watching film, I've firmly decided that (at least for me) Cary Grant is the greatest American actor (historically).No, it's not because this is a great film. It isn't. It's mildly entertaining.But as I sat watching this film, all I could think was that there probably wasn't another actor who could play the main character and not turn the film into a farce.Think of it. A fantasy about a dancing caterpillar who eventually turns into a butterfly, after bringing a sense of loyalty to a little boy and a sense of hope to a jaded Broadway producer. A dancing caterpillar! And yet, Cary Grant pulled it off with panache! There a list of character actors here whom you'll recognize, including William Demarest. But here the prize goes to James Gleason. Janet Blair is the romantic lead...sort of. But the co-star is really Ted Donaldson -- the little boy.A gem of a film, very offbeat, heartwarming, and handled well so that it didn't become farce.

moonspinner55 'Dancing Bug Cuts a Rug'...or rather, 'How Did Cary Grant Get Roped Into This?' Theatrical producer, a "part-time genius" with three flops behind him, needs $100,000 to save his theater; he befriends an orphaned tyke with a bottle-cap hat, the boy's stone-cold chorine sister (who is roughly two times older than the kid), and the boy's caterpillar...who "dances" to "Yes Sir, That's My Baby". Elongated Aesop, although even Aesop provided a thoughtful moral. This one is just piffle, with the contrivance that the whole world would be chatting about such a miraculous event as a bug with an ear for music. This is the movie that launched a thousand worm jokes, and it's meant to be ironic that Grant (as the showman-turned-huckster) is the biggest worm of all. A box-office disaster in 1944, the film has not improved with age. Ted Donaldson is cute as the youngster, and Ann Loos has a funny scene playing Grant's put-upon secretary, but the insipid rest can easily be forgotten. * from ****

theowinthrop This is not a great film by any stretch. But it has it has it's interesting points. A minor comedy by Cary Grant, it came out just before his greatest performance as Ernie Mott in "None But The Lonely Heart". Ernie was the last of a series of heels or near heels that Grant played in serious films from "Suspicion" to "Mr. Lucky" to "Lonely Heart", all of which the studio system and the cult of movie star image crippled from being as good as they might have been. Grant just could not play a villain. Even when he was the unscrupulous Walter Burns in "His Gal Friday", the editor's role was subtly changed by showing that when he wasn't seeking newspaper scoops at everyone else's expense, Walter actually wanted to rid his city (Chicago) of a corrupt Mayor and his gang of relatives. Keep in mind that "His Gal Friday" was a comedy, not a tragic story like "None But The Lonely Heart" or a murder mystery like "Suspicion".ONCE UPON A TIME had been a radio play by Norman Corwin, and had been very successful at the time. The radio play was a fantasy about a little boy who has a pet caterpillar that will dance to the boy playing "Yes Sir, That's My Baby". He meets a theatrical producer who sees "the big picture" about showing the caterpillar to the public. The story line follows how this glitz campaign wrecks the producer's friendship with the boy, until the caterpillar vanishes and they find their relationship again in their concern about the missing pet.It sounds hokey, and is a little, but the story works. Fred Allen had played the ambitious producer in the radio show, and his perfect comic delivery hit the targets of the story. But for the film Allen (despite his wonderful success in "It's In The Bag") was not glamorous enough to carry the movie. Instead it was given to Grant. And here, now in a comedy, the same problem of the image and the desire to stretch as a film performer was fought again. Jerry Flynn is an unscrupulous producer who dreams of having his own theater for his own productions. He has gotten over his head in debt, and he may lose the theater he has a stake in as a result. But he is generally untrusted - and with reason. He will sell anyone for an advantage in the entertainment field. His most persistent critic is the news columnist Brandt (William Demerest) who has seen his shenanigans for years and knows he's an unscrupulous creep. And behaves that way for most of the film - once he discovers the caterpillar's talent to dance. He gives it the full treatment, much to the dismay of the boy's sister Jeannie (Janet Blair) and the growing disillusion of the boy "Pinkie" (Ted Donaldson). Brandt keeps sniping, suspecting everything that Flynn is up to - and finally (when Flynn seems to have beaten him) Brandt shows his moral superiority. Demerest says, "I'm only sorry that such a wonderful thing has to be controlled by you!" It actually does summarize the unscrupulousness of the character.If the original play had not been comic, and had not allowed for Flynn's moral regeneration I doubt if Grant's agent would have agreed to allow him to do it. Up to the middle of the film one dislikes Flynn's activities, especially as they hurt Pinkie and his sister (who, in the course of the film, falls for Flynn). It being a comedy there are moments when Flynn errs. The scene where he tells his aide "the Moke" (James Gleason) to let the telephone ring, expecting it is a call from Walt Disney about using the caterpillar is amusing - when it turns out he's wrong. But the audience wants to be wrong. His eventual realization that there is more to life than success in business or art helps make the character palatable, but it does not ring as true as if Flynn had remained the user/huckster he was to the end.The performances are fine (especially Demerest). But it is minor Grant, and it is ironic that it came just before he came closest to his acting peak.

loringm This was a wonderful radio play Norman Corwin wrote for CBS Radio in the 1940s. It starred Fred Allen, and because it was during the infamous Petrillo Musician's Union Strike, the background music was vocalized by a chorus. I was charmed by it then, but felt then (and now) that the imaginative quality of the radio play would be diminished in a film. I also felt Allen would be far better than Cary Grant in the lead role. But Allen would have sold far fewer tickets.