5th Ave Girl (1939)

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1. 

   Siskoid

   With a title like 5th Ave Girl, you expect Ginger Rogers to be embroiled in a working girl plot in an advertising firm or something, telling the men of the office what's what. But no, it's just an address, and the first of several disappointments suffered in this story of a rich man who feels ignored by his family and hires a woman to pose as his mistress to get their attention. Well, it's a comedy premise, but it's played like a drama. Ginger has all the quick patter of a comedy heroine, but a downcast expression for most of the film. Her retorts are bitter and sarcastic. She and Walter Connolly (here not doing his usual double takes) are just about the only sympathetic characters in the film, as everyone else seems to speak only from toxic privilege, from the businessmen talking about the disaster that is the 44-hour week, to the socialist chauffeur who sounds like a first year sci pol student and who, no worries Commie hunters, will betray his own ideals by the end. So never mind the family itself. It's hard to root for the leads to succeed (especially the terrible romance forced on Ginger in the last act). For a while, it tries to make a point about the haves and have-nots, in particular Ginger's stance on money, but I'm not entirely sure what the movie thinks its point is. 3 years 11 months ago
2. 

   TomReagan

   @Siskoid reviewed it beautifully and took better words right out of my thumbs. I adore Rogers for her comic wit, but there’s almost none of that here. The scene in the kitchen when she lays down the law to the pretentious boyfriend is the only scene I really enjoyed. And the first dance where she gets drunk with Walter Connolly. Rogers’ fans can skip it. 3 years ago

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