bkoganbing
The charismatic presence of Cab Calloway one of the best entertainers is reason enough to see Hi-De-Ho. The film is chock full of numbers that Calloway sang over the years in the style that made him known as the Hi-De-Ho man. But overall the film is not the best.Hi-De-Ho is an independent production made for the black audiences of the day. I doubt too many white people saw it because it played in black neighborhood movie houses in the north and in the black theaters in the segregated south. Additionally it was done on a minuscule budget and Calloway didn't exactly have a director as talented as Spike Lee. That would come in a couple of generations.Later on Calloway showed his acting chops in such films as The Cincinnati Kid, St.Louis Blues, and The Blues Brothers. Here the plot is threadbare and it involves two rival Harlem club owners who are fighting for Cab's services and two women just fighting over Cab. The last half of the film is strictly a variety with Cab and his orchestra and other black performers.One thing very much makes this film worthwhile is it's one of the few you will find where no one is playing any kind of Stepin' Fetchit type part. For 1947 that's remarkable and I have no doubt that Calloway insisted on it. Fans of the Hi-De-Ho man will love this film.
dahall-934-421671
As with all the reviews, there's no real storyline, but you MUST watch for all the great performances. One of the reviews mentions Dusty Fletcher's "blackface" performance "Open the Door Richard" is in this film - it's not on my copy. However, there seems to be earlier versions of Hi-De-Ho released with different plots (1934) and (1937) so I'm not certain if my copy is bad copy (although I have 2 copies of 1947) or if that particular act is in one of the earlier releases...whatever the case, if you are into Cab Calloway - the performances are phenomenal! The same goes for the Miller Bros. & Lois. I actually like the Peters Sisters - they had great voices and my favorite numbers were "Rainy Sunday" and "Old Lady From Baltimore"...hope this helps!
John Seal
Well, you sure don't need to see it on the big screen...Hi De Ho is a slightly above average 'race' film that includes most of the trademarks of the genre: a slight story, a little comedy, and lots and lots of entertainment. Thankfully there's none of the moralising (well, not much) that characterises some of these films, like The Blood of Jesus. Cab Calloway is, of course, riveting, the music excellent, and the tap dancing scenes almost breathtaking --even when shot awkwardly.
psteier
The plot is thin and the acting is mostly wooden, but the real point of the movie is Cab Calloway's wonderful band and some specialty numbers, especially the finale that is the last third of the film.The best additional act is high powered tap dancing by Miller Bros. and Lois. Dusty Fletcher does his famous "Open the Door Richard" sketch in blackface. The Peters Sisters are curious but didn't do anything for me.
AD
