irishm I recently "discovered" the hilarity that is Eddie Cantor and am taking every opportunity to see him in action. This is a nice little film that seems to have it all: music, comedy (both physical and verbal), a good cast, and a cohesive storyline. The effort that the filmmakers put into some of the smaller touches, like SPQR stamped on everything from the auctioneer's amulet to the metal plate "Oedipus" uses to cover his rear end in fear that his new master will want to beat him, are particularly impressive, because one wonders how many viewers would have noticed them in the first place. (I definitely wouldn't have, except I've done a lot of walking in Rome and I've seen SPQR on hundreds of manhole covers.) The songs are catchy, particularly "Build A Little Home" which I was still humming two days later. The blackface number, a Cantor trademark, will hopefully be taken as a product of its time and not as a deliberate affront… so far, I think all his pictures except one that I've seen have had this element. Unfortunately, it does make it a little hard to share the film with others whose levels of tolerance for that kind of thing might differ. I can't say as I enjoy it, but I'm not willing to throw the baby out with the bathwater either... Cantor is a very talented comedian/song & dance man, and I enjoy the vast majority of what I've seen of his work.For fans on the lookout for a very young Lucille Ball, here's a tip: don't look for her, LISTEN for her. I'm all but 100% sure I heard her distinctive voice at least once in the beginning sequence out in the street of modern-day West Rome, and again at the end after the dream sequence. I'm sure she was also one of the glamour girls in Ancient Rome as well, but I can't figure out which one.All in all, an enjoyable movie. I'll definitely be looking for more from Cantor.

gavin6942 A kind-hearted young man is thrown out of his corrupt home town of West Rome, Oklahoma. He falls asleep and dreams that he is back in the days of olden Rome, where he gets mixed up with court intrigue and a murder plot against the Emperor.Based on how few people have rated this film (under 500), I am left with the impression that it must not be purchased, streamed or aired very often. And what a shame, because it is pretty funny, and would be enjoyed by anyone who likes the witty kind of humor the Marx Brothers were doing. (There is even a poison sequence that is not unlike a Danny Kaye skit twenty years later: "The pellet with the poison's in the vessel with the pestle; the chalice from the palace has the brew that is true!") I suppose the blackface skit may be one reason the film has fallen out of favor, but this is unfortunate. Whether you consider this racist or not, it is part of film history and should not be simply forgotten or hidden.

Derutterj-1 One of the underlying themes is slavery —- mostly as satire, but a disturbingly poignant scene at the climax of the slave bazaar number has a girl throwing herself to her death to escape from bondage. This was at a time when Busby Berkeley, the choreographer, was sometimes inserting serious byplay into his numbers (a la "42nd Street"). Boy, is this example a beaut! The Ruth Etting blues solo "No More Love" directly plays on the same theme. Both songs have undercurrents I've never seen suggested in a comedy before or since. These, along with the nutty, racially integrated "Keep Young & Beautiful" routine, add a curiously (yet fascinating) unsavory aspect to the proceedings that is not really easy to characterize.Oh yeah, what about that lively beer garden drinking song near the beginning and Cantor in black-face! Offensive, absolutely —- but somehow, with Cantor, what's not to love? Politically incorrect? You betcha —- but this is not cruel or demeaning stuff. It's mostly just out-and-out dream-like crazy.Others have noted the fine production values, and of course the great comic chariot race at the end. Add it all up and what you've got is a nice, unique, big 'ol pastry of a movie musical. If you wanted something to take your mind of things for 93 minutes in 1933, this was just the ticket. If you want something to take your mind off things for 93 minutes in 2007,this is still just the ticket

classicsoncall My primary interest in picking up this film was to get a look at the acclaimed Eddie Cantor, a legendary entertainer in his day who you don't even hear of anymore. The first thing I was impressed with was the 'look' of the movie; filmed in the same year as "King Kong" it looked like the product of perhaps two decades later. The other eye openers had to do with the costuming, or lack thereof on the part of the slave girls in bondage during Olga's (Ruth Etting) "No More Love" number. There's enough skin showing on some of the girls to fuel an over active imagination, perhaps this is the film to inspire the term 'steamy', both literally and figuratively. There's also the risqué dialog, most notably in Cantor's black face routine when he sings - "You'll drive him half insane, in a bathing suit of cellophane". This was the 1930's? Additionally, for anyone obsessed with the emphasis on looks and body image in today's entertainment media, the roots of that trend can be found here. The "Keep Young and Beautiful" number isn't complete without mentioning the next line - "If you want to be loved". I wonder how that message might have been received by Depression era movie goers.Comedy wise, there are a few good bits - the lava gas (laughing gas) and parsley/poison gags come to mind, along with Josephus' (David Manners) naming of Eddie as 'Oedipus', that was clever. Overall though, I found the comedy to be severely dated, more of a curiosity piece than actually being funny, maybe it's just me upon my initial viewing.As another reviewer mentioned, Lucille Ball is credited on the video sleeve as if she were Cantor's co star in the film, but be warned, you're going to have to look for her. By the same token, you can't miss the dynamic presence of Etting and Gloria Stuart, both simply gorgeous. Again, maybe it's just me, but Etting's Olga character reminded me a bit of a slimmed down Dolly Parton.Fortunately, for fans of Cantor and the Busby Berkeley musical, this film looks like it's readily available. I actually found it on a drug store bargain shelf and decided it was too good to pass up for just a buck. Even though a lot of the scenes are dated and come off as politically incorrect today, the movie itself is a neat time capsule reminder of the way life used to be seventy years ago, when just like today, the average person went to the movies for a quick and fun escape.