Michael_Elliott Sally (1929)** 1/2 (out of 4) Better than average Musical from Warner about a down on her luck waitress (Marilyn Miller) who dreams of making it big as a dancer and finally gets a shot thanks to a man (Alexander Gray) who turns out to also be a major love interest. This story was a big hit on Broadway and it was even made into a film in 1925 but it seems it has now been forgotten as has its star Miller. Miller was apparently one of the biggest names on Broadway and she was making her film debut here but she's end up dead a short seven-years later due to alcohol and health problems. Many consider this her shining moments and she certainly leaves an impression even if it wasn't the one I was expecting. The actual story here will probably strike many as being unoriginal but one must remember that this movie came before many future films that would follow the same Cinderella-type structure. The one problem I had with the structure is that it seemed like Miller became famous way too quickly but this is just a minor thing. I went into this thing expecting great music numbers and poor "acting" but I actually got the opposite. I thought the entire cast delivered fine performances and they actually made the story flow a lot better than it would have with other actors. Gray has a very good voice but he also handles the role quite well and makes a memorable character. Joe E. Brown is here for comic relief and nearly steals the film in a couple classic scenes. One has an old man paying him some extra money to get into the club so Brown makes him climb a ladder to reach a tree house. Another laugh riot follows when Brown makes life Hell on a guy who comes to the club to impress a girl but doesn't have enough cash to pay for what she wants. I think most people are going to be checking this film out to get a glimpse of Miller and she's certainly very easy on the eyes. Her acting range really impressed me as she came off quite natural and I thought she was very believable as the girl dreaming for something big. I thought her dancing scenes were terrific and her comic timing was able to match Brown's and the two appear to be having fun together. The strange thing is that I wasn't overly impressed with her voice, which is something most other reviewers really praised. It wasn't horrible but I just didn't really get into it. The film was originally released in 2-strip Technicolor but sadly that version has gone missing so we're left with a B&W print that features the only remaining color footage, which lasts around three-minutes. It's a real shame that the color stuff is missing but the footage that does survive is in pretty rough shape but then again the B&W print is in tough shape.

mukava991 Sally, based on the famous Jerome Kern-Otto Harbach-Guy Bolton stage musical, is an oddly-structured piece, at least in its film incarnation. For the first 20 or 30 minutes (I didn't count) there is no music, then it's one song after another until nearly the end, with an unusually long closing title card accompanied by the melody to what is arguably the best song in the piece, "Look for the Silver Lining." The soundtrack quality leaves much to be desired (as we can expect from 1929 technology), but the melodies manage to squeeze through without too much harm, as do most of the vocals sung mainly by the winsome Marilyn Miller and the technically robust Alexander Gray who, while not physically expressive, is able to convey great range and depth by sheer vocal skill, singing in the grand old manner of judiciously trilled R's and well formed vowels. Miller, as showbiz antiquarians know, was the toast of Broadway in the 1920's. It can be said that she has a certain kind of guileless charm exhibited in later decades by Diane Keaton or Meg Ryan in their youth, except that neither of them could dance or sing much. Miller's fancy footwork includes ballet, tap, high kicking and various acrobatics. Joe E. Brown in a supporting role gets a chance to show off his own impressive athleticism on the dance floor; in his late 30s here, he could still do a masterful cartwheel in his 50s. Pert Kelton makes a few wisecracks in a nothing role that basically requires her to act, well… pert.The plot drags interminably, the "jokes" land with heavy thuds and one can only be grateful for the generous inclusion of song, though only three Kern numbers make it into this film: the title song (natch), "Look for the Silver Lining" and "The Wild Rose." The balance of the music and lyrics, mostly undistinguished, come from other songwriting teams.If for no other reason, this is worth a look for the sake of the rarely seen Miller and Gray.

Maliejandra Kay Sally is one of the few films that stars Marilyn Miller, a popular dancer on the Ziegfeld Stage. Her talent as a dancer is utilized here in this breezy film.Sally (Miller) is an orphaned waitress, but all she's ever really wanted to do in life is dance. She meets a wealthy man whose interest in her is strong (Alexander Gray) who helps her to get a job dancing at a nightclub. She is a great success. Also at the club is an ex-Duke (Joe E. Brown) whose hilarious arrogance provides some comedy. He is invited to a high class party where he is to meet a treacherous woman from his past, but since she refuses to show, Sally takes her place. The two pull off a scheme to trick the rest of the guests.The best actor is Brown, a funny character actor whose career spanned for decades. It is no wonder the other leads are practically forgotten today; their acting is quite wooden.The musical numbers can be dull; the singers have operatic voices, not those suited to popular music. However, Miller is able to show how dynamic she is as a dancer. She does a frantic jazz number with awkward steps that were popular in the 20s and she does a graceful ballet number with ease.Also of interest is a color sequence. However, when it begins and ends is very awkward. The film switches to color after a dance number has already started and off again after the number is over and the story has begun again.

didi-5 Originally filmed in 2-strip Technicolor, this film now survives as a mainly black and white print with some colour footage intact. This rags to riches story (Sally starts from an orphanage and ends up with her own show on Broadway) stars Marilyn Miller - little seen and perhaps only known to film buffs because of Judy Garland's impersonation of her in 'Till The Clouds Roll By'. Miller was a beautiful and talented artist, as 'Sally' proves.Supporting her is a very young Joe E Brown (best known as Captain Andy in the third film version of Show Boat) who is a lot of fun, and Alexander Gray, who like many other leading men of the early talkies is a bit of a stuffed shirt. You'll also spot the Keystone Kops' Ford Sterling as 'Pops'.'Sally' is a hugely enjoyable early talkie. The colour sequence is lovely and bright - it is a pity that we lose the impact from the rest of the film. The songs are good and Miss Miller is a treat to watch. Try to catch this when it next airs on TCM.