kijii This is a VERY nice musical fantasy about a couple of thieves (Fred Astaire and Frank Morgan) going through a very rich mythical country and trying to steal money from an innocent, recently-in-a-convent young woman (Lucille Bremer). The mythical country looks like it might be somewhere in the northern part of South America (Bolivia, Peru, or Columbia???), but that's up to us to guess. It's mythical after all...... So what's Leon Ames's role in the movie? You will have to see it and find out. This is a nice musical in beautiful color with lavish sets and costumes and good production numbers. Lucille Bremer is not a household name because she retired from show biz after getting married.

drednm This is a totally misconceived musical fantasy that never knows what direction it's heading in. Parts of it are sticky-gooey religious drek with heiress Yolanda Aquaviva (Lucille Bremer) graduating from a convent to take her place at the head of the country's richest family. The other story thread concerns grifters (Fred Astaire and Frank Morgan) entering the country (it looks like Bolivia) to escape the American police. With assistance from an archangel (Leon Ames)the stories meet.Mildred Natwick, as the loony aunt, comes off best in a delightfully comic performance. Ames and Morgan have almost nothing to do. Astaire, with his worst toupee in a major film, seems bored. Bremer (of the twitchy eyes) has almost zero acting talent. The color cinematography and set decoration will knock your eyes out, but as the scenes run from obvious artsy sets to real back drops, there seems to be no consistency or authorial vision.Aside from a few comic moments (which belong to Natwick) the only things that saves this film from total failure is the musical number "Coffee Time." The set up is a carnival where Astaire and Bremer get pushed into doing a dance together. The oddly syncopated "Coffee Time" catches the viewer off guard because it's so damned good and quite arresting.The number is introduced by three girls who clap in counter beat to the slightly South American sounds of the main melody. Then swirls of dancers join in, also clapping their four-beat counter tempo. Finally Astaire and Bremer take the spotlight and for a few moments they both come alive as they dance across the amazingly psychedelic floor of black and white wavy streaks. This is a great song/number stuck in a lousy film.After the song, we resume the dreary narrative. I have no idea what director Vincente Minnelli was trying for, but nothing works. It's not a fantasy, it's not funny, and the religious angle is a total dud. Thank heaven for Mildred Natwick, the color cinematography, and "Coffee Time."

Scaramouche2004 My guess is that Fred Astaire was having a bit of a tough time in Hollywood in the early 1940's. The studios just didn't have a clue in what vehicles and what roles he should be cast in.I mention this as it seems that in most of his offerings between 1940 and 1945, he is sadly miscast as rogues, liars, thieves, con-men, and friends who are so two-faced that they will stab you in the back at a moments notice.Some examples of these miscast roles see Fred play a scheming back-stabbing trumpeter(Second Chorus), a man who is out to steal his best friends girl (Holiday Inn), and a flyer gone AWOL, lying through his teeth in order to get his way with a girl (The Sky's the Limit).Even one of the 'sketches' in Zeigfeld Follies, has Fred playing a thief and a Pick-Pocket. I guess Hollywood casting executives must have seen a seedier side to Fred Astaire than his ardent fans ever did.Yolanda and the Thief is no exception as once again Fred is cast as a con-man, trying to swizz Yolanda (Lucille Bremmer), a Latin American heiress out of her cool seventy-two million dollar fortune, by taking advantage of her religious beliefs and pretending to be her guardian Angel.Of course the two fall in love...a little too quickly as to be believable I fear, which is why Fred finds redemption, returns her money and acts a noble hero. Its all so predictable. So predictable in fact that I knew who Leon Ames' character was meant to be from the first.No surprises here and despite Fred's miscasting the story is passable and enjoyable enough to be successfully entertaining.However, I always found that the story lines of these Hollywood musicals tended to be on the duff side anyway, and overall the one and only reason to watch was to see the stars do what they did best; sing and dance.Yet unfortunately 'Yolanda' even fails here, with only 'Coffeetime' set during a street carnival, exciting enough to watch without drooling and snoring, and as it is the last of only three dances in the film there is little else to hold your attention.About forty minutes in we are presented with a dream sequence that lasts forever and a day and just seems to go on and on without anything great happening. I felt that this sequence was so awful and prolonged that it would have felt more at home in a Gene Kelly movie.I just felt that this wasn't Fred's thing. Give him a girl to twist, turn, lift and spin, he was the master, Give him an empty stage a hot beat, a prop or two and a pair of tap shoes, then you needn't invite anyone else to the party. But this????? Two things really stand out in this film however and that is the glorious war-time Technicolour (this was Fred's first colour film) and Mildred Nantwich, who's scenes as Yolanda's aunt, are both funny and refreshing and a real treat to watch.This film understandably bombed at the box-office and is considered by many to be one of Fred Astaire's career low points which may have influenced his decision to retire soon after, However after just two years of retirement he returned in 1948 for Easter Parade and with a new permanent home at MGM, he was at last given the roles he was suited to best; roles that had served him well throughout the 1930's and were destined to be just as kind to him for the remainder of the 40's and 50's In short, this film is purely for avid Astaire completists.

ptb-8 Imagine if Pufnstuf married Mary Poppins at MGM in 1945. Hmmm. This eyegoggling Technicolor extravaganza set in South America is basically the movie version of the box of chocolates Forrest Gump's Mum warned us about. Unsuspecting viewers might be initially puzzled at the setting and the ideology of the characters. But if you are willing to be patient and be generous about the casting and look forward to a sumptuous feast of color MGM musical effervescence... Well YOLANDA is possibly one of the three top visual treats from that studio. WIZARD OF OZ and THE PIRATE are my votes for the other two. This puts us firmly in a fantasy mode of dreamy musicals with some bitter edges and sexual undercurrent. Read the other comments on this site for YOLANDA they quite well describe some odd things and mostly agree on the film's triumphs: the art direction and the 'Coffeetime' dance number. For me there is an extra musical bonus: The song called "I've An Angel": its breathtaking romantic excitement, the swoon-worthy sexual beauty of Lucille Bremer emerging from her bath to dress in ultra sheer imagery of famed Vargas Girl style.. and the song itself hummed and sung as she bathes, dresses, leaves the house and rushes through the night for a possibly breathless encounter. YOLANDA has many delights, like that chocolate box itself, and it is over ripe and heady. But I am so happy it exists, so delicious a cinematic fruit salad. It cost a mammoth $4million dollars in 1945 and did not return its cost. Made in the days when 'Art for Arts sake" the MGM motto on the ribbon over the growling lion logo, actually meant what it said. YOLANDA (and THE PIRATE) are both genuine art musicals. Know that and you will enjoy.