Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		3.5
Audio		3.5
Extras		3.0
Overall		3.5

The Gang's All Here Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman December 2, 2020

Metro Goldwyn Mayer probably holds bragging rights for being the most consistent purveyors of top flight musicals during what is commonly known as the Golden Era of Hollywood, but given that stipulation, 20th Century Fox was regularly quite productive in this genre as well, and often offered grand entertainments that (frankly like any number of MGM outings) may not have been especially strong in the "book" department, but which typically featured nice scores and quite frequently pretty spectacular production numbers. While Fox never had its own "Judy Garland", it had a number of musical stars in its stable, and it often featured them with some kind of unusual supporting players. In that regard, The Gang's All Here features Fox stalwart Alice Faye appearing with those well known singing and dancing sensations Eugene Pallette, Edward Everett Horton and Benny Goodman (and, yes, he "sings" in this film — more than once). Of course, that's said in jest, but The Gang's All Here does have two genuine, if decidedly outré, assets: Carmen Miranda and Busby Berkeley. The result is paper thin in the plot department, but this film was obviously designed to get wartime audiences' minds off of "real life" issues, and so it simply catapults from song to song, and it features some totally trippy numbers featuring the double barreled sensibilities of Miranda and Berkeley.

The Gang's All Here features Alice Faye as showgirl Eadie Allen, who works at the New Yorker Club in a theatrical enterprise that features hot headed Dorita (Carmen Miranda), as well as real life dancer Tony De Marco and real life comic/emcee Phil Baker. About to be deployed soldier Andy Mason (James Ellison) drops by and almost immediately has eyes for Eadie. Andy is surprised to find his father Andrew (Eugene Pallette) and Andrew's associate Potter (Edward Everett Horton) there, too, and a sidebar discloses that there may be a longstanding romance, or at least a relationship, between Andy and Potter's daughter Vivian (Sheila Ryan). That element provides what little "conflict" there is in the film, since of course Eadie and Vivian end up knowing each other, with neither realizing the other knows Andy (Andy assumed a silly baseball themed "code name" of Casey with Eadie, since he had bet a buddy of his he could get to "first base" with her on a first date). Since Faye is the marquee star of this enterprise, there's absolutely no suspense as to where any romantic angle in the film is going, but there's still plenty of activity nonetheless.

If the actual story doesn't have a lot of punch, the production numbers in this film have to be seen to be believed. Berkeley always seemed to subscribe to a maxim that stated "nothing succeeds like excess", and the Miranda numbers as well as the truly hallucinogenic finale are among Berkeley's most remarkable efforts. Some may need a hefty dose of Dramamine to counteract the peripatetic camera moves that Berkeley invests these sequences with, motion that only accentuates the wild, kaleidoscopic, dance activities.

One of the funniest things about the film is on the subliminal side, though one aspect of it is brought up in the featurette about Berkeley included on this disc as a supplement. A lot of the production numbers are supposed to take place either in a nightclub or in the backyard of the Mason mansion, and yet there's a complete disconnect between things like the space that would be available on a proscenium stage (as in the nightclub) and what is actually depicted, with Berkeley's production numbers (and camera) spanning what seems to be an entire soundstage. Later, in the finale, as is mentioned in the featurette, keep your eye on Benny Goodman, who, despite ostensibly being outside is underneath a gigantic chandelier.

The Gang's All Here Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The Gang's All Here is presented on Blu-ray with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.33:1. This was reportedly culled from a newer master than the Eureka Masters of Cinema Blu-ray released in the UK years ago (one of this version's now defunct label's spokespeople is on record as stating such), which makes it a bit perplexing as to why this release's color grading, brightness and grain structure are arguably inferior to that release. The MOC version is noticeably brighter, something that probably helps to accentuate the psychedelic color schemes Berkeley employs, as well as to highlight grain. This release is often kind of dowdy and brown looking, though some of its original Technicolor luster still manages to shine, probably most noticeably with regard to some of the primaries like blue and/or red. Grain is apparent here (as even a cursory glance at some of the screenshots accompanying this review will reveal, especially if viewed in full resolution), but it does tend to ebb and flow, and there are moments that do look filtered and soft. Despite these deficits, detail levels are often quite good (note the precise resolution of the herringbone jacket in screenshot 4 for one example). My advice to interested fans, especially those with either Region B or Region Free Blu-ray players, is to look at the screenshots Svet included in his review of the MOC version to see how they feel about things.

The Gang's All Here Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The Gang's All Here features both a DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Mono and a DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 track, though that said, I heard little to no stereo separation in the supposed "real" two channel track. That said, the 2.0 track (as opposed to the 2.0 Mono track) is noticeably punchier in the midrange and low end, and I ended up listening to it for most of the bulk of the film. There's an inherent boxiness redolent of this film's production era, but a lot of the music is nicely full bodied and warm sounding, and Goodman's swing numbers in particular sound great (note how Music Director Alfred Newman seamlessly blends Goodman's signature hit "Let's Dance", which is also featured in the film, into the opening choral version of the well known title tune). I personally don't think the Harry Warren - Leo Robin song score is the best thing either of them has done, but the two ballads assigned to Faye are enjoyable. Dialogue is rendered cleanly and clearly throughout and optional English subtitles are available.

The Gang's All Here Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Audio Commentary with film historian Drew Casper


• Audio Commentary with film historians Glenn Kenny, Ed Hulse, and Farran Smith Nehme


• Isolated Score Track is presented in DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0, and includes some dialogue and effects.


• Busby Berkeley: A Journey With a Star (480i; 19:29) offers a generalist biography of Berkeley with a lot of clips from this film. There's nothing overly revelatory here, but the film does get into some interesting tidbits like the little recognized fact that Berkeley never actually choreographed any of the numbers for which he is justly so famous.


• Alice Faye's Last Film: We Still Are! (480i; 24:11) is an interesting latter day effort from Faye which was evidently used to augment personal appearances.


• Deleted Scene: The $64 Question (480i; 5:07)


• Original Theatrical Trailer (480i; 2:11)

The Gang's All Here Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

The Gang's All Here doesn't have a ton to offer in the story department, but it does feature a phantasmagoria of Busby Berkeley's trademark flourishes and it also gives Carmen Miranda one of her signature roles. This release's video element has some issues, and fans of the film may want to compare and contrast the look of the screenshots accompanying this review with the ones Svet uploaded to his review of the Eureka Masters of Cinema version to see which presentation they prefer. This release does have some appealing supplements, though I am frankly not a huge fan of Drew Casper and found the other commentary more interesting (and much less annoying). With caveats duly noted, Recommended.