Awesome Movie

A waste of 90 minutes of my life

It's entirely possible that sending the audience out feeling lousy was intentional

Although I seem to have had higher expectations than I thought, the movie is super entertaining.

TWO GIRLS AND A SAILOR (1944) is mindless fluff featuring a string of guest stars and musical acts, meant to cheer audiences up while WWII raged on overseas.In the tradition of many other wartime musicals, the film is almost like sitting through a concert. A simple plot serves as an excuse for a parade of musical numbers that aim to entertain the cinema-goers as much as the in-movie club patrons. It's pure escapism. Throw in some romance, some comedy, and a dash of patriotism and you have a very pleasant movie indeed.And TWO GIRLS AND A SAILOR is a very pleasant movie. Fluff, yes, but it's fun. June Allyson and Gloria DeHaven play showbiz sisters who sing at a nightclub and entertain servicemen at their apartment. Thanks to the generosity of a mysterious admirer, the girls are able to open their own canteen to put on shows for the men in uniform. But what happens when both sisters start falling for the same guy (Navy sailor Van Johnson)?Both actresses are charming and do a nice job. Gloria DeHaven is very beautiful, but it is June Allyson as the protective older sister who wins us over. I've never considered myself much of a June Allyson fan, but she certainly was talented and her performance here (singing, dancing, acting, comedy) is great.Jimmy Durante provides solid comic relief and even sings his hit "Inka Dinka Doo". Van Johnson plays an all-American good guy, a sailor who happens to be a multi-millionaire. Tom Drake is Johnson's rival for DeHaven's affections, an Army sergeant who's really kind of a jerk.MGM showcases many of its top musical acts throughout the film, including popular trumpeter and bandleader Harry James, the exotic Xavier Cugat Orchestra, jazz vocalist Lena Horne, deadpan singer Virginia O'Brien, the singing Wilde Twins (sisters Lee and Lyn), and piano maestro Jose Iturbi. Even Gracie Allen shows up for a comedic piano number.Thinly plotted musicals aren't always my thing, but there's something very likable about this production. Allyson, DeHaven, Johnson, Durante, and Henry Stephenson (as Johnson's grandfather) are all great. The musical acts serve as a 1940s time capsule. The story is sweet and innocent. Just sit back and be entertained.

Extremely long World War II story about "Two Girls and a Sailor" (portrayed by June Allyson, Gloria DeHaven, and Van Johnson). The threesome from the customary "love triangle" - will Sailor Johnson choose pert June Allyson or sexy Gloria DeHaven? The film would be more accurately titled, "Two Girls, a Sailor, and a Variety Show" because the singing sisters aren't just shown at work - every act in their musical revue is shown. It's like a Musical spliced with a Variety Show; and, it clocks in at over two hours without ever becoming anything more than low average.June Allyson, Jimmy Durante, Harry James, and Gracie Allen have fine moments; and, it's nice to see "Inka Dinka Doo" and all of the other 1944 era acts preserved on film. ***** Two Girls and a Sailor (1944) Richard Thorpe ~ June Allyson, Van Johnson, Gloria DeHaven

Perky June Allyson and lovely Gloria DeHaven are two vaudevillians given a chance to open their own canteen for military personnel by a mysterious benefactor. The very thin plot revolves around this simple premise and at over two hours running time it becomes very stretched indeed. However, as this is an MGM movie, there is much to enjoy thanks to the plethora of studio talent involved. The highlights for me were gorgeous Virginia O'Brien doing her usual 'deadpan' number, June Allyson's terrific 'Young Man With A Horn', beautiful Lena Horne singing 'Paper Doll' and who could resist Jimmy Durante performing 'Inka Dinka Doo'? The production is lavish with huge sets, hundreds of extras and fabulous costumes. The bizarre dream sequence is quite eye-popping and even includes a fashion parade with some truly beautiful models. Quite an extravaganza!

The "two girls" in the title are June Allyson (26) as Patsy and Gloria DeHaven (18) as Jean, the singing and dancing Deyo sisters. The "sailor" is Van Johnson (27) who plays John Dyckman Brown III, a new recruit in the Navy. What the girls don't find out until the very end is that the sailor is very wealthy, son of Brown II and grandson of Brown I. It is a nice and simple story of two girls falling for the same guy, and the three of them having to sort it out.Harry James (27) and orchestra are major players, as themselves. This was especially enjoyable for me, a trumpet player since I was 11. Harry James was one of my idols, and I consider him to have had the sweetest swing trumpet sound ever. He did 4 or 5 trumpet solos during the movie, and was a pleasant character playing himself.The movie is filled with other stars. One of them is Jimmy Durante doing his stage comedy song & dance routine, and continuing as a character sharing issues with the sisters. Other 'names' include Xavier Cugat and band, Lena Horne, Gracie Allen (who plays her composition for index finger with orchestra), and a few others I am not familiar with.This was war time and the movie includes lots of entertainment for the Army, Navy, and Marine servicemen honored here. The sisters have the servicemen come home with them one evening to serve sandwiches and refreshments. They comment that it would be nice to have a larger place, like the old Wigson's Warehouse, which turns out to be filled with theatrical props and supplies. They 'wish' for more cleaning staff and they appear. Durante 'wishes' for a baby grand and in it comes. The warehouse is turned into a canteen for soldiers, food, drink, entertainment.SPOILERS FOLLOW. Much of the rest of the story is sisters trying to figure out who the benefactor was. They eventually find that it was the sailor himself, Brown III. Patsy knows her sister Jean is smitten with the sailor and assumes she will marry him. However Jean finds another love, and Patsy ends up with the rich sailor.