Review of Presenting Lily Mars (1943) by Stuart R — 07 Jul 2011

Judy Garland in one of her early 'grown-up' roles is a mesmerizing talent and the first half of the film, where she persues a Broadway producer (played by Van Heflin) in pursuit of stardom carries plenty of charm.

The problem here is that once she finds stardom they put her in a ballgown on a big glitzy stage with a full orchestra - and that's not getting the best of Garland. Perhaps MGM was a little nervous about Garland in this transitional period - they've heaped on two big bands - Tommy Dorsey and Bob Crosby unnecessarily to add some weight, but that simply over-cooks it.

"Tom, Tom the Pipers Son" - a jazz piece she performs 'on the hop' with a small band is easily the stand-out musical moment; if we could have had more of that, this would have been a big winner; as it is it's nothing amazing, but still quite pleasing.