Review of The Girl Can't Help It (1956) by Vince B — 17 Apr 2009

Last night I watched The Girl Can't Help It - mostly for the music - Little Richard; Gene Vincent; Abbey Lincoln; The Platters; Julie London, etc. I don't really like early rock that much, but it was somewhat interesting to see these early rockers (and chanteuses of the period) perform.

The sub-plot involved Jayne Mansfield being turned into a "star" when all she really wants to do is stay home cook and clean and have babies. Part of that whole re-education project of the 50s when America decided women had gotten too uppity during the war and needed to drive them back into the home. It's just weird that it was so effective and so complete.

Almost every movie from the era reflects the desire that men are the rightful bread winners and any violence to achieve that goal is justified. It just seems like such a horrible time in our cultural history and one that we still haven't recovered from. This one was especially insidious, if terrribly brutish and clumsy in it's message - a "teen" movie that somehow implied 50's family "values" were rockin'!

If you are interested in the musicians, it may be worth it - though be aware that they lip-synch to their hits rather than actually performing them and that the instrumental sections have been inelegantly removed.