The Jolson Story (1946)

The Worst Film Ever

Really Surprised!

Crappy film

Excellent and certainly provocative... If nothing else, the film is a real conversation starter.

We all know that bio-pics of the era weren't very accurate...but that's okay...this is simply an interesting film. It's fairly well known that Jolson wanted to play himself in this film, but thank goodness he wasn't allowed to do so. Not just because he was too old for the part, but also because his ego would have ruined the film. Larry Parks was able to make Al Jolson likable...something Jolson couldn't have done for himself. And by the way, Larry Parks' lip-sinking to the real Jolson singing is simply outstanding. The same can be said for Scotty Beckett as he was playing the young Jolson.Of course, there's a lot of Black face in this film. Get over it. History -- whether pleasant or not -- is still history. And, if you read up on Jolson, you'll find that he was extremely popular with African-Americans of the time, and they flocked to honor him at his funeral. We can't understand it all now. That's not excusing the cultural faux pas (and that's putting it mildly) of Black face, but, the Black face phenomenon may not have been as black and white (no pun intended) as we see it today. Something to think about.Larry Parks was something of a one hit wonder (with the emphasis on "hit"), but his performance here is really one of the greatest performances in any bio-pic.And then there's Jolson. I was only a baby when Jolson died, but I've always thought that Jolson was something special...special unique. I don't imagine many of us would have liked him personally, and his voice was certainly not a traditional vocalist's voice of almost any era. But again, it was unique, and by the time this film was made, a special kind of mellow with high energy.And then there's the supporting cast. William Demarest, not usually one of my favorite character actors (although he's always "okay"). But, this role is more diverse for Demarest and he shines in it. Evelyn Keyes is also excellent as Julie Benson -- an amalgam of Jolson's actual 4 wives. Bill Goodwin is good as another performer and eventual director of a theater. Ludwig Donath is quite charming as Cantor Yoelson, Al's father. Scotty Beckett is excellent as the young Al Jolson. Tamara Shayne is good as Al's mother.Although the film pretends Jolson had only one wife (he actually married 4 times), they way they handle the rigors of show business and the effect it had on Jolson's marriages. Quite cleverly done.To be honest, aside from Larry Parks' off-color front tooth, which I found rather distracting, there's not much to criticize here (other than the typical bio-pic white wash), and much to praise. Back then, it was so popular that it revived Jolson's seriously flagging career just a few years before his death. BTW, if you have a chance, listen to the Bing Crosby - Al Jolson radio performances which are on DVD...quite fun and memorable.

After buying this on VHS tape a few years ago, I finally got to see The Jolson Story just now. Despite many fictional moments, I was pretty enthralled by the story of Asa Yoelson (Scotty Beckett, formerly of Our Gang) starting in burlesque with an entertainer named Steve Martin (William Demerest, and yes, that's the actual fictional name for that particular character) when he was a teen to when he becomes Al Jolson, now played by Larry Parks. To tell the truth, he doesn't really look like the famous entertainer nor sound like him when talking but his attitude seems about right concerning the way the real thing seemed to have acted in real life. Evelyn Keyes is also pretty good playing a woman who seems to fall under Jolson's spell despite her better instincts as she tries to steer him toward a more normal life. Her character, Julie Benson, is supposed to actually be Ruby Keeler but the real-life person didn't want her name used since she was long divorced from Jolson. Oh, and the songs as voiced by Al himself, are as entertaining as ever (despite the now-problematic blackface makeup)! So on that note, The Jolson Story is very much worth a look. P.S. Since I've been reviewing various movies in chronological order according to release date, it's interesting how some of the same people turn up in some of these films like Bill Goodwin who was previously in Blondie in Society and The Stork Club or Larry Parks who was previously in Blondie Goes to College and director Alfred Green, whose previous movie that he just did before this I reviewed last Saturday called Tars and Spars.

Historically inaccurate, but the music is good. Allegedly the story of the life of Al Jolson, but is biographical and accurate only in the Hollywood sense. Far too much poetic license is taken with the plot, to the point that after a while you wonder if anything you saw is true. the biggest example of this is the implication that Jolson was first married, to Julie Benson, around the time he made The Jazz Singer (1927). He did get married, to Ruby Keeler, in 1928, but this was his third marriage! Wouldn't want to ruin the "hero eventually meets his perfect one after putting his career first and much disappointment, dating-wise" plot you figured would work on audiences, would you now, Hollywood? I guess the fact that her name was changed should be a clue that this is a work of fiction...The "happily ever after" ending was also fictional, as they divorced in 1940, six years before the movie was made. On the positive side, some good music and stage performances.On that note, Larry Parks is kind of hit-and-miss as Al Jolson. His stage performances are good, and seem to portray well the larger- than-life, complete entertainer nature of Al Jolson. However, in the off-stage scenes he comes across as overbearing, overly energetic, phony and downright irritating.If you are interested in the correct history of Al Jolson, don't watch this. Watch a History Channel documentary instead, or just read Wikipedia.

Spectacularly Camp,grossly sentimentalised and and completely irresistible biopic of a man who was so unregenerately "Showbiz" that he really did believe his own publicity,thought his wonderful,tuneful but essentially trivial songs enhanced the lives of his audience,and that his eminence in his own field gave him rein to ride roughshod over other people,women in particular.Nothing like a modern rock star then. After Chaplin,Jolson was the next Megastar.Unlike Chaplin,you didn't have to go out of your house to come under his spell.The rise of Radio and gramophone recordings coincided with the burgeoning of Jolson's career. "The Jolson Story" is Hollywood escapism at its highest level.With superb production values,a memorable soundtrack and exemplary performances,it was just the stuff American moviegoers needed after the end of World War Two. Young viewers who may have difficulty with Al Jolson's OTT persona might be better off approaching the movie in a spirit of post - modern irony . In a far more innocent age he was regarded as just as exciting and "now" as any foul - mouthed misogynist who may strut his brief hour on the stage in 2008. From the era when "The Varsity Drag" meant something totally different, Jolson's naif optimism shines through the grey years of the first Great Depression. The movie was made in the first flush of American Post - War optimism,when where the Yanks led the whole world was sure to follow. Soon enough Cold War paranoia set in and wonderfully silly big budget musicals gradually became a thing of the past.For those of us to whom the terms "Hollywood" and "real - life" were determinedly antithetical,it was a sad moment."The Jolson Story" represents the summit of "Entertainment for Entertainment's sake" movies.Put the DVD in your player,forget for a little while that you can't afford to pay the electric bill and eat every day,forget the Hoodies waiting to mug you in the stairwell on your way to buy the groceries,that the credit - crunch has reduced your life savings to a few measly quid and return to the days when the world was safer,warmer and in glorious technicolor .