Is there a moral (message) in “42nd Street” and “Cavalcade” (this is the “Cavalcade” I’m referring to, not the 2005 film: http://www.tudou.com/programs/view/Z4mW9jlD7kY/)? If yes, what is it?
*For example, the moral of The Tortoise and the Hare is “Slow and steady wins the race”. And the moral (theme) of King Kong is “No matter how tough you are, love can make you soft”.
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I’d say the moral of 42nd Street is that naive young girls should go to New York because great fortune awaits them.
The moral of Cavalcade is that not all “classic” films stand the test of time.
The moral of Cavalcade appears to be that if you leave your job as a servant in order to make a better life for your family, you will die a horrible death.
The moral of 42nd Street is when your big chance comes grab it with both hands.
Obligatory quote from the movie (because it always slays me):
I think this is better suited to Cafe Society.
Colibri
General Questions Moderator
No it isn’t. The most famous line in the movie is usually misquoted, and leads to that sort of misunderstanding.
What people remember is: “You’re going out a youngster, but you’re coming back a star.”
What the line actually is: “You’re going out a youngster, but you’ve got to come back a star.”
Julian Marsh is telling Peggy that everything depends on her; if she doesn’t come back a star, everyone in the show is out of work – a frightening thought in the Depression (and Marsh loses his one chance for escaping destitution,* one reason he works her so hard).
Note that Marsh also spends the day before the premiere with intensive coaching of Peggy. He is whipping her into shape and putting even more pressure on her. Without this coaching, it’s clear that Peggy quite likely will fail.
The final lines (of the movie) drive this home: Marsh is in an alley by the theater, exhausted (and possibly dying; his health was weak) when he overhears some theatergoers saying that Marsh doesn’t deserve all the credit because it was all about Peggy’s talent. It’s a cynical view of the audience, who doesn’t understand how much work goes into making things seem easy.
aldiboronti – One nice thing about that quote is that later Peggy Sawyer gets the lead when Anytime Annie says “no.”
*Marsh lost all his money in the stock market crash, and is having trouble getting work. There is no Social Security at this time, either.
That was sarcasm.
Sarcasm or not, many people have taken exactly that message from the film.
I haven’t seen *Cavalcade *in ages, but I love 42nd Street–a much darker and more cynical film than most people expect. I was not thrilled with the B’way musical version, which cutes it up.
Oh, and Warner Baxter–yum. The thinking woman’s Clark Gable: http://www.flickr.com/photos/castlekay/2371771692/
Agreed. There’s a whole genre of films from the era based on the idea of a great talent just waiting to be discovered.