Gold Diggers of 1933

This week, our class got to watch the 1933 musical titled “Gold Diggers of 1933,” and I was very excited about it. I used to be extremely involved in my high school’s theater department, specifically in our musical theater productions, so I was really excited to see a musical that I had never seen before.

One aspect of this film I really enjoyed was the music itself. The majority of the songs seemed so upbeat and happy even though the musical revolved around the depression and how it was affecting showgirls at that time. The music was actually a really interesting aspect of this film due to its upbeat nature in contrast with its pretty depressing plot. About halfway through the film, I started wondering why the musical director and director of the film would have chosen to have such happy musical numbers but I couldn’t really come up with a good reason. The only idea I had in my mind was that the director wanted something to bring up the mood of the film since the film’s topic was pretty depressing. But as contrasting as the music was, I enjoyed that it was so upbeat. If all of the music in the film was depressing, slow, and sad, I do not think I would have enjoyed the film as much as I did. However, the music was not the only thing I enjoyed about this film.

I also really enjoyed the character of Trixie because she seemed to bring up the morale of her fellow showgirls and of the overall film. Her sarcastic attitude and love for life made the film easy to watch when she was on-screen, and she also brought a lot of laughter and joy to the audience (and I’m sure the rest of the audience, at least in our class). Trixie’s relationship with Mr. Peabody was also hilarious, and surprised me by how they ended up getting married at the end of the film. I kind of expected Mr. Peabody to be mad at her once he figured out she was just using him for his money, but I was glad to see that he embraced her and seemed to be so nice that it caused her to develop genuine feelings for him. I will say, it seemed like Trixie always sort of liked him for more than just his money, but I didn’t ever expect them to get married like they did in the end. Overall, I think Trixie’s character really pulled this movie together.

Oddly enough, I couldn’t think of anything about this movie that I didn’t like. The plot, music, characters-I thought they were all great. I guess the only criticism I have about this movie would concern the lack of character development in most of the main characters. It seemed like the showgirls and their boyfriends had good (or at least entertaining) relationships, but the audience never really gets to know the characters on a more personal level. I just wish the director would have put more thought into the character development. But other than that, I really enjoyed this film and I think it is one that everyone can enjoy.