Review: St. Louis Blues

In his first and only leading role in a major Hollywood film, Nat ‘King’ Cole stars as W.C. Handy, the famed African-American jazz songwriter, with Eartha Kitt the ‘speak easy’ singer who performs his songs like the title tune, and isn’t quite the standard femme fatale seductress she might first appear to be (Hey, it’s Eartha Kitt, you can’t help but expect it). Handy has to contend with stern disapproval from his rigid preacher father (Juano Hernandez) who wants him to play ‘God’s music’, but his aunt (Pearl Bailey) is much more supportive. Unfortunately, the road to success for Handy is stalled by the mysterious onset of blindness. Will it stall his career forever? Ruby Dee plays Handy’s girlfriend, Cab Calloway is an opportunistic club manager, whilst Mahalia Jackson sings in a church choir, and Ella Fitzgerald turns up briefly as herself.

 

I’ll never be accused of being a fan of musicals, and the naturally calm and easy-going Nat ‘King’ Cole isn’t quite cast to his best advantage in the lead, but this 1958 biography of W.C. Handy from director Allen Reisner (“All Mine to Give” and a whole lotta TV) is a little bit better than its reputation. Scripted by Ted Sherdeman (“Them!”, “Scandal Sheet”) and Robert Smith (“Sudden Fear”, “The Second Woman”), this still isn’t my thing, but aside from Cole’s acting deficiencies and a disappointingly episodic structure, there’s some enjoyment to be had here, even if there’s a remarkably cavalier attitude towards the facts, from what I’ve read.

 

The performances by Pearl Bailey (personality personified), and especially Cab Calloway and Eartha Kitt are particularly good. A rather young-looking Kitt pretty much steals the show and is perfectly cast, and Juano Hernandez is also good as Handy’s taciturn, bible-thumping father, a quite clichéd role. A young Ruby Dee has a thankless role, really, but has an appealing softness to her and is the perfect opposite to the kittenish Miss Kitt. It’s a shame Calloway (who, unlike Cole can genuinely act a bit) and Ella Fitzgerald aren’t in the film much, but in the latter case, she’s playing herself so she can only do what she did in real-life, I guess. Then again, I have no idea if this role in Handy’s life is even true, it might’ve just been a shameless celebrity cameo for publicity purposes.

 

The music, of course is excellent (and thankfully the kind of music I can enjoy, my taste in music is pretty eclectic), as Cole may be playing a songwriter (and far too old for the part, let’s be honest) but he’s far and away the best singer in the film. It’s also where he’s at his most charismatic, relaxed, and charming, in an otherwise rather wooden performance, though he surprisingly gets better as the character gets darker and more troubled. I still don’t think he’s the best person for the role, though. Meanwhile, no one but nobody can sing the hell out of a hymn like Mahalia Jackson, and I was quite surprised at how well Kitt sings too, having mostly known her as an actress (Great set of pins too, and the pointiest tits I’ve ever seen. Bras back then were weird, man).

 

Yes it’s a bit hokey, yes it’s quite choppy and too rushed, but I don’t think people watch these things for the plot anyway. Look, it’s not a particularly good film, but it’s a bit better than its reputation, and where else are you gonna get this line-up? At the very least it’s interesting to see a 50s film with a practically all-Black cast that isn’t racist, demeaning, or revolving solely around racial issues.

 

Rating: C+