The blues and swing music are quite good, what there was of it. Unfortunately the music keeps getting interrupted by the sort of sappy story that Hollywood usually attached to films that were billed as musicals.Down and out musicians, riding the rails like hobos, decide to form a band at Depression's end, but they keep getting involved with gangsters, stupid club owners and a woman of very questionable morals who would break up their happy family. There's a good girl, of course, a blond singer who belongs to a philandering trumpet player. Oh, what's the use--no one would watch this for the story or to see Jack Carson or Lloyd Nolan or the rest of them.If only there had been more of the music and less of what some might call "drama," and what I would call fast talking, poor acting treacle.

What an interesting idea: a film noir musical. While some of the acting was a bit over the top by today's standards, this film is a masterpiece of classic noir with great music, as well. The story line is formulaic, but weren't most of the in those days? I loved the song Bacall sang in THE BIG SLEEP, but BLUES IN THE NIGHT makes brings the music to the forefront, giving the viewer/listener a fuller experience. What a femme fatale Kay is, and she leaves us with no doubt about it: out for herself, jealous, envious, self pitying, willing to sacrifice anything for what she wants, but once she gets it, goes about making it as miserable as possible. Even her death at the hands of a man she scorns as unworthy in every way is poetic justice.I'm glad TCM is running BLUES IN THE NIGHT a bit more. I'm ready to see it again tight away!

Interesting film by director Anatole Litvak creating film-noir with a musical.Two future excellent directors, Richard Whorf, who bore a strong resemblance to Robert Taylor, and Elia Kazan star. Kazan was also in Litvak's 1940 film "City for Conquest."The picture has an excellent cast. A group of musicians led by Jigger (Whorf) meet up with gangster Lloyd Nolan while hitching a ride on a train. Nolan likes them when they don't turn him in despite the fact that he holds them up for $5.00!He brings them to a Road House where the group perform. We have some great musical settings here and the various montage depiction is excellent.The film is extremely well paced. There is never a dull moment. He moves beautifully from film noir to musical and back to film noir again.In addition, there is a terrific performance by Bette Field as a Road House girl in love with Nolan, who spurns her. Whorf is hopelessly in love with her and her rejection of him leads to his mental breakdown. How ironic that 16 years after this film, Nolan and Field both appeared in the 1957 film "Peyton Place" but had no scenes together. Field is both catty and quite vicious in this film. It's her viciousness that shall prove to be her undoing.Jack Carson toots his horn and is wed in the film to Priscilla Lane. One major flaw of the film is their lack of emotional outburst when it is revealed that their baby boy has died.

Saw this movie many years ago. Enjoyed it then and would probably enjoy it now. What strikes me as strange is that this movie is a bio of the Jimmy Lunceford band, which was one of the great bands of the 30's and 40's, which was black however in the movie all band members are portrayed as white. The movie was probably made at a major studio at the time and did not want to take a chance on making an all black movie and possibly losing money. There were a number of black actors available at the time that could have made the picture. Look at Stormy Weather, Cabin in the sky etc.Anyone have any thoughts? Guess the world had a lot of prejudice at the time.