Which is how the studio PR Dept described Lana in her next few movies, significantly just after the male moviegoing public digested this one. As a B-grade comedy, it is simply that. As a Turner vehicle on the upward arc of her career it is something else. You were almost a decade into the Hayes Code and if you were looking for something a little higher octane than the typical Hollywood assembly line product, this was your stop. Turner, born in 1921, was a legitimate teen herself -- this was decades before Hollywood started casting "older for younger" -- and in short skirts, short shorts, and closeups, she steals the film at a felony level.

Turner and Shaw fans expecting a musical may be disappointed despite the title. In fact the plot takes up a lot more time than the dance numbers. Even then what numbers that do appear are abbreviated, while Shaw's time is spotty. I guess I was expecting some big time swing and jitterbug to get the focus but they don't. Then too, the cast almost shouts their lines, which doesn't make them any funnier. Anyway, the plot's something about a movie studio creating a bogus co-ed dance contest at selected colleges. The idea is to promote a new movie in which the contest winner will star. But the contest is really just a promotional gimmick since studio hopeful Turner is planted as the predetermined winner. Trouble is she gets personally involved at the college so complications arise.It's a colorful cast with a magisterial Wooley, a fast-talking Karnes, and an unpredictable Errol. Then too, it's Richard Carlson a long way from his usual sober-sides. Fortunately, there are a few amusing moments that help, while Turner shines in the starring role. Her conventional role here makes it hard to believe it's the same actress as the hard-eyed vamp of The Postman Always Rings Twice (1946). Together, the contrasting roles show what a fine actress she really was. Anyway, maybe I was expecting too much from the title and cast, but unfortunately was disappointed with the result.

This is a movie I didn't know about until I checked the "classics" section at my local library and saw this title there. The fact it starred Lana Turner and Artie Shaw-who I knew were once married-was the reason I felt I had to check it out. Ms. Turner plays a dancer who enrolls in a college to qualify for a contest for a movie even though she's already picked for it! I'll stop there and just say this was quite funny with fine support by people like Roscoe Karns, Ann Rutherford, Monty Woolley, Thurston Hall, and Leon Errol. I especially liked the last one's dance steps. Shaw provides plenty of great music. While some of the plot seems out of joint, most of the dialogue is quite funny though don't try to make too much sense of that. So on that note, I recommend Dancing Co-Ed.

A musical is about ready to be filmed for a fictional studio. The only problem is that the lady from the dance team to star in the film is pregnant and they need to find a replacement. Roscoe Karnes has an idea to stage a phony search in colleges across the country for the actress' replacement--though in reality, he has already chosen Lana Turner for the role. So, he enrolls Lana at a college and pretends to have an honest to goodness competition. Unfortunately, complications arise and the film becomes a nice little romantic farce.This is a rather old fashioned but fun old MGM musical that oddly stars Lana Turner. While I was surprised how well she could dance, you just normally don't think of her and dancing. Apparently it was originally to have been an Eleanor Powell film and it sure feels like one. Either could have done a fine job in this film, though seeing Turner in her more natural look of 1939 was very refreshing--with much less make-up and more natural looking hair. She was quite beautiful and more natural looking--making me wish that more co-eds had looked like this when I was in college. Uh, oh,...if my wife reads this, I am toast! By the way, while not a great film, it's a very good film and one even curmudgeons can enjoy.