"How to Succeed..." is proof once again that it takes more than expanding the scenery to turn a hit musical into an entertaining movie. There's lots of shots of Robert Morse as the tale's corporate clamberer dancing giddily through Manhattan traffic. And the key setting, the headquarters of the Worldwide Wicket Company, contains a colorful array of cubicles, offices, washrooms and board rooms. But the style is pure proscenium arch. The acting is stagy, the Frank Loesser songs are shoehorned in on cue, the choreography is mannered and the comedy is aimed at the patrons in the third balcony. Only Michelle Lee as the secretary who falls for Morse's puppy-dog appeal brings a touch of romantic reality to the proceedings. Compare "How to Succeed..." with a superb adaptation like "Chicago" and despite a few things to enjoy -- starting with Loesser's lyrical send-up of office politics -- the result is pretty darned dated.
