bob-verini Review of The White Parade

The White Parade (1934)

Underrated, as well as largely unavailable

[11 December 2019]

Episodic ramble following a group of women--each given one defining character trait, like the 7 Dwarfs--from their first day at nursing school to their graduation three years later. In between there is a surprisingly low number of medical crises, but a lot of romantic hijinks revolving around Loretta "Dedi-Katie" Young's pretense that a wealthy polo player is her b.f., which comes true in a less than persuasive turn of events, though she throws him over for her career at the end. The overarching theme is stated again and again by the veteran nursing teacher "Sailor" (Jane Darwell, who would've had a solid shot at Best Supporting Actress had that category existed in '34) as "Some are born to serve, some to be served." The former get pride of place throughout. It was fun to see on a flatbed machine at the only location that seems to possess a copy, the UCLA Archive -- the last Best Picture nominee I had never seen before, with the exception of the presumably lost "The Patriot."