Better Late Then Never

a film so unique, intoxicating and bizarre that it not only demands another viewing, but is also forgivable as a satirical comedy where the jokes eventually take the back seat.

This is one of the few movies I've ever seen where the whole audience broke into spontaneous, loud applause a third of the way in.

It is a whirlwind of delight --- attractive actors, stunning couture, spectacular sets and outrageous parties.

This dizzy delight is a Paramount musical made in the snazzy jazzy days of 1929 and filmed in delicious two strip Technicolor. How much do I just love this funny silly film? 9/10 funny.... and a complete wish come true to see the modern fashions and elite life of the flapper 20s. Very stagy in its tone and just like a dream come true for anyone who also loves WHOOPEE and other dawn of sound Technicolor talkies FOLLOW THRU remains a modern film today and especially because of the fashion style and use of color. Filmed outdoors at a real golf hacienda which would have cut down costs considerably allowing for expensive use of color and great clothing designs, FOLLOW THRU is the real jazz flapper 20s at it's most silly funny best. Zelma O'Neal is terrific and Buddy Rogers handsome boyfriend stuff, the drag sequence with Jack Haley and Eugene Palette is literally a howler... and dance numbers, especially I WANT TO BE BAD hold up well. FOLLOW THRU is a must for your DVD collection if the restored UCLA tech print is given a proper transfer. The masquerade party sequence is enough to make anyone swoon with glee. Add this to your art deco musical wish list along with THE BOYFRIEND and ROBERTA and WHOOPEE and GOOD MORNING EVE and AT LONG LAST LOVE (which shares an especially uncanny resemblance) and VOGUES OF 1938.

A few corrections to the other comments...Busby Berkeley was already doing overhead shots the very same year in WHOOPEE. Also, Zelma O'Neal's number was "I Want to Be Bad," not "Turn Up the Heat," which was from 1929's SUNNY SIDE UP.Anyway, this is an exceptional musical from the era which is inexplicably missing from view other than museum-type showings. Why can't TCM get a hold of it? The colors are well preserved, the cast is excellent, and it does have a wonderful sense of fun and charm. It really deserves to be rediscovered, as do so many other movies from this overlooked era.

I viewed UCLA's restored print of this musical, an early example of two-strip Technicolor. Much of the action takes place on golf links and fairways, so I expected to see vibrant greens ... and I DID see some bright hues of green in the actress's costumes. But the foliage and fairways were strangely subdued. All of the flesh tones are very pink, and the women appear to be wearing too much rouge. All the man-made objects have got nice vibrant Easter Egg colours, though.This is one of those candyfloss 1920s musicals where strangers instantly fall in love as soon as they clap eyes on each other. All the gals are man-hungry and randy with it, and the comedy lead (Jack Haley) is frightened of women. Haley's character has 'trick eyebrows' which force him to pull a face whenever he thinks about sex. There's plenty of innuendo here ... and lots and lots and lots of expository dialogue. I kept expecting someone to enter with a racquet while saying 'Tennis, anyone?' ... except that the action takes place at a golf course.SPOILING ONE PUNCH LINE. For the comedy set piece, Haley and Eugene Palllette must infiltrate the women's changing room to retrieve a McGuffin. I expected them to go in disguised as women, but this movie fooled me: they go in disguised as plumbers, and then they get OUT disguised as women.The male lead in this movie is former silent-film star Buddy Rogers, who once took the trouble to answer my questions when I briefly met him. It pains me to report that his singing voice is just tolerable, and he shows no skill with dialogue.Surprisingly, this crude musical spawned one hit song: 'Button Up Your Overcoat', performed enthusiastically by Haley and Zelma O'Neal. A couple of the other songs have dull melodies enlivened by lyrics that just occasionally turn risqué. The choreography is wittier than I'd hoped, and one chorus number features a brief overhead shot ... several years before Busby Berkeley made this device his personal trademark.Thelma Todd is quite good as the villain, in a role outside her usual range. The very English character actor Claude King is cast here as a stage Scotsman, lumbered with Harry Lauder's 'hoot mon' accent. Nancy Carroll is quite fetching in a mini-kilt.I must disagree with IMDb reviewer Arne Andersen, who says that the character dubbed Dinty Moore in this movie is named for a famous restaurateur. That name originated with a *fictional* character in George McManus's comic strip 'Bringing Up Father'. Eventually, a restaurant was named after the comic-strip character ... but there never was a real person named Dinty Moore, just as there isn't a real person named Beefsteak Charlie.'Follow Thru' is really more interesting as an historical artefact than as a musical, but I enjoyed it. I'll rate this early musical 7 out of 10.

This film has no great meaning and no real point, but is one of them most charming films I have ever seen. Written in the mid 20's, made in 1929 and released in 30 it still has the flavor of the Roaring 20's. From a stage play, it contains musical numbers and crazy dance sequences that could be from no other era. The girls are pretty, and the guys are handsome. The comics are foolish and endearing. The whole cast is full of the kind of youthful daring and exuberance that can't be acted. It has a delightfully naughty 20's feel about it, especially in numbers like "Turn up the heat" that features chorus girls dressed (if you can call it that) as devils, and the 2 strip Technicolor gives the film an almost fairy tale quality.Sadly it is unavailable (I saw it years ago at the UCLA restoration festival, but they show it again every once in a while). If you every get a chance to see, bring your girl/boyfriend; especially if you are young, in love and a little nuts.