Matialth Good concept, poorly executed.

Tyreece Hulme One of the best movies of the year! Incredible from the beginning to the end.

Ezmae Chang This is a small, humorous movie in some ways, but it has a huge heart. What a nice experience.

Phillida Let me be very fair here, this is not the best movie in my opinion. But, this movie is fun, it has purpose and is very enjoyable to watch.

blanche-2 The musical Irene opened in 1919 and was revived in 1973, starring Debbie Reynolds.The basic story is the same as in this film, and similar to the 1926 film of the same name.Irene O'Dare (Anna Neagle), on an errand for her employers, goes to the home of Mrs. Vincent (Billie Burke) and meets Don (Ray Milland), a friend of Mrs. Vincent's son Bob (Alan Marshal).Don suggests that she try out as a model in the "Madame Lucy" dress shop. For good measure, he invests in the shop himself. However, Irene isn't sure she wants the job after the store manager makes a pass. Don fires the manager and puts in another one, Smith (Roland Young), who visits Irene at her home and asks her to work for him.Irene is a smash hit as a model, and Smith assigns her the most beautiful gown to wear at Mrs. Vincent's charity ball. Unfortunately, some Irish stew wrecks it. Irene goes anyway, wearing a stunning blue gown that belonged to her mother, and knocks everyone's socks off.A guest at the ball, Princess Minetti, believes Irene is related to one Lady O'Dare, and Irene doesn't correct her.Smith decides Irene is perfect for a publicity campaign to put the dress shop on the map. He sets Irene up in a Park Avenue suite, passing her off as the niece of Lady O'Dare. This way, she will be invited to social functions and wear the shop's beautiful gowns.When a jealous fellow model tells a newspaper columnist that Irene is really shanty Irish, all hell breaks loose.This is a nice musical, and Anna Neagle is lovely. She was an enormous stage and screen star in Britain and even has a street named after her. She did musicals and drama up until 1985. For 15 years, she was in the top 10 of biggest British box office stars. In this she dances, sings, and acts beautifully and looks wonderful in all of the gowns.Good cast, well directed, a pleasant musical, and a good chance to see Anna Neagle, a British treasure.

Kalaman "Irene" is very entrancing screen version of Joseph Tierney and Harry McCarthy's 1919 stage musical, glossily directed and produced by Herbert Wilcox. I happened to catch it the other night, and I loved it. I was entranced by the charm of the actors -- and the songs, while not first-rate, are quite pleasing. Anna Neagle stars as whimsical Irish sales girl Irene O'Dare who is introduced into Long Island's high society culture, and becomes infatuated with two suitors, Ray Milland and Alan Marshall. Billie Burke plays their mother who becomes impressed with Irene, turns her into a celebrity sensation in "Madame Lucy" dress collection. May Robson is very memorable as the irrepressible Granny; so is Roland Young as Milland's partner in business. The highlight is the sumptuous ball sequence shot in Technicolor, "Alice Blue Gown", where Irene, dressed in blue, is waltzing with Milland in a very tuneful number. The other songs include, "You've Got Me Out on a Limb", "There's Something in the Air", "Worthy of You", and "Irene". Enjoyable stuff.

mark.waltz Anna Neagle was never one of my favorites. She was one of those oh-so-ladylike actresses that you just couldn't picture doing things us mere mortals do every day without thinking. However, in the early 40's, the British actress was Americanized for three musical films based upon old Broadway shows. "Irene" was the first of the three (followed by remakes of "No No Nanette" and "Sunny"), and by far the most charming. As the oh-so-Irish Irene O'Dare, Neagle becomes a superstar overnight when she shows up at a Long Island party wearing an old gown of her grandmother's (that salty old favorite May Robson) that has eyes all aglow. Dashing Ray Milland and her dizzy mother (Billie Burke) are instantly taken with her, and she is soon a celebrity. They believe her to be related to European blue-bloods, not realizing she is a simple working girl. Only Milland and his business partner (Roland Young as "Madame Lucy", the apparent designer of the "Alice Blue Gown") know the truth.I was familiar with the score thanks to a recording of the 1973 revival with Debbie Reynolds; most of the songs are either cut or given minor arrangements, with the exception of "Alice Blue Gown" which is turned into a cute production number filled with a variety of different races wearing the outfit. Hattie Noel and the Dandridge sisters are given the bulk of the production number, while Neagle earlier sang it to her grandmother and sisters. Neagle's singing voice, while not bad, is no Jeanette MacDonald; It is hard to believe that she was one of Britain's most popular musical stars. Her acting, however, is pretty good, and she is most convincing as an Irish lass. Milland is handsome and quite charming; He is the perfect leading man. Billie Burke and Roland Young (reunited from the "Topper" series as well as several others) are good as well, and May Robson is always a delight. (The Broadway musical for those who are interested featured Monte Markham in the Milland role, and Ruth Warrick, Billy DeWolfe, and Patsy Kelly in the Burke, Young, and Robson roles respectively).RKO went all out for the production design of the film, giving it a marvelous art deco look. It is equal in design to any of the Astaire/Rogers musicals, and just as charming. The only thing I disliked was the lack of music; I wanted a production number of the rousing title song which gets more attention as background music than as a musical number. Still, as a comedy with music, "Irene" is very well done, and being taken from that point of view makes it a film worth viewing.

Liz_j I saw this film on AMC one rainy Sunday afternoon last month. I saw that it was listed as a musical and, not being a huge fan of the genre, I was a bit apprehensive. But, I did get hooked on it after about 10 minutes or so and watched the entire thing. Even worse.. I LOVED it!! It was a charming and funny film that I recommend to all those who love a good black and white movie afternoon.