2/5 Hollywood Sets the Stage for a Masterpiece
  by Doug - Haydn Fan (California)
The cardinal virtue of this double set is the very reasonable price - fans of the stars certainly can enjoy seeing them in excellent prints, though the audio feature is set far too low. It's too bad others - are you listening MGM - continue to charge top dollar for simple reissues of films over fifty years old.

The first feature is baldly derivative and lacks most of the depth a good feature should possess. Crosby, Farmer, and Raye rarely connect with the story, or, much more important, it with them! Only for those who must see every film of their favorites.

The second film has considerably more going for it: Crosby and the young Mary Martin make for a reasonable screen couple, and there is a good stab at building something like a romantic plot. In the opening the two stars keep running into each other as they unknowingly are fated to meet and fall in love under the spell of each other's music. Crosby's uncle's sleepy inn in upstate New York proves the plot's counterpart to the city, and Crosby's inimical low key acting fits in nicely. However, complications seem patently labored, and any semblance of good film-making soon falters. The movie enjoys one very good song, plus a good if hardly outstanding set piece of what sounds like a dolled up 'Mississippi Mud' in a pawn shop. There are as well a few unmemorable songs Crosby and Martin put over reasonably well. But there are several others that remain completely forgettable. Mary Martin does her best - but if she can't bring a song alive, no one can!

Never-the-less there is enough interest here to recommend this film to Crosby and Martin fans. Just don't expect too much!

However, there's a wondeful silver lining to the last film. Out of the ashes of the so-so Rhythm on the River was to emerge a true wonder - a mere two years later in 1942 Paramount would again send Crosby escaping the city to a country inn. Only this time the locale is Connecticut, and instead of patchy songs audiences would be wowed when Irving Berlin dusted off some old numbers, sprinkled pixie dust over them, and presented the film makers with monster classics.

To this bevy of melodic miracles was added a remarkably effective plot, revolving around an Inn that is only open on Holidays, and a far better conceived romance. All topped off with glorious sets and stunning musical numbers, including a final sensational studio Christmas snow scene complete with sleigh. The set perfectly matches the famous song "White Christmas' with an exact 'copy' of Crosby's character's country inn, and gives the film an extra frisson as studio art brilliantly comments on its own film creation. And just for good measure the film would luxuriate in an extraordinary indulgence of casting - paired opposite Crosby as chief competitor for his girl was none other than Fred Astaire. The final result was one of the genuine musical classics of Hollywood - "Holiday Inn". As an enormous bonus: The film gave Crosby his signature song.
Holiday Inn (Special Edition)

5/5 Rhythm On The Range/Rhythm On The River DVD
  by GKL
I especially enjoy Bing Crosby's western songs. I think that his western music has not been given the recognition that it deserves.

5/5 Wonderful!
  by Kristina Stewart (Texas, USA)
Two wonderful classic stories staring Bing Crosby on one DVD! This is a priceless treasure that should be in every classic movie lovers collection!

3/5 Pleasant nostalgia
  by Douglas M
This Crosby double feature is a fair example of the programmers which Paramount churned out in the thirties and early forties for the famous crooner. Both are pleasant entertainment and each contain a few memorable and some unintentionally funny moments.

"Rhythm on the Range" released in 1936, is clearly based on "It Happened One Night" with the intelligent and stunning Frances Farmer as the runaway heiress. Bing is miscast as a cowboy of sorts. Since Farmer has been urged to find a "real man" by her rather butch aunt, it is unintentionally funny that Crosby, with middle age spread and a notable lack of masculine prowess, becomes the object of her affections. There are other funny moments: for example, that shadow of the horse trainer visible in the rodeo when Bing sings and the arc light shone like a halo over Farmer in every scene. The songs are mainly duds sung with little gusto by Bing. The good moments are Martha Raye singing her signature tune "Mr Paganini" and everyone having a go at "I'm an Old Cowhand".

"Rhythm of the River" is a much better film with Bing more suitably cast as a ghost song writer for Basil Rathbone. Mary Martin plays the lyricist and as always, she impresses with her warmth, humour and delightful vocals. The script has bite, not surprising since Billy Wilder is listed in the credits and there is at least one memorable moment when Bing sings the title song in a pawn shop.

Both films' scripts refer to Bing as a young man at least once and this is ludicrous since he clearly was not. Thank goodness Bob Hope turned up to galvanise him into animation in the Road Pictures.

The prints are immaculate and there are no extras which is OK since this is not an expensive DVD.

4/5 "And now, ladies and gentlemen, just one more word about...Kelso's Cucumber Cream"
  by H. Bala (Carson - hey, we have an IKEA store! - CA USA)
RHYTHM ON THE RANGE (1936) and RHYTHM ON THE RIVER (1940) make a nice dvd combo for fans of the Bingster. Both films are now very dated, of course, but still have something nifty to offer, with RHYTHM ON THE RANGE showcasing an early, youthful Bing Crosby and the gorgeous Frances Farmer and also debuting the raucous Martha Raye ("Oh, boy!") while RHYTHM ON THE RIVER shines with the quartet of Crosby, Mary Martin, Basil Rathbone, and Oscar Levant. I was surprised at how much fun I had watching RHYTHM ON THE RIVER and, yes, I do like it better than RHYTHM ON THE RANGE which, while providing some meaty chuckles here and there, suffered from what I feel is its mostly lackluster repertoire of tunes.

RHYTHM ON THE RANGE is IT HAPPENED ONE NIGHT done up with saddles and spurs. Here's the plot: Trying to earn enough money to purchase a prized bull named "Cuddles", cattleman Jeff Larrabee (Bing Crosby) competes in a New York rodeo contest and fares decently but is still short of the necessary funds. His last chance seems to lie in, wouldn't you know it, a singing cowboy contest. Being Bing Crosby in real life, Jeff wins handily enough and, with the help of his homespun-philosophisin' pard Buck (Bob Burns), he finally gets his bull.

Having safely stowed Cuddles on a box car heading back west to Arizona, Jeff bumps into (or, rather, pokes into) Lois (Frances Farmer), a hoity toity cook who'd stowed away on board. Sparks fly - literally. But what Jeff doesn't know is that Lois is actually Doris Halliday, a runaway heiress seeking to escape her wedding to a dismal groom. Jeff and Lois fight, fuss, and have escapades with Cuddles the bull. Naturally, they fall in love (Jeff and Lois, not Cuddles - there are rules about this). And, because of its musical/comedy genre, things end well, despite the low level machinations of three shifty hobos.

Meanwhile, we suffer thru slow and boring melodies, with two shining exceptions: Johnny Mercer's "I'm an Old Cowhand from the Rio Grande" (which features an early glimpse of Roy Rogers on the guitar and Louis Prima on the trumpet) and Martha Raye's lively signature song "Mr. Paganini." Crosby is predictably mellow here except, of course, when he's being annoyed with Farmer's character, who can't seem to desist from accidentally flashing a red scarf in front of the bull. Farmer herself is stunning (Gawd, her smile!) and seems very comfortable in her comedic role. Bob Burns does his aw-shucks rustic routine as well as Andy Griffith ever did it. Martha Raye doesn't waste time as she begins clowning seconds into her film debut. RHYTHM ON THE RANGE is a decent enough film, and I might even have doled out some dollars for it as a single feature release. But, now, we'll never know. Let's get to the real gem of the set.

RHYTHM ON THE RIVER: In the secluded and barely patronized Nobody's Inn, new acquaintances composer Bob Summers (Bing Crosby) and poet/lyricist Cherry Lane (Mary Martin) come to discover that they are both ghostwriting for popular songwriter Oliver Courtney (an unabashed Basil Rathbone, for once playing a non-sword-wielding villain). After confronting the underhanded Courtney, Bob and Cherry storm out and try to make a go of it as a songwriting team. However, they are immediately rebuffed by the song publishers for sounding too much like Oliver Courtney. Oh, bitter irony...

RHYTHM ON THE RIVER is a musical punctuated with some funny moments. A large chunk of the hilarity comes from the scenes of initial suspicion and animosity between the two leads. The sarcastic Oscar Levant offers some amusement, as well as the 6-piece swing band who relentlessly practices "Hold That Tiger" next door from Mary's ("Back to the pawn shop, boys!"). But what has me roaring in my seat are the exquisite scenes of the panicky radio announcer who is forced to take his live product placement to new heights of improvisation as he is made to stall on the air. I never knew that there were so many diverse uses for Kelso's Cucumber Cream...

Bing and Mary go well together as they show off an effortless chemistry in their scenes. Bing exudes his usual laid back charm and amiable on-screen presence; he graces several songs with his patentedly relaxed crooning style. Mary Martin is fresh-faced and very likable and can also hold down a tune. I love her terrific, saucy rendition of "Ain't It A Shame About Mame." The two other standout tunes for me are "When The Moon Comes Over Madison Square" and "Only Forever." Another interesting number is the one in the pawn shop with Bing showing off some freelance drumming as he sings the title song.

Bing Crosby made it to the big time on the strength of his natural charisma and his singing ability. He had an easy, personable way about him that just made it pleasant to watch him in his films. His sonorous singing style influenced many of the singers who followed him - Sinatra, Martin, and Como, to name a few. It's not a newsflash that Bing was a great singer and a wonderful phraser of lyrics. But he was also such a natural at performing in front of a camera and made it look so easy that his acting ability was taken for granted. Let's keep in mind that he did win the Oscar for GOING MY WAY. And if you think all he could play were laid back, easy going roles, then check out THE COUNTRY GIRL, MAN ON FIRE (1957), and even the STAGECOACH remake.

But let's get back on track. This double feature dvd is well worth your money and, more importantly, your time. Fans of Bing Crosby will find much to enjoy in both the RHYTHM ON THE RANGE and RHYTHM ON THE RIVER. Funny bits, lovely songs, eye-catching female leads, and the Bingster himself, robust and crooning merrily. Mucho recommended.