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Footlight Parade

Play trailer Poster for Footlight Parade G 1933 1h 42m Musical Play Trailer Watchlist
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100% Tomatometer 13 Reviews 83% Popcornmeter 1,000+ Ratings
Motion pictures may have put Broadway director Chester Kent (James Cagney) out of a job, but he quickly finds a second career producing musical sequences for the movies. Unfortunately, a cutthroat competitor keeps stealing his ideas. That cannot happen on his next commission, a rush job for a big-time theater chain. If his work impresses, it'll lead to an exclusive contract. Chester has only three days, but with the help of his smitten secretary, Nan (Joan Blondell), he just might pull it off.
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Footlight Parade

Critics Reviews

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Noah Gittell Washington City Paper May 24, 2023
The 1933 film has the problematic blind spots of its era, but it remains a deliriously fun history of film. Go to Full Review Campbell Nairne Cinema Quarterly Feb 4, 2021
The film will have interest for admirers of James Cagney. He surprisingly reveals gifts as a singer and tap-dancer. Go to Full Review Tim Dirks Filmsite Sep 29, 2019
A+
Footlight Parade (1933) is one of the three most spectacular musicals in 1933 from Warner Bros. and legendary choreographer Busby Berkeley, alongside Lloyd Bacon's 42nd Street (1933) and Mervyn LeRoy's Gold Diggers of 1933 (1933) - Go to Full Review Matt Brunson Film Frenzy Aug 3, 2019
3.5/4
The spicy pre-Code dialogue adds to the merriment, but the selling point is the decision to end the picture with not one, not two, but three production numbers. Go to Full Review Dennis Schwartz Dennis Schwartz Movie Reviews May 7, 2013
B+
It's the third successful teaming of choreographer Busby Berkeley with stars Dick Powell and Ruby Keeler. Go to Full Review Susan Granger www.susangranger.com Dec 6, 2007
3/5
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Audience Reviews

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Steve D @RT35616104 Jul 25, 2026 Only fun comes from a different kind of role from Cagney. See more Kyle M @RT77296778 Apr 29, 2026 James Cagney’s electrifying performance, equally complemented by Joan Blondell’s sharp charisma, buoys this more whimsically engaging musical that that definitively transcends its year’s lineup, even if it’s not sensational per conceptually prompted. (B+) See more Ads T @RT11627483 Apr 30, 2025 While the plot is inconsequential, Footlights Parade is one big production number featuring lavish sets, animations, and hordes of scantily-clad starlets performing perfectly synchronised choreography blurring the lines between code and pre-code Hollywood. As such, it's an entertaining picture and a memorable one for James Cagney. See more Xian C @Filmclass Apr 22, 2025 The pool numbers! Any Buzby Berkeley dance number! See more Alec B @Alec97 Jan 9, 2024 Occupies a strange space between pure fantasy and a realistic portrait of the daily work of show business. Cagney gives remarkably complex performance given how silly the whole thing is. See more David K @RT61474040 Apr 26, 2023 This is a terrific movie. Yes, the plot is thin but it's not about the plot. It's all about all of the great songs and Busby Berkeley choreography. Truly a one-of-a-kind figure in Hollywood. All the regulars - Dick Powell, Ruby Keeler, the fabulous Joan Blondell, and the great Jimmy Cagney doing what you don't get to see Cagney do that much - sing and dance. What a treat! See more Read all reviews
Footlight Parade

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Cast & Crew

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Lloyd Bacon

Director

James Cagney

Chester Kent

Joan Blondell

Nan Prescott

Ruby Keeler

Bea Thorn

Dick Powell

Scotty Blair

Guy Kibbee

Silas Gould

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Footlight Parade

Footlight Parade (1933) Footlight Parade (1933) View more photos

Movie Info

Synopsis Motion pictures may have put Broadway director Chester Kent (James Cagney) out of a job, but he quickly finds a second career producing musical sequences for the movies. Unfortunately, a cutthroat competitor keeps stealing his ideas. That cannot happen on his next commission, a rush job for a big-time theater chain. If his work impresses, it'll lead to an exclusive contract. Chester has only three days, but with the help of his smitten secretary, Nan (Joan Blondell), he just might pull it off.
Director
Lloyd Bacon
Producer
Robert Lord
Screenwriter
Robert Lord, Peter Milne, Manuel Seff, James Seymour, Walter Donaldson
Distributor
The Vitaphone Corporation, Warner Bros.
Production Co
Warner Bros.
Rating
G
Genre
Musical
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Oct 21, 1933, Wide
Release Date (Streaming)
Jan 1, 2009
Runtime
1h 42m
Sound Mix
Mono
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