Hidden Hollywood, Vol. 2 - More Treasures from the 20th Century Fox Vaults
Comedy is king in this second collection of outtakes from the Fox studio vaults. Some former vaudevillians are captured in rare clips, including behind-the-scenes footage of Buster Keaton instructing Alice Faye in the proper method for taking a cream pie in the face. W.C. Fields holds court in a legendary sequence fromTales of Manhattan, cut from the film's release but restored here to something like its original shape (alternate takes show Fields's incorrigible genius for improvising). Danny Kaye shines in a brilliant bit fromOn the Riviera, parodying an off-key singer manhandling "Begin the Beguine." The musical numbers tend to be so-so, with the notable exception of the Nicholas Brothers tearing through an athletic dance routine in a harem. Skating enthusiasts will welcome the footage of Sonja Henie, whose somewhat mysterious popularity is examined. The spectacle of Victor Mature as a singing star is mercifully (and amusingly) brief.--Robert Horton