Junior Prom (1946)

From a more innocent time, 16 November 2020

The father of one of the students running for class president promises to buy new football uniforms if the school administration can guarantee his son will win.  Fortunately for the other candidate, Freddie Trimball (Freddie Stewart), the principal balks at the plan.  But with a musical show to get ready, a prom to plan, and endless singing in the school’s Teen Canteen, does Freddie have enough time to campaign?

Junior Prom is filled with harmless enough “high school” shenanigans from a much, much more innocent time.  I put “high school” in quotes because it’s obvious that most of the actors are way past high school age.  I might have enjoyed it more had it not been for some of the duller than dirt musical numbers and the lame comedy from man-child Murray Davis (What did Dunne do? – Arrrrgh!) that I found excruciating. June Preisser and Noel Neill give it their all, but a lot of their good work is undone by male lead Freddie Stewart.  He’s just so bland.  I can’t imagine how anyone thought he could carry a movie.  

I know that 1946 was a simpler time, but were the kids really jazzed about music like that in Junior Prom?  I can’t imagine any high schooler being excited over some of the elevator music featured here.  

4/10