Desi Arnaz & His Orchestra (1946)
** 1/2 (out of 4)
An uncredited narrator tells us that Desi Arnaz conquered Broadway then became a movie star and is now going to try his hand at music. The narrator then adds that he's certain Arnaz would have big things ahead of him and that's certainly true even if the path was somewhat different than what's hinted at here. Arnaz and his orchestra perform several Mexican/Spanish numbers including the catchy "Guadalajara" and "Babalu". Singer Amanda Lee joins him and sings on "Easy Street" while Searles and Galian appear towards the end of the film. Arnaz, with his band that he brought together during WWII, then kick back with "Tabu", "Pin Marin" and "Tabu". I think it goes without saying but fans of Arnaz are certainly going to want to check this thing out even if the famous guy is out-shined in his own film. I think the best number of the picture is "Easy Street" with Lee really hitting it out of the park and she's quite easy on the eyes as well. I found the number to be the best written and performed and the little skit that went with it wasn't too bad either. The rest of the numbers are decent but I think it's fair to say that Arnaz had much better material that would come about in a few more years.