Lucille Ball is best known for her role as Lucy Ricardo. I love Lucy, One of the most recognizable faces in the entertainment world. However, this talented redhead went on to appear in over 80 films, ranging from an uncredited extra early in her career to multiple lead roles.
I’ve been calling myself a Lucille Ball fan for years, but I realized how many movies I hadn’t seen. Check out our picks for must-see Lucille Ball movies.
1. The Long Long Trailer (1953, directed by Vincente Minnelli)
For those who have never seen Lucille Ball anywhere else i love lucy, Start the Lucille Ball Film Festival long long trailer 1953 comedy directed by Vincente Minnelli (Liza’s Father). In the opening credits, the movie “With the Stars of i love lucy” That’s not the case couple’s It’s the only movie they co-starred in, but it’s the closest we get to seeing them as characters acting like Lucy and Ricky.
in long long trailer Newlyweds Nicky and Tacy want to purchase a trailer to travel around the United States. The idea is simple. The couple visits locations where Nikki is working on projects and saves money on buying a home as a result. Unfortunately, everything can go awry, and repair costs escalate and their new marriage begins to suffer. Will they be able to survive the harrowing road trip?
long long trailer Based on the book of the same name. It’s funny and full of slapstick humor.
2. Forever Darling (1956, directed by Alexander Hall)
forever darling Both Ball and Arnaz appear in the film, as does popular 1950s actor James Mason.One website describes it as follows: forever darling A quirky comedy about a chemist’s dedicated pursuit of a new pesticide, which wreaks havoc on his marriage. According to another account, Susan (Ball) meets her guardian angel (Mason plays herself) and is told to go on a research trip with her husband Lorenzo (Arnaz).
Now, combine these two descriptions to get a more accurate picture of what this movie is about. When Susan first saw Angel, she thought she was being stalked. Susan realized that only she could see him and thought he was going crazy. Meanwhile, her marriage falls apart because of Lorenzo’s work for her, and her angel advises her to go on a journey to save her marriage. Why is James Mason her guardian angel? No spoilers here.
Susan and Lorenzo have a funny argument, but there are some arguments. twilight zoneCreepy like a guardian angel. still, forever darling It shows Ball’s combination of comedic and dramatic skills and is a fun watch.
3. Easy to Wed (1946, directed by Edward Busell)
Lucille Ball said this easy to get married It was her favorite film to shoot because it showed her comedic talent. She’s right, but we loved this movie because Lucy’s colorful Technicolor costumes also make this a beautiful movie. We also get to enjoy Lucille’s dancing, and we don’t have to ask Ricky to be on the show to do it, which is a real treat.
The plot focuses on: A newspaper publishes an article accusing Connie (Esther Williams) of being a home wrecker. Connie’s father threatened to sue owner Warren Haggerty. If Hagerty could prove that Connie was the home wrecker, he could countersued. He draws his fiancée (Ball) and reporter (Van Johnson) into his plan. Fans will remember Ball dancing with Johnson. I love Lucy. She won’t dance with him here. And just for the record, when Ball sings here, his voice is also dubbed.
The film requires careful viewing, as the viewer has to remember who loves whom and who is trying to deceive whom, but it is still worthy among the Lucille Ball films.
4. Du Barry Was a Lady (1943, directed by Roy Del Ruth)
we were excited to learn about du Barry was a lady because we didn’t know Lucille appeared in a film co-starring Gene Kelly. The film also stars comedic genius Red Skelton. Skelton plays Louis, a nightclub coatroom attendant who falls in love with the club’s singer, Mae (Ball’s vocals are all dubbed over on all but one song). Alec (Kelly) and May (Ball) fall in love, but she doesn’t want to get married because May knows how bad her parents’ marriage was and she doesn’t want that.
In order to let Alec out temporarily so he can be with May, Louis gives Alec a gift called Mickey Finn (named Mickey Finn, after the gangster who drugged his victims before robbing them). I try to dress her. Unfortunately, due to a clumsy waiter, Louis drinks it and has a very strange, but vivid dream of becoming Louis XV. Viewers’ hearts will be eased when they see the legendary Ball and Kelly appear together. Red Skeleton sings and dances with his typical goofy demeanor.
5. Dance, Girl, Dance (1940, directed by Dorothy Arzner and Roy Del Ruth)
Lucille Ball plays Bubbles, a dancer who knows how to woo and use her personality to get gigs. Her friend Judy is a ballerina who is dedicated to her art, but is having difficulty achieving her success. When Bubbles decides to take a lucrative job as a burlesque dancer, she draws Judy into her act…as comic relief. Confusion ensues among her friends when she learns how Judy is being used and that the women are chasing the same man.
This is one of the first feature films that Ball starred in, and it’s fun to see her sassy performance instead of Lucy Ricardo’s typical bumbling slapstick. This movie is interesting and here she really shines as the leading lady.
6. You Can’t Cheat on Your Wife (1940, Ray McCurry)
you can’t cheat on your wife Ball plays Clara, who marries her college sweetheart, Andrew. The couple lives with his mother, and Andrew works hard, but his girlfriend’s boss requires him to entertain party-loving customers. Since he is no longer home, Clara kicks him out. The somewhat timid Clara undergoes a beauty treatment and at a costume party, she looks exactly like another beautiful woman.
The press has promoted this movie as a comedy, but I found it to be a little darker than that. Lucille doesn’t seem to find this role interesting. However, she shows off her serious side and her versatility more when she is mistaken for another woman at a party and plays it off using her accent etc.
7. Yours, Mine and Ours (1968, Melville Shavelson)
Shortly after her career, yours, mine, and ours It ranks as one of Lucy’s best films. Starring the incomparable Henry Fonda and Van Johnson. The plot revolves around a widow with 10 children (Fonda) who falls in love with her widow with 8 children (Ball) and how they decide to make it work or Is it? With 18 kids, you’re almost guaranteed a movie full of comedic chaos. yours, mine, and ours I’ll deliver it.
8. A Guide for Married Men (1967, Gene Kelly)
Directed by the legendary Gene Kelly. A guide for married men Lucille Ball and Walter Matthau would later star in the film. Bad News Bears. The movie focuses on a man who teaches his friends how to cheat on their wives without getting caught.
While watching Lucille Ball, viewers will be treated to numerous cameos from some of the biggest stars of her generation, including Jack Benny, Terry Thomas, Jayne Mansfield, Sid Caesar, Carl Reiner, Joey Bishop, and Art Carney. You can also enjoy it. It’s a funny and easy-to-watch movie, so grab some popcorn, sit back, and have some light-hearted, and perhaps controversial, fun.
9. Mame (1974, Gene Sacks)
Blister By far the best Lucille Ball movie…for all the wrong reasons. Director Gene Sacks, Blister is a musical based on the 1966 Broadway musical of the same name. This film would be Ball’s last theatrical appearance (although she would appear in another television movie in 1985). Ball received a Golden Globe nomination for the role, but she also endured scathing reviews.
Cast also appears golden girl The legendary Bea Arthur, Bruce Davison, Robert Preston and more. The plot is that Mame Dennis (Ball), who becomes the guardian of her deceased brother’s son, marries a wealthy Southern planter (Preston).ball did Sing her own song here…and it shows.
10. Stone Pillow (1985, George Schaefer)
Stone pillow Very different from any role in any other Lucille Ball movie. In an interview, Lucille Ball said that’s exactly why she wanted to play the homeless woman Flora. She Ball was 74 years old when she filmed this movie. That would be her last. The appearance of Ball, wearing her rags and living on the streets, shocked viewers at the time.
11. Big Street (1942, Irving Reis)
Ball always mentioned his work. big street It was one of the best films of her career, and she never forgave the Academy for not nominating her for the Best Actress Oscar.
The film tells the story of Augustus Pinkerton II, known as Little Pinks (Henry Fonda), a nightclub busboy who falls in love with the club’s singer, Gloria (Ball). Gloria despises Pinks, preferring to stay with her club owner boyfriend (Burton McClain). Gloria’s fall down her stairs leaves her paralyzed and alone, but Pinkus refuses to abandon her. His selfless attitude causes Gloria to fall for him in typical melodramatic fashion.
big street Regardless, it doesn’t quite live up to the reputation Ball gave it. The melodramatic plot hasn’t aged well over time either. Still, Ball and Fonda have great chemistry, and Lucy proves her dramatic skills here.
12. Room Service (1938, William A. Sater)
Pair Lucy with the Marx Brothers for the wildest slapstick comedy…in theory, anyway. room service started out as a Broadway play, and unlike their other films, the Marx Brothers had no creative input into the script. As a result, Ball’s role as a stage actress lacks the manic, laugh-out-loud feel that tends to accompany most screen productions (and Lucille Ball’s other films, for that matter); was not given such an opportunity. Show off her comedic talent. Still, the movie has its moments, and Lucy has never looked so regal on screen before.
