The Boy Friend (1971) review

Assistant stage manager Polly Browne (Twiggy) is forced to takeover the lead of a show called The Boy Friend since the star, Rita (an unbilled Glenda Jackson), broke her ankle - it's rough-going at first, but she grows into the role and becomes infatuated with her co-star Tony (Christopher Gable) ... and everyone's trying to impress director De Thrill (Vladek Sheybal), who's watching closely and contemplating adapting it to the big screen.  Supposedly Sandy Wilson, who wrote the musical (which is a "light spoof" of shows from the 1920's), "hated" this version ... and that's understandable because Russell was never the most delicate of filmmakers, tossing out all subtlety in favor of swinging a cudgel at the face of the audience: it is a ceaseless barrage of in-your-face numbers that wear the movie out well before the production "fails" but love prevails.  That said, many of the songs are joyous and memorable (including the title song, "Won't You Charleston With Me?" and "I Could Be Happy With You"), and one should not pass up the opportunity to see lanky Tommy Tune's incredible footwork.