The Half-Naked Truth

1932

1h 15m

Comedy

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Reviews

Jimmy Bates (Lee Tracy), a carnival barker, decides to spice up a dance act by spinning a melodramatic story about the exotic dancer's jilted mother. When Jimmy, dancer Teresita (Lupe Velez) and Achilles (Eugene Pallette) are exposed as liars by the town's sheriff, they flee to New York City, where Jimmy leads people to believe that Teresa is a Turkish princess. Jimmy then manages to get Teresa into a theater producer's review-style show, elevating her to fame at a price he hadn't anticipated.

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Dennis Schwartz

Dennis Schwartz Movie Reviews

Comedy that benefits from an inspired brilliant free-spirited comic performance by Lee Tracy and amusing turns by supporting actors Eugene Pallette and Frank Morgan.

Rated: B+

Aug 29, 2014

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Audience Member

The main trouble with this movie is that none of its characters are all that likeable. Lee Tracy as the carnival barker turned into a publicity man has a voice and brashness that quickly get annoying. The talent he's promoting, a young 'exotic' singer played by Lupe Velez, wears the requisite skimpy pre-Code outfits, but her musical and dance performances fall flat. Frank Morgan plays a Broadway show owner whose romances lack any semblance of reality or passion. There is simply no charm in this script, and Velez is the only actor cast who has the capability of breathing some into it, but she's almost entirely bottled up, which is a shame. There are some cute moments, such as when Tracy gets a compromising photo of Morgan and Lupez kissing, and blows up all sorts of copies to torment Morgan in his office. However, there are many other moments which are lame and anything but erotic, such as the whole nudist colony thing. The film seems to have been in search of something spicy, but you can't get that by giving it an ill-fitting and salacious title, including the most boring nudists possible, or by putting people together who have zero chemistry. Velez is the main reason to watch it, but you could also do much better.

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

01/13/23

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Audience Member

Passable comedy and a gentle satire of the press and publicity. It's a good time capsule to show how little media manipulation has changed, although this is by no means a heavy storyline.

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

02/06/23

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Gregory La Cava

Director

Lupe Velez

Teresita

Lee Tracy

Bates

Eugene Pallette

Achilles

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Synopsis

Jimmy Bates (Lee Tracy), a carnival barker, decides to spice up a dance act by spinning a melodramatic story about the exotic dancer's jilted mother. When Jimmy, dancer Teresita (Lupe Velez) and Achilles (Eugene Pallette) are exposed as liars by the town's sheriff, they flee to New York City, where Jimmy leads people to believe that Teresa is a Turkish princess. Jimmy then manages to get Teresa into a theater producer's review-style show, elevating her to fame at a price he hadn't anticipated.

Director: Gregory La Cava
Production Co: Radio Pictures
Genre: Comedy
Original Language: English
Release Date (DVD): Oct 29, 2013
Runtime: 1h 15m