Dangerous When Wet (VHS, 1993)

Starring the "Million Dollar Mermaid", Esther Williams, and the Spanish heartthrob Fernando Lamas (her soon-to-be-hubby in real life), this was one of the biggest box-office hits of 1952!

Miss Williams plays a farm girl from the midwest whose family owns a down-on-it's-luck dairy farm. Her family are all health nuts who pride themselves on their physical fitness and swimming capabilites. (A wacky but fun plot.) To win enough money to buy a prize breeding bull, the entire family decides to enter the annual contest to swim the Emglish Channel.

Miss Williams was the aquatic pinup girl of the 50's, back in the years when a little bounce in the derriere and thighs and a lot of personality were all the rage! Not one of those ultra-slim, skeletally svelte gals, no way! Esther Williams was a healthy athlete with a nice singing voice and the ability to carry off a weak plot without a hitch!

A brand new editing technique made this film even more memorable than tea-totaler Esther Williams getting tipsy on a bottle of 90-proof "Vitamin Tonic"...there is a wonderful dream sequence where she is joined under the sea by cartoon characters Tom and Jerry, and an octopus whose singing voice oddly resembles Fernando Lamas, for a very enjoyable water ballet!

Well written and well produced, the silly plot doesn't detract from the fun and romance. A true gem from the early 50's, this one is a definite must for any true collector's prize shelf!