This movie is so unlike the rest of the Astaire and Rogers films. Instead of the usual pacing and sophistication, this film is more screwball comedy than musical. In fact, the songs and dance numbers are all pretty forgettable and could have actually improved the movie had they been removed.

As a bit of background information, I was a psychotherapist and now teach psychology and history. So, I understood some of the now archaic treatments psychiatrist Astaire prescribed for Rogers and I was also horrified at the incredibly unethical behavior of this therapist. However, if you ignore all the reasons he SHOULD have had his license to practice revoked (there are just too many to mention in depth),then the film is a pretty funny jab at Analytic therapy. Although not exactly deep or sophisticated, I loved watching Ginger accidentally being taken from Astaire's office while she was under the influence of gas that Fred used to lower her resistance and inhibitions--and boy did it remove her inhibitions! Also, later when Fred tried hypnotizing her and she became a gun-toting maniac, it was a riot.

Oddly, this movie differs from other Astaire-Rogers films because it is Ginger who initially falls for Fred and she pursues him (it's usually the other way around). Regardless, the picture is highly entertaining and just plain fun.

PS--For you Ralph Bellamy fans out there, once again, Ralph loses the girl at the end of the picture. This is a pattern that would repeat itself again and again and again in his films of the 30s and 40s. It was such a cliché, that I find myself looking for his movies just so I can find ones where he actually DOES get the girl in the end of the picture (such as in BROTHER ORCHID).

Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers were/are an iconic dance duo and hugely talented performers. Their ten films together did have silly stories but they had so much to compensate like the songs, choreography and dancing in particular. Carefree is one of their weakest- Top Hat, Swing Time, The Gay Divorcée, Shall We Dance and Follow the Fleet to me have always been better films- but that doesn't mean that there isn't anything to enjoy, because there definitely is. Excluding the story, which is silly and thin- as with Fred and Ginger's films you know that the story is never going to be the best asset- the faults lie with one song and some of the supporting cast. The Yam is not a memorable song at all and has some truly inane lyrics, though the dancing and choreography admittedly is delightful. The supporting cast don't bring the sparkle that Fred and Ginger bring to the lead roles, players like Eric Blore, Edward Everett Horton and even Erik Rhodes are missed. Ralph Bellamy is rather one-note and his character is never likable, while Luella Gear is ill-at-ease and saddled with some rather repetitive running comedy. The best of the supporting cast is Jack Carsen who is very good. The script mostly is warm-hearted and witty, if lacking the sophistication and charm of Top Hat and Swing Time. The costume and set design are wonderful, and the photography shimmers while not trying to do anything ambitious. The score fits the screwball-like nature of Carefree ideally, and apart from The Yam the songs are great with Changing Partners faring best. The choreography dazzles even in The Yam, though much more so in Changing Partners and the wonderfully surreal dream sequence as part of the song I Used to Be Colour Blind. What delights the most choreographically though is Fred Astaire's golfing routine. The dancing is athletic, poised and elegant, and the chemistry between Fred and Ginger is still strong. Astaire is his usual charming self getting more comfortable as the film progresses, while Rogers' elegant and effortlessly sassy performance is even more consistent. All in all, not a great film but a good one for the choreography, the songs(apart from one) and the dancing of Fred and Ginger. 7/10 Bethany Cox

Carefree marked the third collaboration of Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers singing and dancing to an Irving Berlin score. Unfortunately it would prove to be the weakest of the films, the others being Top Hat and Follow The Fleet. One thing was that Irving Berlin wrote a lot less music for this than the other two.

The second thing was that it involved psychiatry and we'd have to wait for such musicals as Lady in the Dark and On A Clear Day before the subject was handled in any way responsibly.

I'm not sure the subject was the proper one for Astaire and Rogers. The plot has Rogers seeing Astaire professionally while she's engaged to Ralph Bellamy who is playing the typical Ralph Bellamy part. I guess because it's Ralph Bellamy liberties can be taken with the leading lady by a her psychiatrist.

It was a bit much to swallow, a man who gave up studying the dance to become a disciple of Sigmund Freud. But that's what Fred Astaire is in Carefree. Usually the two don't mix. I can't imagine Freud breaking out into an intricate Astaire dance routine.

I will say that Irving Berlin did give Fred and Ginger some good songs to sing and dance to. The print I have is totally black and white and the I Used To Be Color Blind dream sequence definitely loses something when not seen in color. Fred and Ginger are at their liveliest doing The Yam and the rest of the cast gets involved. In fact I was surprised at how nimble Clarence Kolb was on his feet.

Fred's plaintive plea for Ginger to Change Partners got an Oscar nomination for Best Song, but it lost to Bob Hope's perennial theme of Thanks for the Memory.

I could not quite enjoy Carefree as much I have other Astaire/Rogers collaborations. When you think about, Fred's using his professional training to mess with her mind. His heart may be in the right place, but his medical ethics stink.