AllMovie

Fans of Danny Kaye will revel in Up in Arms, a showcase for the nervous comedian that started him on his extremely successful movie career. Kaye fanatics will find a lot to like in Arms, as there's a lot of him here. Those who are looking for a coherent story told in a compelling manner, however, will have to look elsewhere. Arms purports to be a remake of The Nervous Wreck and its earlier Eddie Cantor version, Whoopee, but it's really all about giving Kaye a chance to demonstrate his way with a rapid-fire patter song, his unique combination anxiety and ambition, his superb and precise comic timing and his ability to turn on a dime from manic comedy to doe-eyed sincerity. While some will find his persona a bit too over-the-top (though hardly in the same league in that area as the later Jerry Lewis or Jim Carrey), even detractors will have to admire his inspired and unfailing sense of timing, and his handling of "Melody in 4F" and "The Lobby Number" are hard to resist. If one can look past Kaye, there's also a very pleasing Dinah Shore, whose dramatic performance is merely adequate, but whose musical performance is beautiful. Harold Arlen and Ted Koehler provided her with two special numbers, the bluesy "Tess's Torch Song" and the lovely "Now I Know."