Because so many films like this were made in this stylized fashion during the depression I sometimes get a false sense of what the 30s really must have been like. I think people were desperate for escape and embraced artificiality. Why pay money to think about the problems you face everyday? The entertainments of the day were light as air, full of dapper costumes and sets and move at a brisk pace. I was surprised how much that four-minute clip had crammed in: a quick dialogue establishing Held and Billings location, a musical number, and more a comedic scene where Held is won over by Ziegfield's flowers. There's no pause for reflection, it just moves right along.
