FOLLOW THE BOYS: it's not what you think

What was his agent thinking?! 
Movie tough guy George Raft starring in a film called FOLLOW THE BOYS? 
What's that going to do to his image as a snarling, cold blooded gangster? 
Chances are Raft believed that signing on for the film would do his image nothing but good. 

Despite the rather misleading title FOLLOW THE BOYS is actually a red, white and blue flagwaving all-star tribute to the boys in uniform who were fighting and dying to defend democracy from the fascist regimes of Nazi Germany and imperial Japan.
The film would also have appealed to Raft because it only required him to play a fictionalised version of himself. He wouldn't have to travel very far to get into character which was a blessing because Raft had what is politely described as "a limited range" as an actor. Whether he was emoting crazy mad with anger or crazy mad in love.he tended to employ the same expression and tone of voice. 
He plays hoofer Tony West who dances his way from vaudeville to Hollywood and marriage to musical star Gloria Vance (Vera Zorina). They're the Fred and Ginger of emotionless dancing until the Japs bomb Pearl Harbor and Tony's turned down by the Army because of a bum knee (seems it's ok to dance on but not march on). So he pours all his energy into drafting his fellow showbiz stars to entertain the troops, traveling the world to put on shows just behind the front-line. But all this war work leaves him no time for Gloria and a series of misunderstandings on both sides tears them apart. 
The marriage split is a less than subtle effort to convince the audience that big stars understood and shared in the real life misery of separation from loved ones being experienced by millions of couples because of the war. It's a persuasive argument if you ignore the fact that Tony and Vera's separation is caused by both of them failing to take five minutes to listen to one another, rather than by Uncle Sam sending the husband off to war and possible death in a distant corner of the planet.
But, coded messages apart, the primary aim of FOLLOW THE BOYS is to show the stars doing their bit to support the men in uniform. Orson Welles saws Marlene Dietrich in half, WC Fields performs a billiards routine using a trick table, Dinah Shore and The Andrews Sisters sing, Jeanette McDonald trills, Sophie Tucker talk-sings, Artur Rubenstein adds gravitas with a piece on the piano, and there's tricks from a  bunch of trained dogs in costume.
Compared to Warner Brothers two star studded morale boosters "Thank Your Lucky Stars" (1943) and 1944's "Hollywood Canteen", and MGM's "Thousands Cheer" also from 1944, this contribution from Universal is bargain basement stuff. It's not just Raft's monotone performance and Zorina's lack of charisma, it's the sense of disconnection between the various star turns, it's the shoddy editing between long shots of actual performances at army camps and studio based recreations in close-up, and it's the dearth of real stars. With the exception of Welles and Dietrich the wattage is determinedly B-list.
As a curio piece - and for the opportunity to see Raft hoofing on a flatbed truck in a rainstorm - FOLLOW THE BOYS is definitely worth seeing, but as a morale booster it's decidedly depressing.