If pulsating drums beating out Latin rhythms were enough to satisfy my taste for Latin American music, CARNIVAL OF RHYTHM would be an ideal musical short.
However, the songs chosen for the KATHERINE DUNHAM DANCE TROUPE are not at all memorable (or even stirring), her voice on a "song of sorrow" is enough to create a wail of protests from sensitive musician ears, and the dance troupe itself is not given imaginative enough material to work with.
So, in short, it's something you can easily afford to skip. The opening with the sound of voodoo drums promises something that it never delivers. The studio-painted sets look garish and cheap for scenes that are supposed to be taking place outdoors during morning, afternoon and evening. There's a clumsiness to the "Indian dance of courtship" that makes it more laughable than exotic (or erotic) and the narration concludes that the men return from their work shift "untamed, savage as the night", hinting that the women will soon have a night full of "love's fulfillment".
Summing up: Unworthy of the Dunham troupe--full of clichés and silly in concept.
