Amazon.com

The short life and passionate music of romantic composer Frédéric Chopin provide the foundations for this 1945 drama, which proved influential in its gaudy, undeniably watchable formula of historical exaggeration and shrewdly simplified motives for its principals.In an Oscar-nominated performance, Cornel Wilde presents the Polish native as a passionate nationalist driven by his love of his native country and his hatred of its czarist regime, a thematic focus that can be forgiven in light of the political backdrop at the time of the production.Already a prodigy in his native land, where he's mentored by a shamelessly scenery-chewing Paul Muni as Professor Elsner, Chopin flees to Paris where his flashing eyes, dark nimbus of curls, and florid technique earn him stardom, while his involvement with the writer George Sand (a beautiful Merle Oberon, even when draped in then-provocatively masculine garb) introduces a romantic crescendo.Still, the tortured pianist-composer pines for his homeland, frets about its political fate, and begins to wither under the rigors of his new career as ur-superstar; in a typically over-the-top but riveting image, we see drops of blood spatter across the keyboard as he thunders through a recital, gallantly ignoring his failing health to spread his music and, by extension, awareness of Poland's fate.Numerous subsequent musical dramas (including two more Song-titled biographies from the same studio) would ply a similar mix of grand gestures and larger-than-life emotions, yet the most interesting comparison to be made is with 1991's Impromptu, a more acerbic spin through the Sand/Chopin affair (and the Parisian demimonde including Alfred DeMusset, Franz Liszt, and Eugene Delacroix) directed by frequent Stephen Sondheim collaborator James Lapine. --Sam Sutherland ... Read more

Reviews (9)

Magnificent music and drama
Saw this film when I was a young gal. My friends and I gathered around the popcorn this past week and watched it-enthralled by the amazing finger placement by Cornell Wilde. So believable!
The composers during the Romantic period were God's gift to us, and their music will live on in our hearts.

If you haven't seen this one, don't miss it.

The Majesty of the Music
My sister and I were talking about music and got around to dicussing Chopin's Grand Polonaise. It is, beyond all others that I've heard and loved in my life, my favorite piece of music. My sister feels the same and remarked that she was surprised she did not have a copy of it. I mentioned that I have different renditions but not one that I'm 100% satisfied with. This movie came to mind and I said I would kill to hear it again as played in "A Song to Remember," which she instantly remembered and rhapsodised over. We agreed that there was no rendition of the Polonaise more sublime than the one in this movie. We were little girls then, are in our early 60's now, but never forgot this movie, Cornel Wilde or Chopin's Polonaise. Critics can say what they like about the unimportant inaccuracies of this old film, but it's burned into the emotional memory of those of us who saw and loved it in our childhoods. I'm putting in an order for my copy right now. You won't regret it if you put in yours.

The Best Classical Musical
Although some liberties may have been taken with the actual life story of Frederic Chopin, the story is appealing. The optimum amount of music is interspersed with the story so that there is enough music, but not too much. Chopin is perhaps the finest composer of piano music ever and the majesty of his music lifts this movie to the heights of musical entertainment. I loved it when I was ten years old and I love it today at the age of 72. It is a wonderful inspirational movie and I personally wish it could be remade with today's technology.

A Song to Remember
Well, I have not seen the video yet. But I will.

I saw this picture when it was a new film, 13 times. I remember exactly, because I had just turned 13 when it came out. (I'm now 69.)

When I saw this movie, I fell in love, total love, with Cornel Wilde and Frederic Chopin simultaneously. I had just started taking piano lessons the year before, and I became obsessed with Chopin's music, played in masterful fashion in the film by Jose Iturbi. Cornel Wilde also did a masterful job, pretending to be playing the piano. He was totally believable. And beautiful Merle Oberon was so good as George Sand, Chopin's lover and a great novelist of that time. Paul Muni was memorable as Chopin's teacher. But for me, the film was all about Cornel Wilde, Chopin, and Jose Iturbi. That wondrous music!

I have not been able to see this film since 1945, but I still remember it. Of course it is shamefully a Hollywood product, they take great liberties with the truth, but oh, when I was a 13-year-old, it was magical to me! Everyone on the screen vibrated, shone! The story grabbed me by the throat, I sobbed when seeing it the second time and all subequent times when Chopin made the decision to go to Majorca with George Sand, because I knew it was his doom. I sobbed when Chopin slogged through the torrential rain to attend his piano lessons, knowing that (according to the movie) he was going to "catch" tuberculosis later, and die far too young. I believe he was only 39 when he died. I sobbed when those telltale drops of blood hit the piano keys while he played his thunderous Polonaise, nobly protesting the czarist regime. Oh, the emotions! Oh, the drama!

Well, that's the way movies were made back then. The truth was ignored in the interest of a good profile or a dramatic plot device. The handsome/beautiful stars drove the story. The way the movie looked and sounded was more important than any historical accuracy. And this movie delivered: beautiful images and lush sound, in spades. I still remember it, after 57 years!

So, if you love Chopin, or Cornel Wilde, or Merle Oberon, you won't be disappointed in this film. The music is glorious, the actors are gorgeous, the scenery gets chewed to a fare-the-well. I'm gonna buy the VHS! Wish I had a DVD player, I'll bet it's fantastic in that format.

A Song to Remember
My husband and I loved this video-- played it for our grandson (only 9 and an accomplished pianist) and he and his mom loved it too. The piano playing is so wonderful it brought tears to our eyes! ... Read more

Reviews (8)

Fiendish fun
The Mask of Fu Manchu easily could have served as inspiration for Raiders of the Lost Ark. Archaeologists dash to retrieve a relic to save Western Civilization from the diabolic Dr. Fu Manchu. There's feats of derring-do. Scenes of despicable torture and heroic bravery.

What makes this movie so much fun is that in "Raiders" you know Dr. Jones will win. Nazis are mere obstacles in his path to run over.

But in this movie, Boris Karloff's performance as the insidious Dr. Fu Manchu makes the Nazis seem like mere shadows of a threat compared to his evil genius. His Fu Manchu is a villain you not only fear, but respect.

Myrna Loy as his daughter is wickedly good. While the sparks put off by Fu Manchu's diabolical invention are impressive special effects, they are nothing in comparison to the sparks emitted by a young, scantily clad Myrna Loy.

Karloff amazes
If you are a Karloff fan, you must see this movie. What a role - a rich Asian sadist! Myrna Loy is also quite impressive. I think the best part of this movie (other than Karloff's acting, and his make-up job - wow!) are the sets. There are different torture rooms for different characters. I've never read any of the Fu Manchu books, so I can't comment about that. But Karloff's portrayal is pure evil and pure genius!

BEST MOBIE EVER MADE!!!!
this is the ebsat movie ever PERIOD! **MANCHU'S PICKS** # 1, this is a must get as you all kno this is my grandpa and he is one of the geraytest actors that ever looiked into a camrera, this is about his many faces and mask and stuff, obut dont listen to me get it, A MUST!

Love this piece of exotica!
"The Mask of Fu Manchu" would have to be one of the unfairly maligned cinema efforts of the 30's. Myrna Loy in her great autobiography while referring to it as pure hokum also had the good sense (something you would expect from Nora Charles!!) to point out how alot of effort went into the production and it was peopled by wonderful actors ideally cast.

I have always loved the sheer exotica of this film and the lavish production and look of the piece will keep you entranced from start to finish.

Towering over all is Boris Karloff as the nefarious Dr. Fu Manchu... everyones favourite villian. It was a role Boris was born to play and he employs the right combination of sheer evil, cruelty and even wry humour to bring the part the right conviction. Karloff was a fine actor who too often was trapped in poor material in his Hollywood years. He does have a role of a life time here in Fu Manchu and, despite loving Christopher Lee is his interpretation of the evil doctor, I feel he has never been equalled in this role .

Special mention must also be made of Myrna Loy as Fu's "ugly daughter!" She is terrific in the role of the evil daughter who has designs on the young white explorer Charles Stratton. Only one year off real stardom in "The Barbarian" with Ramon Novarro and "The Thin Man" of course with William Powell, here she is playing the last of her exotic roles before she became in the next evolution of her illustrious film career the "perfect wife" ( a title she hated). She is pure evil here and is quite startling in the controversial whipping sequence which was cut out of many prints for years . Lewis Stone lends his always excellent support as the head of the expedition to the Gobi desert in search of the fabled tomb of Genghis Khan.

Full attention was lavished on the look of the film from the exotic art deco/Chinese palace interiors by Cedric Gibbons to the out of this world creations by Adrian for Karloff and Loy which will take your breath away. The film has the definite MGM feel to it so you know great care was taken in every area in mounting this production.

All of the evils associated with the "good doctor" are here to be relished by the viewer.Pits of hungry crocodiles, bell tortures, the "room of a thousand fingers" which is in reality a wall of spikes and assorted creepy crawlies in glass jars. Totally engrossing stuff!!!. No one need ever take this film seriously but it is terrific fun and as a lover of films of the 30's I can't help but admire the work that went into it.
One note though, it appears that the film was edited for release onto video as I always feel that Myrna Loy's character seems to simply disappear before the finale and no explanation is ever given. The jacket cover mentions that someone betrays Fu Manchu to help release the men but that doesn't occur in the version on video. Just a little mystery that needs to be cleared up.

Enjoy "The Mask of Fu Manchu" As a piece of first class froth it has no equals

enjoyable camp
Ah yes, Boris Karloff as an Oriental nutcase in search of the mystical mask of Genghis Khan. His daughter is "Fah-Lo-See," (love the pun) played by then vamp, later to be Nora Charles, Myrna Loy. The movie is great fun, and of course the bad guys get their comeuppance in the end. ... Read more

Reviews (20)

Hans Christian Andersen not quite, but very entertaining
Hans Christian Andersen (1805-75) was an Ugly Duckling. He lived in the third largest town Odense, in Denmark. The son of a cobbler he was poverty ridden and a failure as an actor and it wasn't until he moved to Copenhagen and won the patronage of Frederick VI, through his poetry, that he wrote his fairy tales and developed into a swan. Like many artists he wasn't particularly happy, and never did marry, although he was very fond of Jenny Lind (1820-87) the Swedish Nightingale a soprano given the name by P.T. Barnum during her tour of the United States between 1850-52.) Charles Vidor's film does state at the beginning, This is not the story of Hans Christian Andersen but a fairy tale about the great spinner of fairy tales. The Danes objected to the way Hans Christian Andersen was portrayed even though Goldwyn had rejected 21 previous manuscripts, so the film company inserted this statement in the credits.

Danny Kaye with his chiselled features does resemble H.C.Andersen when looking at his profile, but apart from this facial feature that's where it stops. Kaye had dark hair but Hollywood soon changed that and he became a blonde, Andersen also had dark hair but he kept it that way.

Unlike some earlier musicals, this film does have a strong story line with loads of songs written by "Baby, It's Cold Outside", Frank Loessen, such as Thumbelina, Ugly Duckling, No Two People, and of course Wonderful Copenhagen. The scenery is very clever, the backgrounds look like illustrations from fairy tale books, but as the camera zooms in to the foreground the buildings and props become three dimensional similar to a pop-up-book.

There are four ballet scenes that I probably found boring back in '52, but revisiting them now, they are visually very interesting, technically I wouldn't know if they are good or mediocre but for a Hollywood musical film, four ballets must of taken an enormous amount of consideration seeing as the film is really for kids. Once again the backdrops for the ballets also resemble fairy tale illustrations and pop-up-books.

Instead of a soprano, Andersen falls in love with a ballet dancer and here's a musical that doesn't have a very happy ending because poor Hans gets mixed up with a married woman. The ballet dancer Doro, is played by Zizi Jeanmaire, and is married to Niels played by Farley Granger. During the last part of the film, the audience is taken behind the scenes of the ballet company playing at the Royal Theater in Copenhagen, but this isn't a film of a show included in a show, similar to earlier musicals, but an uplifting musical film with lots of music with catchy tunes helped by a ton of children.

The last ballet scene takes 17 minutes, quite long for a popular movie. In the film Hans writes a story especially for his love Doro, unfortunately Niels locks him in a cupboard so Andersen never sees her perform but has to use his imagination.

The ballet takes place on land and under the ocean. The surface waves are pop-up so that the dancers can be seen dancing in between the swells, it's really very clever visually, and there's no trickery here. Under the sea filled with monsters and witches, the heroine is probably attached to a pulley so that she can be seen swimming for the surface. There are no blue screens in this film, all effects are up-front and work perfectly similar to a staged ballet. Once again the technicolor process is used and this enhances the fairy tale effect with vivid colors.

Hans Christian Andersen fairy stories are not violent when compared to the Grimm brothers, but the themes usually have a lesson, and in the story written for Doro's ballet, "The Little Mermaid," it is saying that aiming for the stars does not always bring happiness, but then of course Walt Disney hadn't yet arrived on the scene and he soon changed that philosophy.

A good kid's movie
HAns Christian andersen is a good movie. Andersen (Danny Kaye) is a cobbler who can't stop telling stories for the little kiddies. This gets him in trouble with the top bananas in town, who vote to have him run out for making kids miss school. Andersen moves to Copenhagen, falls in love with a beautiful french ballerina, and gets himself famous for his stories, all the while going from song to song with true Kaye spirit. It was a good movie, but not one to be overly thrilled about.

Delicious performer, wonderful introduction to ballet!
I fell hopelessly in love with Danny Kaye when I was 8 years old, and I'm still crazy about him many years later. . . no other performer of whom I'm aware has ever shown his unique combination of comic virtuousity, tenderness, silliness, physical bravado and dramatic depth.

He could also really sing, not just comically but straightforwardly, in his naturally rich, sweet lyric-tenor voice. If you really listen to the "Inchworm" song, you will hear just how fine his voice really was.

The ballet sequences in the movie transfixed me as an eight-year-old ballerina wannabe. Maybe they look hokey to present-day grownups, but I bet most kids would immediately understand.

One of the best movies ever!!!!

Correction
I'd just like to make a correction on another customer review that I read of this movie. This was not Danny Kaye's last movie. I don't know what was, but in 1954, he did "White Christmas" with Bing Crosby, Vera Ellen and Rosemary Clooney. It's not a really important thing, I suppose, but I just wanted to make sure that the information was correct.

Delightful Children's Musical
Danny Kaye plays the Danish cobbler-storyteller, Hans Christian Andersen. At the beginning he is said by the schoolmaster of the village of Odense he is causing trouble. The trouble is he tells stories to the village children, and they learn things like numbers falling in love and marrying each other. One town person said of his stories: They asked their daughter what time it was? She said "the minute and hour hands weren't speaking to each other. They were in love with the second hand. So they wouldn't make up until they met at 12 o' clock." After all the commotion with the village officials, Hans goes back to his cobbler shop. There his apprentice friend, Peter talks him into getting away from the village and going to Copenhagen.

Reluctant at first Hans agrees to go to Copenhagen with Peter. There Hans meets and falls in love with Doro (Jeanmarie), a beautiful French ballerina. But later learns that she is married to the demanding Niels (Farley Granger). Overwhelmed by his love for her, he is inspired to write, 'The Little Mermaid' for Doro. The story of the Little Mermaid, like Doro goes-that she looked for love from the wrong man. Hans becomes popular with the people of Copenhagen and his gift in telling stories to the children. So Andersen's fame grew out of his plays and stories. Some of the musical scores that stand out are the most known of Andersen's best loved works. Those most memorable numbers are from 'Inchworm,' 'Thumbelina' and 'The Ugly Duckling.' Hans later finds that the ballerina truly loves her husband, so Hans returns home to his village of Odense. There he tells his stories to the children who loves to hear his fairy tales. You may not find Kaye's usual comic flair here. He extends his more poignant side of the famous storyteller. This was Kaye's final film of his career beofre embarking on his life's love of working with Unicef. If you like to read about Andersen, he wrote his auto-bio, 'The Fairy Tale of My Life.' The film itself is a delightful children's story that the whole family can love. ... Read more

Reviews (19)

A 1950s musical gem about the 1920s starring Doris Day.
"Love Me Or Leave Me" is a musical gem! It is a very polished and extremely entertaining film in which Doris Day plays 1920s singer Ruth Etting. James Cagney's fine performance of her gangster manager-husband and the vintage songs highlight the picture. It was made in CinemaScope and only by watching it in its original widescreen format can the film be fully appreciated.

A Tough Musical
Doris Day stars as torch singer Ruth Etting, who rose to the top thanks to her involvement with a gangster, played by James Cagney. Day has the talent, but Cagney (forcibly) opens the doors for her, and then he is unable to give up control once her career gathers momentum and she no longer needs him. Neither character is made to be completely sympathetic, since Day uses Cagney's affection to get where she wants to go, while Cagney is presented as a violent control freak with little social skill. Day is strong, if a bit detached as Etting, with her best moments in the film coming when she sings the great old songs. Cagney, a fearless actor, goes full throttle as the gangster, making him brutal yet allowing the viewer to see just how much he needs and loves Day. The rest of the cast are fine. The colour of the film (unless it was the print I saw) is a little stark, reminding me of how colourized black and white films look. But the production values are high, with great music and a tough script. As musical biopics go, this is one of the better ones.

Doris Day's best Movie? Maybe...
Released in 1955 and directed by Charles Vidor. This film has a lot of good things going for it, that would make you want to see it. Doris Day, James Cagney, 1920s, and, especially if you're a Ruth Etting fan, you'll enjoy the number of her songs featured in this movie.

This film is a admittingly highly fictionalized bio musical drama about the famous (although now very much forgotten) 1920s and 30s torch singer, Ruth Etting. The film focuses around her struggling early start in getting small jobs at singing in small clubs, up to her huge fame as a popular recording artist, and star of broadway and talking pictures. Also a look at her offstage "hard" life, with Manager/Husband Marty "the Gimp" Snyder, who helped her become famous, but made her life hell.

Both Doris Day and James Cagney are great in this movie, along with everyone else. Its a very different role for Doris Day, than you might be used to seeing her as. Cagney plays his usual "tough guy" image well, and this is easily one of the finest films the two stars made. Doris Day does not sound at all like Ruth Etting, and she doesnt try to sound like her either. This isnt a bad thing though, she still sings the songs great as "Doris Day" instead of "Ruth Etting" so to speak. A very classy, and enjoyable movie.

The soundtrack album Doris Day recorded for this movie, available on CD, is well worth picking up aswell. As far as Ruth Etting goes, I feel, along with Doris Day, they are two of the greatest female singers of all-time, so you should check out any of the CD compilations available of her music (I personally recommend "Ten Cents a Dance" and "Americas Sweetheart of Song" from ASV Living Era).

Doris Day portrays "Ruth Etting".
WARNING:Film includes domestic violence on a woman. Doris Day portrays the real life of "Ruth Etting", a dancing showgirl in Chicago. She is a kept woman who is struggling to get out of Chicago and utilize her talent to reach Broadway. She gets involved with a gangster (James Cagney) who helps her reach Broadway, but turns her personal life into turmoil. I do not care for the pairing of Doris Day and James Cagney. It does not wash with me. They also worked together in THE WEST POINT STORY (1950). Strong performance by Doris Day. Very dramatic picture. Not a happy picture at all. Includes violence against a woman.
NOTE: Most of the domestic violence scenes and the rape scene was cut by the censors.
Did you notice the blooper? While Doris is in her gold outfit, she turns and her earring flys off her ear. In the next shot, it is mysteriously back on.
Doris sings, "You Made Me Love You" and "Ten Cents A Dance".
The real Ruth Etting made thirty films. One of them is ROMAN SCANDALS (1933) where she played "Olga".

Love Me Or Leave Me
Martin "The Gimp" Snider (James Cagney) meets and falls in love with a poor little night Club Singer Ruth Etting (Doris Day) and promises to help get her into the big spotlight! But something goes wrong she has a mind of her own. Well he fights and uses his connections to get her to the top of the singing act and they fall madly in love. But he still haunts her all of the time. Ruth also falls in love with one other man and it makes Martin deeply jealous! Doris also sings a lot of other nice songs like Love Me Or Leave Me. And many others this is one movie that you should deeply enjoy! ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Astonishing Rita and DVD; silly movie
Rita Hayworth was never more captivatingly beautiful and sensuous than in "The Loves of Carmen". Fortunately, this lushly restored digital transfer is breathtaking in color and clarity and a fitting medium for Rita's screen presence and the film's fantastic cinematography.

The movie, however, is beyond melodramatic and turgid. The dialogue is often hysterical. While Rita (a Latina whose real name was Cansino) is actually pretty impressive as the gypsy Carmen, the otherwise reliable Glenn Ford is hopelessly miscast as the naive Spanish don who falls under her spell.

But if you love simply to behold Rita (and I do!), this is the ultimate feast for you. She is beyond stunning in this film. ... Read more

Reviews (37)

Worth seeing 100 times!
They don't make them like this anymore! An exciting film noir with the beautiful Rita Hayworth and the handsome Glenn Ford. They were the most popular movie couple of the 1940s/1950s and seeing GILDA you're caught in this love triangle of a women torn by love/hate and two men falling into her trap. Rita does the unforgettable "Put the Blame on Mame." A MUST SEE for fans of these two classic mega-stars!

"There never was a woman like Gilda!"
This artificial melodrama is only redeemed by the absorbing performances of its lead actors. Set in the Argentine, along a backdrop of gambling casinos, illicit trade and international intrigue, it portrays an American gambler (Glenn Ford) who is enlisted to become the right-hand-man of a powerful casino owner. He is struck by the fact that his new boss's wife, Gilda, is an old flame of his, a sensuous, enigmatic and manupulative "femme fatale", played by the sex bomb of the 1940s, Rita Hayworth. The story develops along a pattern of a love triangle sustained by reciprocal hate, love and domination as the trio dramatically pit their wits against each other. The dialogue sparkles once managed by these actors and in this style. Hayworth is captivating as Gilda, perhaps her most accomplished performance. Ford is also good as the gambler promoted by the boss to casino top-dog, though the honours also have to go to George Macready as the the husband and boss, the ice-cold, self-possessed, aristocratic type. The character actors, particularly Joseph Calleia and Stevan Geray, provide excellent support. The digitally remastered version of the film restores the crisp quality of the black-and-white phtography.

"I make my own luck."
In Charles Vidor's classic film "Gilda" Johnny Farrell (Glenn Ford) plays a down-on-his luck drifter in Argentina. One night, he meets mysterious casino owner Ballin Mundson (George Macready), and soon Johnny is working in the casino--and rapidly rises to become Ballin's right-hand man. Johnny has a rosy future until Ballin leaves for a short period and returns with a juicy new bride--Gilda (Rita Hayworth).

Johnny and Gilda had a relationship in the past that turned sour. Ballin quickly guesses the true state of affairs and a rather bizarre love triangle ensues....

Ballin attempts to control Gilda by giving her a very long leash. He has some rather dirty business in his past, and that keeps him occupied. Ballin assigns the role of watchdog to Johnny. Johnny finds this role excruciatingly painful, and he's caught between fealty to his employer and suppressed lust for Gilda. Johnny attempts to control Gilda by locking her up--neither man's plan works. Gilda remains an exotic, reckless creature who endangers herself in order to make a point. Gilda's wild attitude towards life, and her sarcasm--loaded with suggestive meaning--is brilliant. When describing herself, Gilda says, "If I'd been a ranch, they'd have named me the Bar Nothing." All men want to possess her, and yet possession is the one thing she won't allow.

Rita Hayworth as Gilda is simply stunning. There's no other word that I can use. When she's in a scene, she takes over--with her body, her movements, and her reckless approach to life. When she enters Ballin's sharply controlled existence, chaos rules, and she sends out shock waves of desire to all who see her. Hayworth performs a semi-striptease during a song, and she removes one item of clothing. The crowd roars with delight, and the men in the audience have to be physically restrained from ravishing her on the spot. Amazing stuff. For film noir buffs, I recommend this film. It's highly entertaining, full of great-one liners, and Rita Hayworth is nothing less that magnificent. The DVD was marvelous quality and well worth the purchase--displacedhuman.

Rita Hayworth stars as GILDA, with her 2 GAY boyfriends!
.
I remember the first time I saw this noir classic as a teenager and thinking how wonderful it was that a film had been made in the mid-1940's that actually featured a plot about two gay men and their diva girlfriend.

Years later, I read an interview with Glenn Ford in which he said that everyone who worked on the film knew there was an obvious gay storyline, but that due to the film being made in the 1940's, they had to be very subtle in their interpretations of gay lovers on-screen. It's still obviously clear that George Macready is Glenn Ford's rich and not-so-charming sugar daddy. Both leading men wear so much product in their hair and are so well dressed and manicured, you just KNOW they can't be straight!

It doesn't take a genious to figure out that the two leading men are more than just good buddies. When Mundson first presents his new wife Gilda to his male lover Johnny, he says "Quite a surprise to hear a woman's voice in my house, isn't it Johnny?" Well, you can tell by the look on Johnny's (Glenn Ford) face just how surprised he is!

Gilda is the perfect trophy-wife for any gay man in the 1940's who's running a gambling casino and who needs the perfect "beard" to keep up a straight appearance. Gilda is just so fabulous that any gay man would love her... except of course for Glenn Ford, whose insanely jealous of his boyfriend's new diva; for reasons that are never made quite clear in the film. (Probably due to heavy post-production censoring, of which much was done by the notorious Hayes Office that censored all films of this era.)

In fact, Gilda is so fabulous, that not only does Mundson marry her, but when he "dies" in the film, Gilda is then married by Mundson's lover Johnny! (Of course neither marriage is ever consummated - a fact made quite clear in the film.)

Gilda is so diva-esque, she's almost a drag queen! The gowns, the shoes, the hair! FAB-u-lous! The ad-line for the film stated: "There never was a woman like Gilda". Of course there never was a woman like Gilda. Gilda wasn't supposed to be like any real woman, she was a fabulous cartoon. While there may never have been a woman like Gilda, we had the closest thing: Rita Hayworth.

Of her own real-life problems with men, Rita was quoted as saying "All the men I knew went to bed with Gilda and woke up with ME." Who could live up to the reputation of Gilda, the character of whom "there never was a woman like"? Poor Rita!

Watch this film with a "queer eye" and you won't see any "straight guy" in the storyline. Snaps for good gay cinema of the forties!

P.S. If they ever decide to remake this film, I would recommend that they cast TV's "Will & Grace" lead stars Deborah Messing as Rita Hayworth and Eric McCormick as Glenn Ford. They would be PERFECT cast in these immortal roles! (Deborah Messing is SO Rita Hayworth, and she plays off McCormick just as Rita played off Glenn Ford. The casting would be ingenious!

"Maybe That Stands for Something"
Rita Hayworth went down in Hollywood history as the Love Goddess. Her title role in *Gilda* (Columbia Pictures, 1946) leaves no doubt why. Yet here she is much more than a sex symbol. For one thing, Rita was a seriously talented actress. For another, she was one of the best dancers in films. To this day her performance in *Gilda* remains unrivaled as a combo of skill, sensuality, sensitivity, and sheer drop-dead pulchritude. Columbia's catchy ad-phrase for the film was, "There never was a woman like Gilda." You'd better believe it. Glenn Ford perfectly fills out the character of Johnny Farrel, the young gambler who hates to love femme fatale Gilda. In return, Gilda loves to hate Johnny. George MacReady offers an outstanding performance as murderous Ballin Mundson, the man Gilda fears.

If you like movies that challenge the viewer to figure out hidden meanings, then *Gilda* is for you. "Maybe that stands for something," Rita-as-Gilda says near the beginning; "Maybe that means something," she says near the end. Halfway through she says, "Any psychiatrist would say that means something." The question of interpretation hangs over the entire film, loaded as it is with symbolism and double-entendres.

On the other hand, you can ignore the subtext and enjoy *Gilda* as a noirish romantic mystery-thriller. It's a beautiful flick to look at in black and white, and it's never boring, even all the decades since it was made. Some reviewers say the plot is difficult to follow. I don't agree; the story is both logical and economical. But that may be because I understand *Gilda* to be a dramatized introduction to the psychological concepts of C.G. Jung. Never mind. If you like your movies to be just movies, *Gilda* tastefully blends ingredients from *Casablanca*, *The Maltese Falcon*, *Notorious* and *The Big Sleep*, then stirs in its own original sauce. In my opinion, it's an improvement upon those classics, as fine as they are by themselves.

I wouldn't call *Gilda* a true film noir, for the reason that at the end the male and female leads are triumphant instead of tormented. Great films of the 1940s that had real "noir" (black) denouements are *Criss Cross*, *Detour*, *Double Indemnity*, *Scarlet Street*, *The Killers* and *The Postman Always Rings Twice*. Still, on their way to a happy ending Johnny and Gilda pass through a landscape that is darker and more suggestive of spiritual abandonment than most '40s film noirs dared explore. At the same time, because of the intense chemistry between the leads, *Gilda* sizzles hotter than any film of that period I can think of.

Love the music too. Five stars. They just don't make 'em like this any more. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Domestic comedy
This Hayworth's movie is a domestic comedy, but a vey charming one. The performance of Brian Aherne is excelent and Rita looks like a future movie star. ... Read more

Amazon.com essential

Cover Girl was one of the big hits of Rita Hayworth's run as movie queen (and World War II pinup girl), a splashy musical geared to the talents of its redheaded star. Be warned: this is the kind of movie in which a single magazine cover turns an unknown dancer into the toast of her own Broadway show, virtually overnight. The corn runs high, but so do the spirits; plus, Eve Arden is around to toss in her trademark one-liners. Gene Kelly, as Hayworth's sulky choreographer and part-time boyfriend, stops the movie cold with his brilliant dance alongside his own reflection. The Jerome Kern-Ira Gershwin songs are middling, except for the lovely "Long Ago and Far Away." One number presents a parade of magazine cover girls come to life (great snapshot of an era). And check out the movie's hats: a parade of insane creations, perched uncertainly on many beautiful women's heads. --Robert Horton ... Read more

Reviews (12)

Wonderful, charming, sweet story!
I can't help but love this movie. Every time I feel blue, I can pop it in the VCR and feel wonderful by the time it's over. Rita Hayworth has never been more beautiful than in this picture. Her dancing talents are showcased beautifully, though as usual, not enough. Gene Kelly sparkles brilliantly as her nightclub-owner boyfriend who wants her to work hard to get to the top, not go the easy road as a "Cover Girl". Gene's "Alter-Ego" dance in this picture was at the time technically revolutionary.

Also featured is Phil Silvers is a crackup as Gene's wisecracking friend, and the always wonderful Eve Arden gets her witty two cents in as well with a big cast of colorful characters to back it all up. Also, it is said that a very young Shelley Winters can be seen as one of the chorines, though I haven't found her yet! :o)

Shakespeare it's not, but Cover Girl is what it is: a lighthearted, romantic musical and a really fun ride the whole way!!

Watch it and enjoy!

ravishing, enchanting musical dream
Rita Hayworth has never looked better than in the charming musical COVER GIRL, where she displays her astute dancing and singing skills.

Also starring, Gene Kelly, Phil Silvers and Eve Arden, COVER GIRL tells the story of nightclub hoofer Rusty Parker (Hayworth) and her rise to stardom after being made the cover girl of a magazine's 50th anniversary issue. The editor of the magazine (Louis Calhern) is taken with her, she reminds him of a girl he fell in love with long ago, who turns out to be her grandmother!

Hayworth plays the grandmother in several well-costumed flashback scenes, and she is very fetching .

Featuring the song "Long Ago And Far Away" and Kelly's bravura "Alter Ego" dance number, COVER GIRL is a bright, bouncy, musical delight.

GREAT MUSICAL WOTH THE MONEY
I don't know what the other neg. reviewers are talking about. This is a great film. It's very entertaining and wonderful to look at. Your DVD collection is incomplete without this film.

LOVELY RITA.....
If you can get past the zany (and tiresome) antics of Phil Silvers and the corny, cliched script, there's a wonderful Technicolor musical here called "Cover Girl". Gorgeous Rita Hayworth is Rusty Parker, a nite club chorine who becomes the toast of Broadway overnite when she's chosen to be the cover girl of Vanity magazine---albeit to the chagrin of the club's owner Danny McGuire (Gene Kelly) who's her boyfriend and her catty co-workers. Hayworth is absolutely beautiful and dances with the most natural grace and elegance ever captured on screen as far as I'm concerned. Gene Kelly's acting is stiff but HIS dancing is what you're watching here as well. Boy, could he dance! He has a great solo number on an empty street where he dances with his reflection from an empty store window. Absolute artistry in motion. Eve Arden, as a talent scout, brings much needed relief to the tired script with her right-on-the-money delivery of brittle comebacks and one liners. She's also outfitted in the most outre' chic costumes and hats Hollywood ever laid out. All the costumes (by the great Travis Banton) are something to behold. But it's the Technicolor that brings things to life and Hayworth who brings the Technicolor to life. In her Broadway debut, she comes running down a seemingly endless elevated platform in a flowing gold gown like a goddess descending from the heavens---her long red hair cascading behind her. Then, after a dance number with chorus guys, she runs back up the platform through a downpour of shimmering sparkles and into a cloud of pink smoke. Sheer Technicolor movie magic. "Cover Girl" isn't the best musical ever made, but as a showcase for one of the most beautiful actresses ever photographed in Technicolor and a very nice song called "Long Ago and Far Away" it gets 5 stars from me. When you watch this, you can see there was only ONE Rita Hayworth and her grace, talent and beauty are captured in splendor on this DVD print.

VERY NICE LOOKING TRANSFER FROM COLUMBIA - HOW UNUSUAL!
"Cover Girl" is a star vehicle for Rita Hayworth. Having stated the obvious, its quick paced and elegant good fun, bookended by Gene Kelly's superb dancing and Eve Arden's "hotter than fire" one-liners. Rita is cast as a nobody who gets her face plastered on one magazine and overnight becomes the toast of Broadway. Her duet with Kelly, "Long Ago and Far Away" is the real highlight in this nimble minded programmer that really took audiences by storm. - people used to be so easy to please!
TRANSFER: Well, what do you know? After a slew of bargain basement trasfers (though by no means was Columbia's pricing what this reviewer would consider a bargain) we at last get a transfer that's worthy of the digital format. Colors are vibrant and well balanced. Contrast and black levels are bang on. Film grain and age related artifacts are present but they don't terribly distract. There are no digital compression artifacts. The audio is MONO but nicely balanced.
EXTRAS: Forget it! Columbia remains on their penny-pinching kick, but hey - at least the film looks good.
BOTTOM LINE: This is not an outstanding example of the Hollywood musical. However, it is adept at poking fun at itself and having a good time doing it. For a night of light fluff that will put a smile on your face, I recommend "Cover Girl". ... Read more

Amazon.com

Fifteen years after directing the florid and commercially successful Chopin bio-pic, the 1945 A Song to Remember, director Charles Vidor headed up this lush, Technicolor production about Franz Liszt--only to die a few weeks into shooting and be replaced by George Cukor. (Cukor insisted the credit remain with Vidor, and indeed there is little of Cukor's touch visible in this film.) Song Without End stars Dirk Bogarde as Liszt, and while the actor's stints at the piano are effectively dubbed by Jorge Boyet, the story really concerns the composer's entangled love life. Much, much less flamboyant than Ken Russell's Lisztomania, Song Without End is,in its own way, just as indulgent, extravagantly presuming that love is the major inspiration for the creation of music. No film about a composer would be complete without a few of his famous contemporaries, and Song Without End makes a point of bringing George Sand and Chopin himself to theproceedings. The sets are impressive, and the cinematography is by James Wong Howe. --Tom Keogh ... Read more

Reviews (6)

A Perfect Time Killer
I have gone through this film twice and still find this interesting.

This is not a documentary and as such don't expect too much depth or insight from this portrayal of Liszt, or else most of audience might be bored to death. Who cares about his study with Czerny or his religious faith in such a film anyway?

Instead, we have quite a lot of romances with pretty faces, elegant dresses and magnificent palaces. There was even a brief mention about Chopin and Wagner in the background. Visual effect was excellent and even the actor on the piano was so remarkable.

I'm not too sure though if Boglet would suit the taste of all piano lovers, probably not: Liszt is Liszt, who can compare with him when even Anton Rubinstein wanted to be his pupil. But for the general audience, it's just marvelous. The sound is wonderful too, not just the music,the dialoges too.

The plot was forceful and the rhythm fast and there is not a single scene that is boring. The result: one could easily sit still in front of it for the whole length of 130 minutes and for twice.

Highly recommended.

Dazzling Piano
I fell in love with Dirk Bogarde in "The Night Porter". I was fascinated by his acting, his expressions that revealed a dark, intrinsic tortured soul.
With this film, I discovered another Dirk Bogarde, younger and handsome, lively and passionate.
I grew tired of Liszt, but this film, with the superb piano sound, played by young Jorge Bolet, has renewed my interest for the composer.
The most enjoyable moments for me watching this film is obviously Bogarde's acting as a pianist. There are many piano recital scenes that made me realize how difficult it is to play Liszt's compositions.
Bogarde is equally moving and impressive as a pianist. He is irrefutably one of the most intricate actors I have ever seen.

Fictional portrayal of Franz!
Why does Hollywood distort reality and fabricate (...) fiction? Liszt had one of the most fascinating lives in 19th Century Europe, so why not stick to facts rather than conjure up poor fiction. Right from the start it's evident that they had little knowledge of Liszt by starring Dirk Bogarde, with short curly hair, as Liszt! Did they bother to even look at a photo or painting of Liszt... who had long straight hair! That visual inaccuracy sets the tone for the rest of this character assassination Without End.
The ridiculous notion that Liszt felt inferior to Chopin for not writing music is utter nonsense. The early version of Liszt's monumental "Transcendental Etudes" began in 1828, long before he even met Chopin! These pieces are some of the most revolutionary scores ever written for the piano! Yet, this film makes Liszt out to be a sap as a composer. Likewise, it also distorts his relationship with the Countess, who is made out to be a poor angelic figure coldly trampled upon by Liszt. Factual History knows she had emotional problems before meeting Liszt, which flared and became worse culminating into the major cause of their separation. Her brutal retaliation was to write a biting novel about Liszt years later. Some of the story is accurate especially his devotion and philosophy towards Art, which saves this film from getting a half star rating. Watch knowing the falsehoods and strong points mentioned herein and you should find some enjoyment. Especially since Jorge Bolet's sound track is the redeeming part of this film, as no matter how hard someone tries to defame Liszt...his powerful music shall eternally and triumphantly rise above such mediocrity.

Beautiful story - beautiful music - beautiful performance!
I first saw the movie when it was originally released. It was time to see and enjoy it again, so I purchased the video. It was as magificent as I remembered it to be. The video version has a problem though. While the music is very clear, the sound quality of the voices are often times very poor. Much of the time you have to strain to hear and some of the time you can't hear what they said at all.

great movie
great movie to see it several times ... Read more

Reviews (20)

Hans Christian Andersen not quite, but very entertaining
Hans Christian Andersen (1805-75) was an Ugly Duckling. He lived in the third largest town Odense, in Denmark. The son of a cobbler he was poverty ridden and a failure as an actor and it wasn't until he moved to Copenhagen and won the patronage of Frederick VI, through his poetry, that he wrote his fairy tales and developed into a swan. Like many artists he wasn't particularly happy, and never did marry, although he was very fond of Jenny Lind (1820-87) the Swedish Nightingale a soprano given the name by P.T. Barnum during her tour of the United States between 1850-52.) Charles Vidor's film does state at the beginning, This is not the story of Hans Christian Andersen but a fairy tale about the great spinner of fairy tales. The Danes objected to the way Hans Christian Andersen was portrayed even though Goldwyn had rejected 21 previous manuscripts, so the film company inserted this statement in the credits.

Danny Kaye with his chiselled features does resemble H.C.Andersen when looking at his profile, but apart from this facial feature that's where it stops. Kaye had dark hair but Hollywood soon changed that and he became a blonde, Andersen also had dark hair but he kept it that way.

Unlike some earlier musicals, this film does have a strong story line with loads of songs written by "Baby, It's Cold Outside", Frank Loessen, such as Thumbelina, Ugly Duckling, No Two People, and of course Wonderful Copenhagen. The scenery is very clever, the backgrounds look like illustrations from fairy tale books, but as the camera zooms in to the foreground the buildings and props become three dimensional similar to a pop-up-book.

There are four ballet scenes that I probably found boring back in '52, but revisiting them now, they are visually very interesting, technically I wouldn't know if they are good or mediocre but for a Hollywood musical film, four ballets must of taken an enormous amount of consideration seeing as the film is really for kids. Once again the backdrops for the ballets also resemble fairy tale illustrations and pop-up-books.

Instead of a soprano, Andersen falls in love with a ballet dancer and here's a musical that doesn't have a very happy ending because poor Hans gets mixed up with a married woman. The ballet dancer Doro, is played by Zizi Jeanmaire, and is married to Niels played by Farley Granger. During the last part of the film, the audience is taken behind the scenes of the ballet company playing at the Royal Theater in Copenhagen, but this isn't a film of a show included in a show, similar to earlier musicals, but an uplifting musical film with lots of music with catchy tunes helped by a ton of children.

The last ballet scene takes 17 minutes, quite long for a popular movie. In the film Hans writes a story especially for his love Doro, unfortunately Niels locks him in a cupboard so Andersen never sees her perform but has to use his imagination.

The ballet takes place on land and under the ocean. The surface waves are pop-up so that the dancers can be seen dancing in between the swells, it's really very clever visually, and there's no trickery here. Under the sea filled with monsters and witches, the heroine is probably attached to a pulley so that she can be seen swimming for the surface. There are no blue screens in this film, all effects are up-front and work perfectly similar to a staged ballet. Once again the technicolor process is used and this enhances the fairy tale effect with vivid colors.

Hans Christian Andersen fairy stories are not violent when compared to the Grimm brothers, but the themes usually have a lesson, and in the story written for Doro's ballet, "The Little Mermaid," it is saying that aiming for the stars does not always bring happiness, but then of course Walt Disney hadn't yet arrived on the scene and he soon changed that philosophy.

A good kid's movie
HAns Christian andersen is a good movie. Andersen (Danny Kaye) is a cobbler who can't stop telling stories for the little kiddies. This gets him in trouble with the top bananas in town, who vote to have him run out for making kids miss school. Andersen moves to Copenhagen, falls in love with a beautiful french ballerina, and gets himself famous for his stories, all the while going from song to song with true Kaye spirit. It was a good movie, but not one to be overly thrilled about.

Delicious performer, wonderful introduction to ballet!
I fell hopelessly in love with Danny Kaye when I was 8 years old, and I'm still crazy about him many years later. . . no other performer of whom I'm aware has ever shown his unique combination of comic virtuousity, tenderness, silliness, physical bravado and dramatic depth.

He could also really sing, not just comically but straightforwardly, in his naturally rich, sweet lyric-tenor voice. If you really listen to the "Inchworm" song, you will hear just how fine his voice really was.

The ballet sequences in the movie transfixed me as an eight-year-old ballerina wannabe. Maybe they look hokey to present-day grownups, but I bet most kids would immediately understand.

One of the best movies ever!!!!

Correction
I'd just like to make a correction on another customer review that I read of this movie. This was not Danny Kaye's last movie. I don't know what was, but in 1954, he did "White Christmas" with Bing Crosby, Vera Ellen and Rosemary Clooney. It's not a really important thing, I suppose, but I just wanted to make sure that the information was correct.

Delightful Children's Musical
Danny Kaye plays the Danish cobbler-storyteller, Hans Christian Andersen. At the beginning he is said by the schoolmaster of the village of Odense he is causing trouble. The trouble is he tells stories to the village children, and they learn things like numbers falling in love and marrying each other. One town person said of his stories: They asked their daughter what time it was? She said "the minute and hour hands weren't speaking to each other. They were in love with the second hand. So they wouldn't make up until they met at 12 o' clock." After all the commotion with the village officials, Hans goes back to his cobbler shop. There his apprentice friend, Peter talks him into getting away from the village and going to Copenhagen.

Reluctant at first Hans agrees to go to Copenhagen with Peter. There Hans meets and falls in love with Doro (Jeanmarie), a beautiful French ballerina. But later learns that she is married to the demanding Niels (Farley Granger). Overwhelmed by his love for her, he is inspired to write, 'The Little Mermaid' for Doro. The story of the Little Mermaid, like Doro goes-that she looked for love from the wrong man. Hans becomes popular with the people of Copenhagen and his gift in telling stories to the children. So Andersen's fame grew out of his plays and stories. Some of the musical scores that stand out are the most known of Andersen's best loved works. Those most memorable numbers are from 'Inchworm,' 'Thumbelina' and 'The Ugly Duckling.' Hans later finds that the ballerina truly loves her husband, so Hans returns home to his village of Odense. There he tells his stories to the children who loves to hear his fairy tales. You may not find Kaye's usual comic flair here. He extends his more poignant side of the famous storyteller. This was Kaye's final film of his career beofre embarking on his life's love of working with Unicef. If you like to read about Andersen, he wrote his auto-bio, 'The Fairy Tale of My Life.' The film itself is a delightful children's story that the whole family can love. ... Read more

Description

Brilliant performances by Doris Day and James Cagney highlight this Academy Award(R) winning story of Jazz singing sensation Ruth Etting and the vicious Chicago hood who controlled her life. Year: 1955 Director: Charles Vidor Starring:Doris Day, James Cagney, Cameron Mitchell, Robert Keith, Tom Tully ... Read more

Reviews (19)

A 1950s musical gem about the 1920s starring Doris Day.
"Love Me Or Leave Me" is a musical gem! It is a very polished and extremely entertaining film in which Doris Day plays 1920s singer Ruth Etting. James Cagney's fine performance of her gangster manager-husband and the vintage songs highlight the picture. It was made in CinemaScope and only by watching it in its original widescreen format can the film be fully appreciated.

A Tough Musical
Doris Day stars as torch singer Ruth Etting, who rose to the top thanks to her involvement with a gangster, played by James Cagney. Day has the talent, but Cagney (forcibly) opens the doors for her, and then he is unable to give up control once her career gathers momentum and she no longer needs him. Neither character is made to be completely sympathetic, since Day uses Cagney's affection to get where she wants to go, while Cagney is presented as a violent control freak with little social skill. Day is strong, if a bit detached as Etting, with her best moments in the film coming when she sings the great old songs. Cagney, a fearless actor, goes full throttle as the gangster, making him brutal yet allowing the viewer to see just how much he needs and loves Day. The rest of the cast are fine. The colour of the film (unless it was the print I saw) is a little stark, reminding me of how colourized black and white films look. But the production values are high, with great music and a tough script. As musical biopics go, this is one of the better ones.

Doris Day's best Movie? Maybe...
Released in 1955 and directed by Charles Vidor. This film has a lot of good things going for it, that would make you want to see it. Doris Day, James Cagney, 1920s, and, especially if you're a Ruth Etting fan, you'll enjoy the number of her songs featured in this movie.

This film is a admittingly highly fictionalized bio musical drama about the famous (although now very much forgotten) 1920s and 30s torch singer, Ruth Etting. The film focuses around her struggling early start in getting small jobs at singing in small clubs, up to her huge fame as a popular recording artist, and star of broadway and talking pictures. Also a look at her offstage "hard" life, with Manager/Husband Marty "the Gimp" Snyder, who helped her become famous, but made her life hell.

Both Doris Day and James Cagney are great in this movie, along with everyone else. Its a very different role for Doris Day, than you might be used to seeing her as. Cagney plays his usual "tough guy" image well, and this is easily one of the finest films the two stars made. Doris Day does not sound at all like Ruth Etting, and she doesnt try to sound like her either. This isnt a bad thing though, she still sings the songs great as "Doris Day" instead of "Ruth Etting" so to speak. A very classy, and enjoyable movie.

The soundtrack album Doris Day recorded for this movie, available on CD, is well worth picking up aswell. As far as Ruth Etting goes, I feel, along with Doris Day, they are two of the greatest female singers of all-time, so you should check out any of the CD compilations available of her music (I personally recommend "Ten Cents a Dance" and "Americas Sweetheart of Song" from ASV Living Era).

Doris Day portrays "Ruth Etting".
WARNING:Film includes domestic violence on a woman. Doris Day portrays the real life of "Ruth Etting", a dancing showgirl in Chicago. She is a kept woman who is struggling to get out of Chicago and utilize her talent to reach Broadway. She gets involved with a gangster (James Cagney) who helps her reach Broadway, but turns her personal life into turmoil. I do not care for the pairing of Doris Day and James Cagney. It does not wash with me. They also worked together in THE WEST POINT STORY (1950). Strong performance by Doris Day. Very dramatic picture. Not a happy picture at all. Includes violence against a woman.
NOTE: Most of the domestic violence scenes and the rape scene was cut by the censors.
Did you notice the blooper? While Doris is in her gold outfit, she turns and her earring flys off her ear. In the next shot, it is mysteriously back on.
Doris sings, "You Made Me Love You" and "Ten Cents A Dance".
The real Ruth Etting made thirty films. One of them is ROMAN SCANDALS (1933) where she played "Olga".

Love Me Or Leave Me
Martin "The Gimp" Snider (James Cagney) meets and falls in love with a poor little night Club Singer Ruth Etting (Doris Day) and promises to help get her into the big spotlight! But something goes wrong she has a mind of her own. Well he fights and uses his connections to get her to the top of the singing act and they fall madly in love. But he still haunts her all of the time. Ruth also falls in love with one other man and it makes Martin deeply jealous! Doris also sings a lot of other nice songs like Love Me Or Leave Me. And many others this is one movie that you should deeply enjoy! ... Read more

Reviews (3)

OVER AGE JENNIFER
...Hemingway would have nothing to do with this adaption from his novel but the main criticism levied at Selznick is his wife at 38 was too old to play a young British nurse in Italy during WW1 opposite Rock Hudson as the American male nurse.The landscape and battle scenes were good but he was not being realistic casting his wife in this role.Selznick was still lookong for a sequel to "Gone with the Wind" which he had previously just failed with in "Duel in the Sun", but this film drags and the birth scene despite edits, remains too long.So much of the plot seems to have been truncated and reduced to a mere orthodox love story so there is not enough in the plot to sustain the time it runs.Incidentally the year "1932" that hangs as a title above is incorrect.This filmed version was made in 1957.I believe the Gary Cooper version was made in 1932 and in B&W not in colour as here.

overly saturated, epic saga
An overly-saturated, epic saga, the Charles Vidor remake of the Helen Hayes classic A FAREWELL TO ARMS works on the screen performances of Jennifer Jones and Rock Hudson.

In the winter of 1917, an American ambulance driver (Rock Hudson) enlists in the Italian army and is wounded in action. He is gradually restored to health by a beautiful young nurse (Jennifer Jones).

When they find themselves falling in love, they try to escape the horrors of the war by fleeing to Switzerland to seek peace and happiness. There fate is again waiting to thwart their plans.

This poignant and tragic love story, based on Ernest Hemingway's famous novel of the same name, is again brought to the screen, this time by David O'Selznick as a starring vehicle for his wife Jennifer Jones.

Remade as IN LOVE AND WAR starring Sandra Bullock and Chris O'Donnell.

"A beautiful love story among the perils of war."
This is a beautifully shot movie set in Italy during WWI. It is based on Ernest Hemmingway's novel "A farewell to arms", as well as on the play, also named "A farewell to arms". Rock Hudson's performance is spectacular, he portray life-like realistic emotion which ranges from pure joy to pain and frustration. This story is about love that overcame all possible boundries and survived until death. Rock Hudson is gorgeous and I found myself having to bite my lips at times!! wow what a looker..!! forget renting this one...buy it, trust me YOU WILL LOVE IT!! but just a hint.. get a box of kleenex for the ending, I BAWLED!! ... Read more

Reviews (8)

Here are some Arrau recordings not found anywhere else!
Regardless of the debatable qualities of the plot and the economical technical characteristics of the movie-making, I enjoyed this period film because it helped popularize classical music at the time. More specifically, because great violinist Michael Rabin and great pianist Claudio Arrau actually played the music, a good deal of it accompanied by an unidentified orchestra directed by Johnny Green.

I am also mindful of the fact that this is the only record left to us of Arrau's playing passages of Rachmaninoff's piano concerto No. 2 (and how characteristically beautiful the piano sounds!). Apart from various passages by Chopin, Liszt and Schumann that Arrau recorded more than once elsewhere, the film contains an astonishing excerpt from Scriabin's Etude No. 12 (Op. 8) never recorded elsewhere by him, and a beautiful excerpt of a popular Strauss waltz, likewise never recorded by Arrau elsewhere. (This is not to mention an excerpt from Liszt's Liebesträume No 3 with a wrong note for Liz Taylor). There is also the piano accompanying of violinist Rabin's rehearsing the Tchaikovsky violin concerto, which is unique.

I suspect that recordings longer than the ones actually used for the film may have been made. A DVD release of this movie may be the ideal medium to collect and preserve for posterity a restored edition of such recordings, particularly those items which were recorded uniquely for this film.

Two reasons to get this movie; the young Liz and the music
This movie is standard 1950's soap. What makes it worth a look are two factors; the splendid classical music (though I agree with one of the other reviewers that there were too many reaction shots) and the beauty of the young Elizabeth Taylor, as annoying as her character might be.

Rhapsody in Blue?
I've seen this movie many times. Its definitely a 'period' piece, Liz at her most shallow and vacuous. Obviously, her sole purpose in this movie is to pose, and lounge languidly against some really awful furniture. With that in mind, I'd have to say that some of my fellow reviewers here have been overly-harsh on the movie, and some way too gracious. It is not a great film. For one thing, the scenery, for the most part, is fake. Some of the driving scenes, and the conversations, particularly the ones held 'outside', are hilarious, since they are so obviously held against fake backgrounds. If there are real scenes shot outside, and dare I say it, 'on location' - they are very few in number. Looks like stock footage and backlot shots, to me. The music, on the other hand, is amazing. Now I'm speaking as a (former) violinist, and orchestra member. Even though I know they somehow faked the playing of the soloists (both piano, and violin), I'm still amazed at how real it looks sometimes, especially during the extended concerto passages. And, I still haven't figured out how they did it, back in those days! I don't pay too much attention to the story - it could have been lifted straight out of an early episode of Peyton Place, so its not even worth the effort to point out its flaws, or the sometimes laughable, 'Carol-Burnett/Harvey Korman-style' dialog. And, if there is any real 'scenery' to rave about, it'd almost HAVE to be a young, violet-eyed Liz, who is stunning, even when she's play shallow and vapid.

An enjoyable movie
I plan on buying the VHS of this movie just based on seeing it on cable tv recently. It is hard to find any work done by actor John Ericson on TV or tape. I enjoyed his performance overall very much, and especially, his scene in the bar with Vittorio Gassman, and when he plays the piano concerto. Elizabeth Taylor also, did a commendable job. The whole cast was well selected and were good in their performances. I also enjoyed the performance of the actor, don't remember his name, who played the part of Professor Schuman. This is purely a romantic movie, and I being a romantic at heart, loved it. Beautiful scenery, beautiful classial music and a well assembled cast with good performances are truly worth buying the tape. I just hope that in the future this movie will be released on DVD. I will be the first in line to purchase it.

Starring Claudio Arrau and Michael Rabin
Claudio Arrau and Michael Rabin, who played piano and violin on the soundtrack, are the real stars of this unintentionally funny period piece. There are creative geniuses involved in this film -- namely, the great composers whose music occasionally interrupts the vacuous dialogue. The plot might best be described as ridiculous. It is not unheard of nowadays for a young woman in pursuit of a husband to use a musical education toward that ends -- but the utter forthrightness of Liz Taylor's character in this regard would today at least be considered embarrassing. "I know, Herr Professor, I really can't play piano, but you see, I've followed my boyfriend to the Zurich Conservatory and have to do something with myself while he's practicing violin." This isn't one of the lines, but it might as well be. The rest doesn't get much better. Just fast forward to the music. Moral of the story: "A great violinist might only be a fair husband, and a great husband might only be a fair violinist." That insight is a direct quote from the film. And the only other wisdom to be found here is in the music of Chopin and Tchaikovsky. ... Read more

Reviews (17)

A Charming Movie
When I first glimpsed the title of this movie, I thought it would be a fairy tale, but that is not true. The situations and realities of this movie are those that one might expect to have been played out in real life. Grace Kelly shines as the "ice princess." She perfectly characterizes Princess Alexandra. However, the real praise should go to Louis Jourdan, who I thought played the part of the lovestruck professor brilliantly. This is a movie for anyone who loves Grace Kelly, Louis Jourdan, or love stories in general.

A lovely movie!
I absolutely adore The Swan. Why? Because it's a classic love story. Grace Kelly does an outstanding job as the Princess Alexandra. Alec Guiness is wonderful as Prince Albert. Loise Jordan is amazing as the love struck professer(with the looks to go with it! ) His acting is great and the way he looks at her you know that he is in love with her and her with him. But alas! Duty calls. Forced by both rank and position they must bid farewell to each other with only a kiss to console them. A great show! With wonderful humor and shot at the fashionable Biltmore Estate. Go see it!

Wonderful Movie
A bittersweet romance with a pinch of humor. I love it! The acting is amazing. The story is classic and believable. Grace Kelly shines in her role. I entirely recommend this movie!

Great film!
Grace Kelly has never looked lovlier then in this film. She is positivly radient. Such a princess. The gowns and other costumes are lovely. It's a bitter-sweet tale, of a young woman who sadly, is told she must marry a prince, her cousin, instead of the tutor who teaches her young brothers, whom she really loves.
The colors for scenery and costumes are really lovely. It's an entertaining romantic and at times funny. It's a must see for anyone one any age.

A great and colorful film!
I highly recommend this film. Grace Kelly is wonderful in it. It's a colorful film with some lovely costumes and good acting. ... Read more

Reviews (20)

Hans Christian Andersen not quite, but very entertaining
Hans Christian Andersen (1805-75) was an Ugly Duckling. He lived in the third largest town Odense, in Denmark. The son of a cobbler he was poverty ridden and a failure as an actor and it wasn't until he moved to Copenhagen and won the patronage of Frederick VI, through his poetry, that he wrote his fairy tales and developed into a swan. Like many artists he wasn't particularly happy, and never did marry, although he was very fond of Jenny Lind (1820-87) the Swedish Nightingale a soprano given the name by P.T. Barnum during her tour of the United States between 1850-52.) Charles Vidor's film does state at the beginning, This is not the story of Hans Christian Andersen but a fairy tale about the great spinner of fairy tales. The Danes objected to the way Hans Christian Andersen was portrayed even though Goldwyn had rejected 21 previous manuscripts, so the film company inserted this statement in the credits.

Danny Kaye with his chiselled features does resemble H.C.Andersen when looking at his profile, but apart from this facial feature that's where it stops. Kaye had dark hair but Hollywood soon changed that and he became a blonde, Andersen also had dark hair but he kept it that way.

Unlike some earlier musicals, this film does have a strong story line with loads of songs written by "Baby, It's Cold Outside", Frank Loessen, such as Thumbelina, Ugly Duckling, No Two People, and of course Wonderful Copenhagen. The scenery is very clever, the backgrounds look like illustrations from fairy tale books, but as the camera zooms in to the foreground the buildings and props become three dimensional similar to a pop-up-book.

There are four ballet scenes that I probably found boring back in '52, but revisiting them now, they are visually very interesting, technically I wouldn't know if they are good or mediocre but for a Hollywood musical film, four ballets must of taken an enormous amount of consideration seeing as the film is really for kids. Once again the backdrops for the ballets also resemble fairy tale illustrations and pop-up-books.

Instead of a soprano, Andersen falls in love with a ballet dancer and here's a musical that doesn't have a very happy ending because poor Hans gets mixed up with a married woman. The ballet dancer Doro, is played by Zizi Jeanmaire, and is married to Niels played by Farley Granger. During the last part of the film, the audience is taken behind the scenes of the ballet company playing at the Royal Theater in Copenhagen, but this isn't a film of a show included in a show, similar to earlier musicals, but an uplifting musical film with lots of music with catchy tunes helped by a ton of children.

The last ballet scene takes 17 minutes, quite long for a popular movie. In the film Hans writes a story especially for his love Doro, unfortunately Niels locks him in a cupboard so Andersen never sees her perform but has to use his imagination.

The ballet takes place on land and under the ocean. The surface waves are pop-up so that the dancers can be seen dancing in between the swells, it's really very clever visually, and there's no trickery here. Under the sea filled with monsters and witches, the heroine is probably attached to a pulley so that she can be seen swimming for the surface. There are no blue screens in this film, all effects are up-front and work perfectly similar to a staged ballet. Once again the technicolor process is used and this enhances the fairy tale effect with vivid colors.

Hans Christian Andersen fairy stories are not violent when compared to the Grimm brothers, but the themes usually have a lesson, and in the story written for Doro's ballet, "The Little Mermaid," it is saying that aiming for the stars does not always bring happiness, but then of course Walt Disney hadn't yet arrived on the scene and he soon changed that philosophy.

A good kid's movie
HAns Christian andersen is a good movie. Andersen (Danny Kaye) is a cobbler who can't stop telling stories for the little kiddies. This gets him in trouble with the top bananas in town, who vote t