Starring Bernice Claire, Alexander Gray, Lawrence Gray, and Inez Courtney
Directed by John Francis Dillon
Music by Richard Rodgers and others; Lyrics by Lorenz Hart and others
First National was a major movie studio in it's own right, with it's own lot and stars, when sound came in. Paramount tried to buy them in the early 20's, but nothing came of it. Flush with the vast returns from blockbusters like The Jazz Singer and Gold Diggers of Broadway, Warners finally purchased the majority share of stock in 1929, then bought them outright later that year. This would be one of their last movies released as a separate company before they were folded into Warners. How does this romantic comedy about a young woman and her two very different beaus look today? Let's start at the home of the Braleys with peppy younger sister Mary Jane (Courtney) and find out...
The Story: Mary Jane's older sister Betty (Claire) is a flirtatious beauty who is in love with Terry Clayton (Alexander Gray). Terry's handsome and sweet, but he's also shy, clumsy, and sings better than he talks. She's also stringing along Steve Alden (Lawrence Gray), whom her blustering father Peter (Ford Sterling) doesn't approve of. Terry's discouraged by Betty's brushing off his timid overtures. Mary Jane tells him to encourage her feelings by making her jealous. He flirts with many girls - including Betty and Mary Jane's mother Emily (Louise Fazenda) - at the party. That works too well. Not only is Peter Braley fed up, but he may have scared Betty off as well.
The Song and Dance: This is about as simple of a romantic comedy as one could wish. That very simplicity is actually rather refreshing, especially for the early talkie era. No extra trappings, no big chorus routines, barely any dancing besides Courtney's one little number. Just a girl, two guys, her sister, and a couple of goofy parents. Sterling and Fazenda walk off with the picture as the hilarious Braleys. They get most of the good lines, whether he's flustered over being woken up by Terry's late night pursuit of Betty, or she's giggling at Terry's advances.
Favorite Number: We start off with Courtney as she woos her own beau (Frank Albertson) with "Spring Is Here (In Person)." Terry's nervous letter to Betty to reveal his feelings turns into one of the two standards from this show, "Yours Sincerely." Lawrence Gray relates his case to Bernice Claire and her stunning voice for a duet on the other, "With a Song In My Heart." The Brox Sisters perform the cute southern ballad "Cryin' for the Carolines" at the party. Courtney asks Albertson "What's the Big Idea?" as she tries to enlist him to help her sister choose the right guy, complete with a short but very cute dance number.
What I Don't Like: This is about as much of a filmed play as you can get. It's very talky and static, with barely anyone doing much more than sitting and singing. It's also not the most exciting or dynamic musical in the universe. As lovely as Claire is, her two beaus are about as interesting as Dillon's dull direction and are pretty interchangeable. Lawrence Gray isn't much of a singer, either, especially pitted against operetta star Claire. We never find out what Albertson has to do with anything, either, other than someone for Courtney to sing comedy songs with.
The Big Finale: Charming piece of early talkie fluff is short, sweet, and worth checking out if you love Rodgers and Hart, the early sound era, or romantic comedy.
Home Media: DVD only from the Warner Archives.
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