Starring Sonja Henie, Jack Oakie, Cornel Wilde, and Caesar Romero
Directed by John Brahm
Music by Nacio Herb Brown; Lyrics by Leo Robin
By 1943, Henie's ice shows were making more money than her movies. This would be her last hit and her final film at Fox. Glenn Miller wasn't around to provide musical support by this point, either. His band entered the Army in 1942 and were replaced by Woody Herman and His Orchestra. Fox tried to prop her and her ice ballets up with support from Jack Oakie and two up-and-comers, Carole Landis and Cornel Wilde. How well did they succeed? Let's begin at a failing winter resort in Canada that's just losing their furniture and find out...
The Story: The resort's owner Skip Hutton (Oakie) manages to avoid losing his furniture by telling the creditors that wealthy Norwegian businessman Ostgaard (SZ Sakall) and his figure skating champion niece Nora (Henie) will be staying at the resort. He and his partner Freddy Austin (Wilde) convince them they're staying at a posh hotel, but the truth is, they're barely afloat. They get Ostgaard to foot the bills for the remodeling and to highlight Nora's abilities on the ice.
Turns out Ostagaard doesn't have any money, either. His assets are frozen after Germany invades Norway. Nora decides she can make the money starring in a Broadway ice show, but she has to become an American citizen first. She agrees to marry musician Brad Barton (Romero) in order to gain her entrance visa and make Freddy, who has been spending time with photographer Marion Daly (Helene Reynolds), jealous.
The Song and Dance: Henie by this point had mostly lost her rather charming Norwegian accent, but she otherwise comes off fairly well as the rich man's niece who'll do anything to help her new friends, even marry a man she doesn't really love. It's the supporting cast who really shine here. Landis and Romero get the best lines and have the funniest gags as the musician who thinks he loves Nora, and the lady who really loves him. Sakall has his own fun playing her eccentric uncle, who's signed a few too many bills for this run-down joint. Speaking of, you'd never know it was run down. For a black-and-white production, 20th Century Fox really went all-out with gorgeous costumes for the band and Henie's skating numbers, huge furs, and the lavish resort.
Favorite Number: We open with the ironic "I Like It Here," performed by Landis, Romero, and Woody Herman and His Orchestra...because they don't. The heat is off, and they're all freezing and unpaid. Things pick up with Herman and "Later Tonight" under Henie and Romero's big dance routine. Herman also performs the title song, both with his band and as the film's huge finale. Henie skates in feathers with the chorus as birds. Henie does an earlier Mountie-themed skating number with the chorus, "We Always Get Our Girl," that's lavish and hilarious. She appropriately gets a flower-themed number to "Waltz of the Flowers" from The Nutcracker about mid-way through.
What I Don't Like: I think it's becoming obvious that the plot of Henie's movies are not their strong suit. Wilde is about as interesting as - and cold as - the ice Sonja glides on. He has absolutely no chemistry with Henie whatsoever. The songs aren't terribly memorable, either, especially compared to the music from several of her previous films. The fact that they had Herman play "Chattanooga Choo Choo" in the background at one point serves to show just how weak the songs are. And I wonder why Fox didn't shoot it in Technicolor, like they originally planned?
The Big Finale: Once again, best for fans of Henie or figure skating.
Home Media: DVD only from the 20th Century Fox Cinema Archives.
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