Starring Sonja Henie, Tyrone Power, Edna May Oliver, and Rudy Vallee
Directed by Sidney Lanfield
Music and Lyrics by Irving Berlin
By 1939, Henie's films were among the top box-office draws in the world, but she was hardly the only major story in Hollywood. From the moment it was optioned as a movie to the beginning of filming in 1938, most of the talk at the studios revolved around who would play the coveted role of Scarlet O'Hara in David O. Selznick's epic adaptation of the blockbuster novel Gone With the Wind. Almost every actress in Hollywood practically threw themselves at Selznick for a chance to audition. Given what a big deal this was at the time, it was likely inevitable that at least one musical would send up the chaos. How does the story of how a press agent falls for the Minnesota teacher he discovers look today? Let's begin with the search for an actress to play "The Girl of the North" and find out...
The Story: Consolidated Pictures has tried for months to find the right actress to portray that coveted role. Jimmy Sutton (Power) is sent to Bergen, Minnesota interview candidate 436, elementary school teacher Trudi Hovland (Henie). Trudi's shocked when they claim they want her. Turns out her boyfriend Willie Hogger (Lyle Talbot) sent in her photo and paperwork, thinking she'd be perfect. Jimmy convinces her and her Aunt Phoebe (Oliver) to give the audition a shot.
Trudi aces the audition. Public relations chief George "Whit" Whitney (Alan Dinehart) thinks she's perfect. Now he wants Jimmy to work on the reputation of his newest star, singer Roger Maxwell (Vallee). Jimmy cooks up a fake romance between Roger and Trudi, to the annoyance of Roger's actual girlfriend Jean (Mary Healy). Thanks to all the love letters Jimmy sends that are supposed to be from Roger and the hit song he writes, Trudi thinks Roger really is in love with her. Jimmy, however, is the one who is really in love, and he's the one who needs to bring her back when she returns home after she discovers the deception.
The Song and Dance: Some decent writing and an amusing and then-topical story puts this one far and above Happy Landing. Oliver steals the show as Phoebe's tough aunt, who hits it off with Jimmy as much as her niece does and gets some of the best lines. They have by far the film's funniest scene when they get drunk on champagne together and toss every glass in the hotel room into the fire. Dineheart also has a few good moments as Jimmy's even tougher boss. Some of the Hollywood satire still lands, especially in the first half when they're desperately searching for that elusive "Girl of the North."
Favorite Number: Oddly, our first number features not Henie, but Vallee, who croons about "An Old-Fashioned Tune" on a giant song sheet while singers in historical costumes sing on the notes under him. We first meet Henie teaching her pupils, including the Brian Sisters, "The Song of the Metronome." She and the kids get an adorable instrumental number on ice as she teaches them how to skate and Jimmy tries to join her. "Back to Back" is a goofy chorus routine sung by Healy as she encourages everyone to dance with their backs to each other. Healy also gets the more typical ballad "I'm Sorry for Myself."
"When Winter Comes" is prompted by Trudi when she admits that she misses snowy Minnesota. Russell sings about the delights of snow and ice, leading Trudi to imagine his pool as an ice rink and her gliding with a handsome partner (Stewart Reburn). "I Poured My Heart Into a Song" is the number Jimmy wrote and said was from Russell, and indeed Vallee does get to perform the charming ballad. Trudi gets one last instrumental solo, skating and spinning on the ice on her own in Minnesota as Jimmy arrives to bring her back.
Trivia: "I Poured My Heart Into a Song" was Oscar-nominated, but lost to "Over the Rainbow."
What I Don't Like: Power and Henie don't have much more chemistry here than they did in Thin Ice two years earlier. He does better and has more fun with Oliver than with her. As cute as the story is, it's also cliches of the highest order. It gets so bogged down in Trudi's romance, you really don't really get to see them filming "Girl of the North," or much of any filming at all. And while Berlin's songs are lovely, "Poured My Heart Into a Song" aside, they're far from his best.
The Big Finale - The score and cute Hollywood satire makes this one of Henie's better films. Worth checking out if you love Henie, Berlin, or musicals set in Tinseltown.
Home Media: Surprisingly, not currently on legitimate DVD in the US. I ran into a copy on YouTube with Spanish subtitles.
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