Valentine's Short Subject Special - The Valentine's Day That Almost Wasn't

Showtime, 1982

Voices of Lisa Buckley, Richard J. Schellbach, Paul Fusco, and Bob Fappiano

Directed by Paul Fusco

Music and Lyrics by Ed Bruder and Jeff Cannata

From 1981 through 1983 Paul Fusco, the creator of ALF, made a series of six holiday specials for cable featuring his unique comic puppets. We've already seen his Easter and Thanksgiving stories over the past year. For Valentine's Day, we get a mystery and action spoof that turns cupids into Bogart-style investigators and gives us a little more action than in the more character-based early specials. In fact, we begin with our first real villain from these specials, Rubella Slime (Buckley) and her brothers, as they create a brew to spread hate in the world and end Valentine's Day as we know it.

The Story: Rubella hates Valentine's Day so much, she and her brothers Bugsy (Fusco) and Weasel (Fappiano) create a hate potion to put into the Cupids' Pot of Love. They first spray it on innocent Cosmo Cupid (Schellbach) when he's giving away puppies at the pound to create a distraction. While Sam Cupid (Fusco) and his boys are dealing with Cosmo, Bugsy and Weasell are able to sneak in and put the potion in the pot. When the cupids shoot their arrows, they turn everyone mean instead of loving. Sam has to find the antidote and stops Rubella, before she and her brothers ruin Valentine's Day for everyone.

The Song and Dance: Well, you can't say this one isn't unique. You don't often see a holiday special, especially for Valentine's Day, framed as a film noir spoof. The city and above the clouds setting gives this one a different vibe from the other specials, and it's a bit more action-packed, as per the mystery thriller vibe. Buckley pretty much steals the show as the hilariously evil Rubella, who wants everyone to hate Valentine's Day because she's never gotten a real Valentine in her life.

The Numbers: "Poison Brew" is Rubella's big song and dance with her brothers early-on. We get their explanation as to why they're doing this, how they plan on doing it, and what it will do to the people on earth.

What I Don't Like: This might be the strangest thing Fusco ever did. Humphrey Bogart-imitating Cupids? Villains who act like a cross between Maleficent and Morticia Addams? A Valentine's Day story framed as a mystery? Yeah, this is pretty weird, and more action than musical. Like Fusco's other work for Showtime, it's also incredibly cheap. Some of the sets are a little bit more interesting than the ones for Easter and Thanksgiving, especially when Cosmo and Sam are in their hot air balloon, using a laser (that is obviously a spotlight) to spread love, but it still looks like something made for cable in the early 80's.

The Big Finale: If you're looking for something different (and maybe a little less romantic) this Valentine's Day, take a trip to the big city with Sam and help him stop Rubella from destroying the holiday forever.

Home Media: Easily found on DVD and streaming, including free on Tubi with commercials.

DVD

Amazon Prime

Tubi

My Tragic Valentine - Porgy and Bess (1959)

The Samuel Goldwyn Company/Columbia, 1959

Starring Sidney Poitier, Dorothy Dandridge, Sammy Davis Jr., and Pearl Bailey

Directed by Otto Preminger

Music by George Gershwin; Lyrics by Ira Gershwin

Our next star-crossed couple weren't the only ones who had a hard time staying together. This film version of the 1935 Gershwin opera was plagued with production problems from the start. For one thing, Ira Gershwin wasn't crazy about there being a film based on his brother's life work to begin with. Second, Goldwyn made two popular musicals earlier in the decade, but Porgy and Bess was a lot darker than the fluffy comedian-driven extravaganzas he usually preferred. Rouben Mamoulien was originally going to direct as he did in 1935, but fought with Goldwyn and was replaced by Preminger. Arson destroyed the sets and costumes before shooting started, and Dandridge had just ended a relationship with Preminger and wasn't comfortable working with him. With all these problems, how did the film finally come out? Let's begin with the arrival of fishermen returning to Catfish Row in Charleston, South Carolina in 1912 and find out...

The Story: Crown (Brock Peters), the town bully, gets a little too rowdy with Robbins (Joe Fluellen) after a craps game and ends up killing him. He flees, abandoning his drug-addicted girlfriend Bess (Dandridge). Porgy (Poitier), a crippled beggar who travels by a goat-drawn cart, takes her in. They fall in love with each other, but when Crown turns up at a town picnic, he does a lot more harm to Bess than stuffing her drugs bought from Sporting Life (Sammy Davis Jr). Bess turns up back at Catfish Row two days later ranting and near-unconscious. Porgy nurses her, with the help of pious Serena (Ruth Attaway) and sensible Maria (Bailey). 

During a massive hurricane, most of the residents of Catfish Row take shelter in the largest house. Not only does Crown return and vow he'll make Bess his again, but Clara (Diahann Carroll) is killed waiting for her fisherman husband who was lost in the storm. Bess and Porgy are happy to take in Clara's baby, but Crown is still determined that Bess should be his alone. Porgy finally stabs and strangles him, but when he's called by the police to identify the body, Sporting Life sees his chance to try to get Bess to come to New York with him one last time...

The Song and Dance: Terrific all-black cast knows how to handle the melodramatic story. At the least, Preminger is on more accustomed turf with a dark opera than he was with the lighter material in That Lady In Ermine ten years before. Poitier makes a wonderful Porgy, especially near the end when he realizes Bess has walked out, and Sammy Davis Jr. is relishing his turn as the deceptively charming drug peddler Sportin' Life. For all the trouble Dandridge had on the set (she ended a stormy relationship with Preminger not long before the movie began), she does well by flighty Bess. The scene with her and Crown on the island is nearly terrifying.

The Numbers: We open with the arrival of the fishermen and Clara and her baby during "Summertime." Sportin' Life and Robbins remind the crap players why "A Woman Is a Sometimes Thing." "Here Comes De Honey Man" introduces the kindly old peddler who sells honey to the locals. Porgy explains his lot with "They Pass By Singin." "The Crap Game" becomes a chorus number when Robbins and Crown end up in a choreographed fight. "Gone, Gone, Gone," Serena wails after her husband's death, because "My Man's Gone Now." The others wonder why Porgy doesn't try for something better. "I Got Plenty O' Nuthin," and that's fine by him.

The duo admit that "Bess, You Is My Woman Now" when she finally agrees to stay with him. "Oh, I Can't Sit Down" sings Maria excitedly with the chorus before the picnic. Serena may scold everyone for having fun, but the chorus points out "I Ain't Got No Shame." After all, Sportin' Life reminds them, "It Ain't Necessarily So." Bess wants to know "What You Want With Bess," but she really already has a good idea of what Crown's after. Porgy begs for Serena to pray to "Oh Doctor Jesus" when Bess is sick. Bess assures her boyfriend "I Loves You, Porgy," while Crown claims "God and Me" will get by when he finds his "Red-Headed Woman." 

"Clara, Clara" is the brief lament for the young mother lost in the storm waiting for her fisherman husband. Bess reprises "Summertime" in her memory. Sportin' Life reminds Bess "There's a Boat Dat's Leaving for New York," and this time, she might be willing to join him on it. After we hear the "Morning Sounds" of the street vendors, Porgy comes home...and wails "O Bess, Where's My Bess?" when he realizes she's gone. We end with him taking off in  his goat-drawn cart as he sings "O Lawd, I'm On My Way."

Trivia: Robert McFerrin (father of singer Bobby McFerrin) dubbed Poitier. Adele Addison dubbed Dandridge. Inez Matthews dubbed Ruth Attaway. 

The original Broadway show debuted in 1935, with Mamoulien directing. It wasn't a success, but the music was popular enough for it be revived in New York in 1942, 1953, 1976, and 2012. 

What I Don't Like: For all the success of its music, there's a reason so many black performers turned this down, and many theater critics and historians have problems with it to this day. First of all, many of the characters here can come off as stereotypical, especially some of the nastier men like Crown and Sportin' Life. Second, this is heavy going. We're not talking about one of the Gershwin's lighthearted romps from the 30's here. Four people die (admittedly two of them in the hurricane), a woman is insinuated to have been raped, and they all but shout what that "happy dust" Sportin' Life keeps giving Bess is. 

Truth be told, no matter how much Goldwyn admired the original Broadway production, he was in over his head with this one. Preminger had a point that the lavish sets and costumes are maybe a bit too lavish for a run-down fishing neighborhood in South Carolina. No wonder someone burned them. For all the size, they're also too cramped. This is more like the filmed opera it is than an actual movie. Except for the location shooting on the island, you may as well be watching this at the Met. 

The Big Finale: Problematic but fascinating, with terrific music and performances that make it worth checking out despite the dated and dark story and treatment of black culture. 

Home Media: The Gershwin estate was so disappointed with how this came out, they won't allow it to be released on legitimate home media. The only places you can find it are in washed-out, blurry copies on YouTube and the Internet Archive.

YouTube

Internet Archive

Happy Valentine's Day! - Been So Long

Netflix, 2018

Starring Michaela Coel, Arinze Kene, George MacKay, and Joe Dempsie

Directed by Tinge Krishnan

Music and Lyrics by Arthur Darvill

We celebrate the most romantic of all holidays with one of the sweetest recent musicals. This one was based on a 1998 play and apparently debuted in a West End fringe house in 2009. Netflix bought the US rights when it debuted in its single-biggest acquisition of an English movie at that point. Were they right to spend all that money on this, or should it be dumped in a bar? Let's start at a festival in Camden Town, London, as single mother Simone (Coel) navigates through the eager crowds with her wheelchair-bound daughter Mandy (Mya Lewis) and find out...

The Story: Simone is a hard worker who rarely has time for meals, let alone going out with her friend Yvonne (Ronke Adekoluejo). Yvonne finally talks her into a night out on the town, which she eventually spends playing checkers with handsome and mysterious Raymond (Kene). Raymond has his own problems. He's on parole from prison and is being stalked by the insane knife-wielding Gil (MacKay). Simone, meanwhile, is still smarting from her divorce with Kestrel (Dempsie), Mandy's father, and is afraid to open her heart again. It'll take Gil openly attacking Raymond and seeing their friends come together for the duo to finally understand the healing power of relationships.

The Song and Dance: This is such a sweet movie. Kene and Coel walk away with the movie as the lovers trying to navigate the dating waters again, and both have gorgeous voices to boot. Adekoluejo is a hoot as Simone's party-loving girlfriend Yvonne who gets the ball started by taking her out and encourages her romance, and MacKay is a genuinely scary Gil. Beautiful location shooting in the real London adds to the feeling of intimacy. It's almost more like looking in on people's lives than a typical musical. 

Favorite Number: We open with Kene performing "Love Is" as Simone wanders through a local fair with Mandy, pulling her away from sweets and ignoring all the dancers and merriment around her. "What U Sayin'" is Yvonne's big rap number as she talks Simone into going out with her. She sings "I Want a Fella" while at the bar. Raymond gets "Primus Humanus (Man of Steel)" after he meets Simone. Gil's "Smile" is a more terrifying look at why he's after Raymond. "Thunder and Gold" and "Fire" are duets for Raymond and Simone before and after their meeting on the bench in the park. "Closing Time" is the big finale as everyone, including the back up singers seen in numbers throughout the film, meet in the bar again...except Simone and Raymond, who are content to quietly walk off in each other's arms. 

What I Don't Like: If you're looking for a stronger plot or a darker take on romance, you won't get that here. This is just a sweet, simple series of love stories. It comes off more like a BBC soap opera than a movie at times. To be honest, not a whole lot happens besides the musical numbers until Gil attacks Raymond near the end. It's slow-moving and can be wordy, especially in the second half when the romances get more melodramatic.

The Big Finale: This charming romance is one of the better musical offerings currently on Netflix. Give it a whirl this Valentine's Day or when you feel the need for a little love in your life.

Home Media: It's a Netflix exclusive at the moment. 

Netflix

My Sweet Valentine - Sepia Cinderella

Herald Pictures, 1947

Starring Billy Daniels, Sheila Guyse, Tondeleyo, and Jack Carter

Directed by Arthur H. Leonard

Music and Lyrics by various

Let's celebrate Valentine's Day this year with one of the most charming of all "race films." These independent B flicks were made from the 20's through the late 40's for black audiences in smaller, segregated houses. They didn't have the resources of even the "Poverty Row" studios in the era, but what they lacked in largess, they often made up for in vitality...and that's true of this year's Valentine's Day romance. How does the fairy tale look as the story of an up-and-coming songwriter and the girl who truly loves him? Let's start at the boarding house where Barbara (Guyse) and Bob (Daniels) live and find out...

The Story: Barbara helps Bob write what becomes a hit song, "Cinderella." It becomes a hit, but the success goes to Bob's head and he abandons his friends and seldom comes home to the boarding house. He falls for the wiles of devious rich club owner Vivian (Tondeleyo), who sets him up in his own club and milks his popularity for all its worth. Not only does this upset Barbara, but Vivian's fiancee Ralph (Jack Carter) isn't happy, either. When it seems the public's losing interest in Bob, his press agent (Fred Gordon) sets up a contest where he'll choose a woman's shoe out from the dozens entered, then sing with her. Barbara and the residents of the boarding house are determined that she should be the one he chooses...and that he should realize how much she really means to him.

The Song and Dance: "Adorable" isn't a word that comes up often in B-musicals with any kind of cast, but this is just so sweet. Guyes is so lovely and charming, one wonders how Bob can ignore her for so long, and Tondeleyo has just as much fun seducing him. Carter gets a few good moments as her scorned lover mid-way through the film, including a club number of his own. Look for a now-grown Freddie Bartholmew as himself in the audience near the end of the movie. There are some decent numbers, too, including the "Cinderella" song that causes all the ruckus. It's also not as obviously cheap - some of the ladies' gowns are lovely

Favorite Number: "Cinderella" turns up four times, starting with when Bob and Barbara write it in the beginning. Bob sings it at least twice, once in his own "Cinderella Club," while Barbara gets to solo on it near the end. We kick off with Bob's band really tearing into a jiving instrumental routine. They're so good, they get a major ovation from Barbara and Mama Keyes (Hilda Offley). Bob's other big number at the nightclub is the more upbeat "Ring Around My Rosie." Deek Watson and the Brown Dots get two numbers at the contest later, wondering "Is It Right?" and singing about "Long Legged Lizzie." Even the press agent gets to lay into "Oh Ho, It's a Lovely Day." 

Trivia: Bartholmew went to World War II when his voice changed and ended his career. He attempted a comeback on TV and in smaller movies in the late 40's and early 50's, but it never stuck, and he finally gave up acting for television directing and producing in 1952. 

Billy Daniels' first movie. He'd have a real-life hit a year later with his rendition of "That Old Black Magic."

Look fast for Sidney Poitier as an extra. 

What I Don't Like: The cliches fall hard and fast here. Bob's one of the most naive, oblivious idiots you've ever seen, and not just because he fell so hard for the extremely obvious Vivian. He's an easy mark for pretty much everyone, from the fast-talking press agent to the jealous Ralph. While the musical numbers are inserted less awkwardly than in Juke Joint, they're still kind of shoehorned in. Despite them constantly playing the "Cinderella" song, the story doesn't feel particularly "Cinderella" until the last ten minutes or so when they hold that contest. Also, the scene where a black man is obviously playing a stereotypical Chinese being conned by a phony psychic may not sit well with some folks today. 

The Big Finale: Charming and sweet, this is a lovely little romance for Valentine's Day and when you're looking for something lower-key. 

Home Media: It's in the public domain, so it's pretty easy to find anywhere. It can often be found streaming for free.

DVD - Harlem Double Feature - Dirty Gertie From Harlem USA/Sepia Cinderella

Tubi

Valentine's Short Subject Special - The Bernstein Bears' Comic Valentine and Winnie the Pooh: A Valentine for You

Let's kick off the season of romance with two "bear-y" good specials from the 80's and 90's. These animated shorts on the funny side of love, featuring some of literature's favorite bears, will melt your heart during this long winter. 

The Bernstein Bears' Comic Valentine

NBC, 1982

Voices of Ron McLarty, Pat Lysinger, Knowl Johnson, and Gabriela Glatzer

Directed by Mordecai Gerstein and Al Kouzel

Music by Elliot Lawrence; Lyrics by Stan Bernstein

The Story: Sister Bear (Glatzer) loves love, and she's a huge fan of Valentine's Day. Brother's (Johnson) only interest in February is hockey season. The Bear Country Cousins are going up against their rivals the Beartown Bullies. He tries to concentrate and practice, but it's hard with someone leaving him mysterious valentines signed "Honey Bear," and seeing the lovely Charlene (Glatzer) everywhere. Meanwhile, Papa Bear (McLarty) wants to show the depths of his feelings for Mama (Lysinger), but as usual, Mama reminds him that simple gestures are better than all the grand statements in the world. 

The Animation: Not the flashiest, but that's not to be expected of a TV special from this time period. The characters can be a little stiff, but the animation does at least somewhat resemble the characters in the books, which is probably all that matters for this franchise. 

The Song and Dance: All of the Bernstein Bears specials have their fun moments, this one included. It's hilarious to see Brother claim he's not interested in love, then moon over Charlene. Papa and Mama's roles are somewhat downplayed compared to the other specials, but Papa gets a few good gags in his attempts to carve mountains to show how much he loves his wife. I love whom the massive mystery goalie on the Bullies turns out to be, too!

Favorite Number: We open with the Bear Family describing what they do during the seasons "In Bear Country." "Love Is," Mama's sprightly number explaining how love is a lot simpler and more intimate than carving up mountains, is also heard under the closing credits. Brother derides Valentine's Day as "All That Mush," even as his little sibling skates heart rings around him. 

What I Don't Like: As mentioned, I sort of wish Mama and Papa had more to do. Their roles are somewhat downplayed compared to some of the other specials and the early books these are inspired by. 

The Big Finale: If you or your kids are fans of the earlier Bears books or the cartoon series, you'll want to check out this adorably funny hymn to love in all its forms. 

Home Media: Currently on DVD bundled with a few episodes of the 1980's TV series. 

DVD - The Bernstein Bears: Kindness, Caring, and Sharing

Winnie the Pooh: A Valentine For You

Disney/ABC, 1999

Voices of Jim Cummings, Paul Winchell, John Fielder, and Ken Sansom

Directed by Keith Ingham

Music by Micheal Silversher; Lyrics by Patty Silversher

The Story: Pooh (Cummings) and his friends are shocked when they find Christopher Robin (Brady Bluhm) writing a valentine for a girl named Winifred. Owl convinces them he's been bitten by the "Smitten" bug, and the only way to undo it is to find another one to bite him again. They all chase after what they think is a "Smitten" and get lost, only for its glow to lead them back to each other and to Christopher Robin. Pooh sees how happy the boy is and can't bring himself to unleash it on him...but Christopher reminds him that there's always room for all kinds of friends, old and new.

The Animation: While it does move slightly better than Comic Valentine, it's still nothing flashy. Once again, all this needs to do is somewhat resemble the artwork in the books and move well enough to get the job done. 

The Song and Dance: The last Pooh holiday special on TV to date is sweet and charming, and maybe even a tad dark compared to some of the other specials. The look on Pooh's face in the end when he releases the "Smitten" after he thinks he's lost his best friend is heartbreaking. On the other hand, we get the very funny search for the "Smitten," and this is one of only two holiday specials to give Owl a major role. 

Favorite Number: Owl warns Pooh and his pals what happens when "The Smitten Bites," in a sequence reminiscent of the later "Backson" number in the 2011 Winnie the Pooh. Christopher Robin ends the show with a lovely ballad explaining how there are "Places In the Heart" for all friends, old and new.

Trivia: The last time Paul Winchell voiced Tigger. 

What I Don't Like: This time, we have Owl and are missing Kanga and Roo. They're only seen as stuffed animals in the opening. As mentioned, this is neither the first, nor the last time Pooh and his friends went on an adventure when they thought something took Christopher Robin away from them. This seems to have been somewhat inspired by Pooh's Grand Adventure, where they were worried about the boy being trapped in "skull," and would crop up again in Winnie the Pooh. 

The Big Finale: Charming and adorable, this is worth checking out on Valentine's Day for younger children and Pooh fans.

Home Media: To date, this is the only Pooh holiday special to be available on DVD and streaming in its original half-hour format, without a direct-to-home media movie surrounding it (including its release on Disney Plus). The DVD is packaged with two additional New Adventures of Winnie the Pooh shorts, "Un-Valentine's Day" and "The Three Little Piglets." 

DVD - Special Edition

Disney Plus

My Animated Valentine - A Monster In Paris

EuropaCorp, 2011

Voices of Adam Goldberg, Vanessa Paradis, Danny Huston, and Sean Lennon

Directed by Bibo Bergeron

Music and Lyrics by various

We're taking another Valentine's Day trip to romantic Paris, this time in animation. This time, we're staying in the city and jumping back twenty years or so to January 1910. How does this unique French fairy tale look on this side of the Atlantic? Let's go to the movies with projectionist Emile Petit (Jay Harrington) and find out...

The Story: In January 1910, torrential rains overflowed the banks of the Seine River, causing catastrophic flooding in Paris. Emile is more interested in his camera and Maud (Madeline Zima), the ticket taker at the movie theater. His best friend is Raoul (Goldberg), who drives a van he calls "Caroline" that runs on sunflower oil. One evening, Raoul, and Emile bring a deliver to the Professor at the Paris Botanical Gardens. Raoul discovers one mixture that gives the Professor's monkey Charles the voice of an opera singer, and a less stable compound that makes a sunflower grow ten times its size. The sunflower falls over, causing the chemicals to fall and explode. Emile sees a huge creature escape in the destruction.

Singer Lucille (Paradis) discovers the creature out back behind The Rare Bird cabaret where she's the star attraction. Turns out it's a flea that grew to massive size in the blast, along with picking up a beautiful singing voice. She dresses it and brings it onstage, where it's an instant success. Trouble is, its picture was in the papers after the explosion. Police Commissioner Victor Maynott (Huston) is determined to bring this "monster" to justice...but as Lucille points out, the flea isn't the only monster on the soggy streets of Paris.

The Animation: I love the historical details here. They get a lot of things right, from the women's tight dresses to the men's derby hats and Emile's cameras. Even the flea looks fairly accurate to real life. It's not cute, and it's not meant to be. It's actually pretty scary-looking, until it gets onstage with Lucille, where the jagged lines are more elegant than frightening.

The Song and Dance: A charming French confection with a few dark points and an interesting story. I'm especially fond of the setting here. I have to admit, I'd never heard of the damaging Paris floods in 1910 until I saw this film. It makes a unique setting for this sweet story. Though Wikipedia says it's based on The Phantom of the Opera, it has a lot more in common with another French "lady and monster" tale, "Beauty and the Beast." Huston in particular is having a great time as the dastardly villain.

Favorite Number: We're introduced to Lucille and her angel routine at The Rare Bird in the lovely "La Seine and I." She and Lennon reprise the number to even greater effect when the flea finally gets onstage...and the two stop the show cold. "Papa Paris" is the cute little number with the parasol and the band Paradis performs at the opening of the Montmartre Funicular (a trolley that takes people up and down a steep hill), just before Maynott announces he's running for Mayor.

Trivia: Which actually would have been impossible in 1910. The office of Mayor of Paris was abolished in 1871 and wouldn't exist again until 1977.

Vanessa Paradis played Lucille in the French and English versions.

What I Don't Like: It's occasionally pretty obvious this had a lower budget than your average Disney or Dreamworks movie, especially in the iffy water effects when the sunflower's bursting out. For all the unique setting, the story is a strange blend of the cliched (the two human romances, the villain chasing the monster who turns out to have less-than-wonderful motives) and the truly bizarre (the giant sunflowers and a giant flea singing onstage). 

The Big Finale: If you have older kids who love historical action tales or are looking for a unique romance, this odd animated fantasy is worth swimming the flooded Seine for at least once.

Home Media: Out of print on DVD. Streaming is likely your best bet on this side of the Atlantic. Pluto TV currently has it for free.

DVD

Pluto TV On Demand

My Funny Valentine - Love Me Tonight

Paramount, 1932
Starring Jeanette MacDonald, Maurice Chevalier, Myrna Loy, and Charlie Ruggles
Directed by Rouben Mamoulien
Music by Richard Rodgers; Lyrics by Lorenz Hart

After I reviewed the tragic romance Carmen Jones for Valentine's Day last year, I figured this year's entry called for something much lighter. Rouben Mamoulien's frothy romantic comedy about a princess who falls for a tailor is considered by many critics to be one of the finest musicals of the 30's, if not of all time. Does it deserve those accolades? Let's begin the morning in Paris with the tailor Maurice (Chevalier) and the rhythmic sounds of the city and find out...

The Story: Maurice (Chevalier), tailor from Paris, travels to a country chateau to collect outstanding debts from the Viacomte de Vareze (Ruggles) for tailoring work. On the way, he passes the lovely Princess Jeanette (MacDonald), the Viacomte's niece. Jeanette is a young widow who only lives with her family because there are no eligible men of her station and rank her age in the area. He falls for her the moment he almost knocks her off the road, but she's not nearly so interested in him.

She's a lot more intrigued when the Viacomte claims he's a baron and a friend of his. Now the whole household is beholden to his charms, including the head of the family Duc d'Artelines (C. Aubrey Smith), man-crazy Valentine (Loy), and three aunts who spent most of the movie working on a tapestry. He rescues a fox from a hunt, winning over even Jeanette with his boyish ways. She's not as happy when she finally learns who he really is...but when she realizes how she feels, no matter who he is, she discovers that a modern princess can make her own happy ending.

The Song and Dance: Every book I've read about movie musicals praised this to the skies, calling it one of the best and most cinematic musicals ever made. For once, they were entirely right. Mamoulien sought to break out of the mold of static early musicals by bringing the songs off the stage and into real life. Everything makes music in the opening "The Song of Paree" sequence, taking us from the sounds of the city to Maurice's shop. "There's career-best performances from just about everyone, including Maurice and Jeanette as the lovers; Loy is a riot as Valentine, who is desperate for any kind of male companionship that isn't her family. Rodgers and Hart's songs are probably their best work in Hollywood. "Lover" and "Love Me Tonight" in particular can be heard in the background of many a Paramount movie to this day.

Favorite Number: Every number in this movie is a delight, but "Isn't It Romantic" is a major stand-out. It starts out with Maurice singing about his idea of love in his shop...and we follow the song as it carries from the city to a train to soldiers to the country and Jeanette, who gives a much more traditionally romantic view. It's one of the most exhilarating use of editing in any film musical. Chevalier has a blast with his patter number "Mimi" at the party...and it's just as cute to see various members of the family sing it afterwards in their own way. MacDonald and Chevalier duet on the lovely title song in the garden during the party, and Maurice is sent away to a montage of servants and aristocrats alike whispering that "The Son of a Gun Is Nothing But a Tailor."

Trivia: Censors cut several bits after the movie was re-released in the mid-30's. Among the losses were a few ribald comments from Valentine, Loy's rendition of "Mimi" (supposedly, her breast could be seen through her sheer nightgown) with the rest of the family, and the doctor's number as he examines Jeanette, "A Woman Needs Something Like That." Alas, a full, uncut version of the film has yet to be found.

What I Don't Like: Obviously, if you're not a fan of frothy romantic comedy or the two stars, this won't be your glass of French champagne. It's also not for dance nuts. Here, the cameras and editing do the dancing.

The Big Finale: If any movie musical deserves to be better-known, it's this one. If you love romantic comedy, the two stars, or Mamoulien's other work, you owe to yourself to check this one out.

Home Media: While the movie is currently available through the made-to-order Universal Vault collection, the original Kino International DVD I have is neither expensive,  nor difficult to find.

DVD - Universal Vault
DVD - Kino International

My Tragic Valentine - Carmen Jones

20th Century Fox, 1954
Starring Dorothy Dandridge, Harry Belafonte, Pearl Bailey, and Olga James
Directed by Otto Preminger
Music by Georges Bizet; Lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II

Here's another adaptation of a Broadway musical with an all-black cast from the 1940's. This time, we're moving to the world of opera for one of the more unique movie musicals out there. Oscar Hammerstein turned Carmen, the tale of a gypsy cigarette factory worker who seduces a Spanish soldier, into the tale of a parachute factory worker who seduces an African-American soldier. Let's head to that parachute factory in North Carolina to see if this tragic romance is a knockout in the first round, or if should be booted out of the ring.

The Story: Corporal Joe (Belafonte) is assigned by his superior Sergeant Brown (Brock Peters) to take parachute factory worker Carmen Jones (Dandridge) to the police after she's arrested for fighting with a co-worker. That's the last thing Joe wants to do. He was supposed to have leave with his girl Cindy Lou (James). Carmen keeps trying to flirt, and Joe keeps saying no, until their car ends up in the water, and she manages to get him to her grandma's house. They do make love, but Carmen can't handle being attached to one man and takes off.

After spending time in the stockade, Joe is released and goes looking for Carmen again. He finds her at a nightclub in Louisiana, avoiding the advances of prize fighter Husky Miller (Joe Adams). Joe tells Carmen that he's due for flight school. Angry, she leaves with Sergeant Brown. Joe's not having any of that and beats him. Trying to avoid being arrested for hurting an officer, he and Carmen take off for Chicago. Carmen tries to get a loan from Husky, but ends up playing cards with him and her friends Frankie (Bailey) and Myrt (Diahnn Carroll). Joe's determined to get his girl back by any means necessary...including threatening her and her lover. Carmen's not interested, but Joe won't take no for an answer.

The Song and Dance: Two powerhouse performances in the lead roles anchor this melodramatic love story. Dandridge became the first African-American to be nominated for a Best Actress Oscar, and its easy to see why here. Her sexuality burns on the screen like a smoldering flame, capable of engulfing everything in her path. Belafonte's equally raw sexuality is more of a surprise, especially if you're like me and you know him better as a laid-back folk singer. The color cinematography (made in the widescreen Cinemascope process) and brilliant costumes showcase the sweltering South and gritty Chicago of World War II in all their rainbow glory.

Favorite Number: Despite the awkward lyrics, Pearl Bailey lays into "Beat Dat Rhythm On the Drum" with relish, while Dandridge slinks through "Dat's Love" (aka the famous "Habanera" aria). Dandridge joins Bailey, Carroll, and Roy Glenn for "Whizzin' Away Down De Track," while Adams leads the chorus in the other famous aria from Carmen, "Stand Up and Fight" (The Toredor Song).

Trivia: This was successfully revived off-Broadway last year, with Anika Noni Rose of Dreamgirls and The Princess and the Frog as Carmen.

What I Don't Like: While it feels a little less stereotyped than Cabin In the Sky, it's still a bit dated. Hammerstein's lyrics occasionally try too hard to sound African-American, especially in "Rhythm on the Drum." The casual dialogue often sounds odd with the classical songs. Everyone was dubbed - even those like Carroll, Dandridge, and Belafonte who were fine singers in their own right. (At least they not only hired black opera singers to dub them, but mentioned them in the credits - and Dandridge's dubber, Marilyn Horne, went on to become an opera star in her own right.)

The Big Finale: If you love opera, dark romances, Preminger's other work, or anyone in the cast, this unusual operatic tale is worth checking out.

Home Media: As one of the more interesting 20th Century Fox musicals featuring several popular singers, this is easy to find in most formats, usually for under 10 dollars.

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