One Heavenly Night

I was just two years old when this was made - an early talker (me, not the film!!). Tonight, I was in a mood for lighthearted escapism, and this suited my mood down to the ground. A truly charming bit of fairy tale froth. An operetta by any other name. Not one little hint of nastiness or sordidness.

Oh my, why to they not make films like this now

This original operetta was a flop in 1930 and still is, despite good production values (no surprise, with Goldwyn as producer) a shimmering leading lady (Evelyn Laye) and a fun supporting turn by Lilyan Tashman. The songs by Clifford Grey, Herb Nacio Brown, Edward Eliscu and Bruno Granichstaedten are mildly pleasant, nothing more, and a musical with a boring book (by Sidney Howard, of all people!) needs superior songs to float, and these second- rate numbers don't help. Finally the enterprise sinks completely during long and tiresome slapstick routines performed by Leon Errol. Sometimes the viewer wonders whether this production was meant to be a conventional operetta or a variety show. John Boles as the romantic lead exudes more energy than in his straight dramatic roles and sings well, but not often enough to put a dent in the tedium. Students of cultural history will find this film interesting as an example of why screen musicals became unpopular for a time. It's too bad Laye had to be in a turkey for her American sound film debut. She had everything it took to be a major player.

... but the rest of the film and the music? Not so much. Ultimately the entirety is less than the sum of its parts. This was one of those operattas that made musicals go out of fashion in 1930-1931 for a couple of years and put Samuel Goldwyn off of making musicals for decades, other than his always successful Eddie Cantor musicals of that early sound era.

A cabaret singer, Fritzi (Lilyan Tashman), is run out of town because of all of the wildness she causes. She is supposed to be exiled as a "guest" of the magistrate, but instead convinces flower girl Lilli to take her place, since nobody where she is going knows what she looks like. Meanwhile, the magistrate (John Boles as Count Mirko Tibor) is licking his chops at having sexually frisky Fritzi in his house for an extended period. Now Lilli just wants an opportunity to be what she is not - Fritzi. How will she react when the count starts chasing her around the furniture expecting her not to run? Watch and find out.

The casting here did work, John Boles was a great voice and a great presence in these early sound musicals. Lilyan Tashman was the older classier version of Jean Harlow, if you can compare her to anybody. She always has a grin on her face like she knows a secret nobody else suspects, and she is just perfect for this part where she never loses her poise and is always ready with a wise crack. Evelyn Laye was a great singer and plays her part as the virgin trying to play a vamp quite well. Leon Errol plays Lilli's uncle and the comic relief. The situation and the characters sound great on paper, but ultimately it is just boring. There are extended scenes that go nowhere, and somehow they are trying to use Leon Errol to pad the plot with scenes that look like stuff that would be better suited to the Three Stooges - any of them - than Errol.

Watch it for the great number where Laye and Boles sing the title song which is truly beautiful, for the humorous scene where the two sing to each other in a pounding rainstorm, and for what passed for law and order in Eastern Europe at the time...Why is it Fritzi's problem that a riot broke out among a bunch of men over her charms? Why are they not in jail? If Fritzi was under arrest, how did she wind up legitimately sentenced without some kind of chain of custody where one person can't easily replace another? You can ponder these questions but, alas, no answers are ever given.

Evelyn Laye portrays Lilli, a simple virtuous girl, who masquerades as Fritzi (portrayed by Lilyan Tashman), the notorious showgirl when the later is ordered out of town by the chief of police. Count Mirko (played by the wooden John Boles doing his best Al Gore imitation) comes to town just to make love to Fritzi and is nonplused to find that she does not readily surrender her charms to him. Lilli does her best to carry off the masquerade without losing her virtue to the Count. Leon Errol performs a "funny" drunk routine that he must have brought with him from vaudeville and which has absolutely nothing to do with the rest of the film. To virtually no one's surprise, the real Fritzi returns while Lilli's virtue is still intact, Count Mirko and Lilli fall in love, and they all live happily ever after. Anna Karenina this ain't, but it can be a pleasant evening's diversion if your expectations aren't too high.

ONE HEAVENLY NIGHT (United Artists, 1930), directed by George Fitzmaurice, was producer Samuel Goldwyn's contribution to the early talkie operettas. Following the pattern of MGM's Grace Moore, Warner Brothers' Bernice Claire or Vivienne Segal, or Jeanette MacDonald of Paramount, Goldwyn went on to introduce to the American screen the singing British entertainer by the name of Evelyn Laye (1900-1995). Appearing as her male co-star is the singing talent of John Boles (1987-1969), whose earlier contribution to the movie musical consisted those of THE DESERT SONG (Warners, 1929), RIO RITA (RKO, 1929), CAPTAIN OF THE GUARD (Universal, 1930), and several others before musicals of any way, shape or form became box-office disappointments. Though produced in 1930, and released in early January 1931, ONE HEAVENLY NIGHT came late into the cycle to be considered a success.

Set in Hungary, the story opens at the Cafe Budapest where Fritzi Yves (billed Fritzi Yajos) (Lilyan Tashman) entertains with her rendition of a naughty song. Being labeled "The Toast of Budapest," Fritzi, quite popular with the male population, ignores a handsome young soldier for her middle-aged guest, Baron Zagen (Lionel Bellmore). A fight ensues leading to a riot, police raid and Fritzi's arrest. Remaining behind is Lilli (Evelyn Laye), a flower girl at the cabaret who admires Fritzi's carefree ways. Upon her release, Fritzi is sentenced by the Prefect of Police to spend six months where she is to rest in the country chaperoned by some local magistrate of Zuppa. Before leaving, Fritzi visits with Lilli and talks her into masquerading as herself while she remains behind with Baron Zagen. Accompanied by Otto (Leon Errol), her guardian, Lillie, posing as Fritzi, spends her time in a villa which happens to be near the estate of Count Mirko Tibor (John Boles), the magistrate and ladies' man who very much wants to meet this notorious "worst woman in Budapest." He finally does after her horse she's riding on happens to cross over the boundaries onto his estate. Getting acquainted with him at his dinner gathering, with his manservant, Janos (Hugh Cameron) entertaining with Otto elsewhere, Mirko, who has kept his identity secret, finds it strange how this notorious "Fritzi" doesn't appear to be what her reputation describes. Also in the cast are Marion Lord (Liska); George Bickel (Papa Lorenc); Henry Kolker (The Prefect of Police); and Luis Alberni (The Violinist).

Songs featured include: "I Belong to Everybody, Everybody" (sung by Lilyan Tashman); "Along The Road of Dreams" (sung by Evelyn Laye); "My Heart is Beating" (sung by Evelyn Laye and John Boles); "The Goodnight Serenade" (sung by Laye, Boles and male chorus); and "Heavenly Night (When Evening is Near)" (sung by Boles and Laye). Although these tunes are forgettable, only "My Heart is Beating" stands out as the film's best song. With the song interludes being few and far between, and this being centered as Evelyn Laye's movie, it is Leon Errol who gets most of the attention with his comedy antics. Assisted by Hugh Cameron, amusements include one where they try to fix a Swizzle drink of rum through the instructions of a air-flipping pages book; and the art collection sequence where Cameron attempts to keep the careless Errol from breaking an assortment of china and glassware. Errol gets about two minutes to himself, sans any underscoring, trying in vain to place a stamp onto an envelope to mail. Though hilarious by 1931 standards, these comedy moments may seem long and drawn-out to contemporary viewers. Evelyn Laye is acceptable in her role, quite pretty, singing pleasingly and looking almost like Joan Bennett in her blondish headdress at times. Sadly her American movie career was short-lived. After returning to Hollywood for THE NIGHT IS YOUNG (Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, 1934) singing opposite Ramon Novarro, it was realized she was better off appearing in British stage revues and music halls instead. As much as John Boles is a very good singer, he would soon abandon his vocalization for work in dramatic roles as STELLA DALLAS (1937) starring Barbara Stanwyck.

For Samuel Goldwyn's only attempt in operetta, ONE HEAVENLY NIGHT gets by on its own merits during much of its 82 minutes. With limited television broadcasts on New York City's WPIX, Channel 11 (1971-1975), ONE HEAVENLY NIGHT, which had a limited video cassette release but to date, no DVD, did have some brief cable television broadcasts such as on Wometco Home Theater and Showtime (1986), Nostalgia Television (1990s) and Turner Classic Movies TCM premiere: November 13, 2008). Virtually forgotten, possibly due to its unfamiliar cast names, namely Evelyn Laye, ONE HEAVENLY NIGHT is an agreeable little piece of early sound operetta from Hollywood's bygone era. (***)