Lição de Amor

My wife absolutely loves "Gigi" (1958). I don't exactly know why, but I just can't warm to it at all. At all. I think a lot of it is the hokiness of the plot, but some of the problem may be Maurice Chevalier. Just never could warm to his character in film. Well, last night was somewhat different. I have a DVD of "The Way to Love" (1933), and so I decided at nearly midnight to put it in and see about it. Starring Maurice Chevalier, Ann Dvorak, Edward Everett Horton, Minna Gombell (almost doing a perfect Una Merkel), and others, the minor cast is equally fabulous, from John Miljan, Sidney Toler, Grace Bradley, George Regas, Douglass Dumbrille, and still many more. The show can't help but please a Pre-Code, early 30s movie lover. Chevalier is genuinely charming as can be. Edward Everett Horton is wonderful to watch, as always, and he isn't in the least over-the-top as he sometimes can be with his three-look-oh-yeah-what? turn around look he gives in every movie he ever made. This also has a couple of musical numbers that actually are fun, Chevalier showing what made him famous, from his flair for body language with a song to putting it across no matter the subject matter, no matter the words. These are pretty good. Now - what made the movie, though, was Ann Dvorak. She is a fabulous actress. She's a solemn, glum, orphan-raised late teen in the film who's harrassed horribly by her guardian, carnival knife-thrower, George Regas. He's equally stupendous in his nasty part. You really hope something happens to him. Well... Plot is silly and outrageously implausible. The main characters' characters are implausible as all get out. But, you know what? That's exactly what makes this film tick. A wonderful way to introduce yourself to Chevalier. Or to Dvorak. She was a great actress who wasn't given her due. But she took what she got and made more of it than what she got or what anybody thought could be made of it. Decent career for a very, very intelligent actress. Fascinating life, too.

Recommended highly if you're looking for just an hour and a half of sheer non-sensical musical entertainment with a lot of redeeming value attached.

Terrible title, by the way. Much better show than the title could ever hint!

Maurice Chevalier is a carefree guy who works in Edward Everett Horton's shop, where they mock up excuses for married people who step out. Chevalier's great ambition it to be a tour guide. One day he rescues Ann Dvorak from her knife-throwing guardian and takes her to his rooftop refuge, which he shares with Minna Gombell and Arthur Pierson.

One ensemble song at the beginning. One chorus by Chevalier at the end. This appears to be pretty much the sum total of the music, and the comedy is carried by Horton, and Arthur Housman playing one of his patented drunks. It's pretty clear that this was a stinker before it was finished; Sylvia Sidney walked out, and Carole Lombard refused the part. Cinematographer Charles Lang shoots Paramount;s Parisian set from a wide variety of angles, and there are lots of fine character actors in the cast list, but director Norman Taurog is no Lubitsch.

Maurice Chevalier wound up his career at Paramount with The Way To Love. According to the Citadel film series book, The Films of Maurice Chevalier, he was busy negotiating his contract renewal while making this film. In the case of the film he did it twice over.

The Way To Love was a hard luck picture from the start. The first leading lady, Sylvia Sydney feigned illness and walked off the picture. Carole Lombard balked at being her replacement. Paramount borrowed Ann Dvorak from Warner Brothers and not only her scenes, but others had to be redone as supporting cast members were now into other commitments. Scenes were done twice and more.

What came out was a film that if it weren't for the French location, Bing Crosby would have been perfect for the part. Nevertheless Chevalier fit the role fine as this carefree gentleman whose sole ambition in life is to become a Parisian tour guide so he can be paid while telling tourists about his beloved Paris. In the meantime Maurice pays the rent by just wearing a sandwich sign board and walks up and down the street advertising Edward Everett Horton as a fake psychologist guaranteed to solve your problems. Horton liked Chevalier as is, but his wife Minna Gombell and daughter Nydia Westman see him as a prospective son-in-law.

So those two aren't happy after Maurice saves Ann Dvorak from her jealous guardian George Regas. Dvorak is the target for Regas in their carnival knife throwing act and he's the jealous sort.

The songs for The Way To Love were written by Arthur Johnston and Sam Coslow who also wrote for several of Crosby's films in the Thirties. Maurice does fine with them, but they might have become hits if Crosby introduced him, they suit his style far better.

As for Paramount, they lost Chevalier's services when they wouldn't guarantee to give him films with Mae West, Marlene Dietrich, or Carole Lombard in his future. He's quoted as saying he would have re-signed with Paramount if they had. As it was Chevalier's next film was for MGM, The Merry Widow.

The Way To Love is not a bad film, but a far cry from some of the classic items Chevalier did with Ernst Lubitsch or Rouben Mamoulian during his heyday at Paramount.

"The Way to Love" is a comedy romance and drama set in 1933 Paris. Francois is a photographer, clerk and all around helper for professor Bibi in his store. He longs to be a professional tour guide and wear the snappy uniform of the top Parisian guides. When not at Bibi's, he haunts the guide company for a job.

Francois would focus his services not on the dull museums or places of history, but on the romantic alure of gay Paree. At night time, he shares makeshift rooms with other carefree souls atop a building that is managed by Pierre. They have a communal evening dinner together. Each contributes to the repast in his or her own way. Francois provides the meat and vegetables.

But, the Bohemian community changes when Francois rescues Madeleine from a mean carnival knife-thrower. She is his ward but runs away from the nasty Marco. Madeleine creates sparks or romance among more than one member of Francois' little world.

All of the cast are good in this Paramount picture. Maurice Chevalier and Ann Dvorak are the leads, with Edward Everett Horton as Prof. Gaston Bibi and Sidney Toler as Pierre. The film has a poetic opening that was style used once in a while in Hollywood at the time. The film had its problems with casting and it isn't among the best of Chevalier or any of the cast. But, it's a somewhat different story and not a bad picture.

It's interesting to note that this was smack dab in the middle of the world-wide Great Depression, but there seems to be no sign of it in the Paris of this film, especially with all the tourists still traveling and needing tour guides.