aberlour36

This is, arguably, the worst of the major Ava Gardner films. Yes, she is gorgeous. But that can wear thin over time, especially after the corny and predictable movie ending.

In this turkey, Robert Walker has to pretend that he's Eddie Bracken (which surely embarrassed him). Olga San Juan plays the Jane Powell (golly, gee) part. Dick Haymes plays a sort of dim sidekick (!), and Eve Arden plays Helen Broderick (and a host of other wise-cracking female semi-comedians). Yes, the film contains a major popular song, "Speak Low." But check out the other, entirely forgettable, pieces. Dick Haymes sings very well, of course, and so does the uncredited vocalist dubbing for Ava.

The sets are cheap, the script is filled with clichés and failed humor, and Tom Conway looks as though he has been battling with liquor (as indeed he was). In short, if you want to see Ava in her prime, buy a photo and stay well clear of this movie.

To get another Powell movie, I had to purchase this film, which is not in the Maltin guide. I've long been a James Mason film, and have admired Helen Mirrin's many appearances in more recent years on PBS and in such excellent films as "When the Whales Came." I was stunned to see before me a certified turkey.

The whole point of the movie, it appears, was to show 23-year-old Mirrin in the buff. It takes an hour to get to that point, and when it arrives it's quite embarrassing. Ms. Mirrin was one of that rare species of starlets who looked better in clothes than without them. And so she prances about and swims and....but what is a film like this doing in 1969? A decade earlier it might have seemed oh-so-exciting, but not smack in the middle of a deluge of post-censorship porn and near porn flicks.

The Australian scenery is nice and well photographed. Mason knows how to act. And that's it! The script is particularly awful. And wait until you see the villain grandma. Perhaps this will become a cult classic. It's certainly bad enough.

This little heralded musical comedy is Deanna Durbin's best film and is arguably the finest film of its kind ever produced by Universal studio. It is a gem from start to finish, featuring first-rate acting by Durbin, Cummings, and Laughton (who comes close to stealing the entire movie), good music, and an excellent script. One thinks of what Durbin might have made had she worked for MGM. Still, even though Universal was part of "poverty row," the movie enjoyed a decent budget, providing sets and outdoor scenes of a first class quality. Deanna was only 20, and her youth and exuberant singing and piano playing reach heights rarely seen on the screen. You do not want to miss this one. These days it is usually encountered as part of the Deanna Durbin "Sweetheart Pack," which is well worth the money.