Romantic Riviera

Romantic Riviera (1953)

** (out of 4)

Weaker entry in MGM's TravelTalks series goes to a tourist favorite but the film really doesn't show off the highlights. We get to visit such cities as Nice, Monte Carlo and of course Cannes but it seems as if FitzPatrick doesn't want to give out too much good stuff. We get a couple mentions of people eating outside, which really wasn't necessary and we also get to visit a peddlar's mall where people bargain to get items at a lower price. The casino in Cannes would have been an interesting thing if we had gotten to see more of it and we also get stories of pirates burning down Nice. I've seen dozens of these shorts and to me this here is one of the lesser ones even though we do get some nice eye candy. The print shown on TCM was in pretty bad shape so the colors are extremely faded so we don't get to take advantage of the Technicolor.

James A.Fitzpatrick sends the Technicolor cameras under the supervision of cinematographer Howard Nelson to the Riviera -- or, as he says "Ree-vee-era." while Leslie Kirk tootles along on the pipe organ. Or maybe it's a steam calliope.

Fitzpatrick seems to have fallen back into his old, bad habits, of shouting out his sesquipedalian almanac facts. Perhaps he's trying to be heard over the pipe organ. We also get a look at people playing boules, and what Fitzpatrick calls "the most exciting sport in France": bicycle racing. Apparently tiddly-winks has been banned because of the heart attacks it induces.

The images in this entry in the Traveltalks series obviously was quite lovely, but the copy that plays on Turner Classic Movies is very fuzzy.

This TravelTalks episode starts in the small seaside port of Villefranche in the French Riviera. They go to tourist spots Nice and Cannes. They end up in the tiny village of Saint Paul.

James A. FitzPatrick says Riviera in a way that makes it sound like sarcasm. It's oddly funny. The visuals are picturesque although uninspired. The small villages are more intriguing for its glimpses of village life. This is very basic.