I watched this because it had a middling rating on IMDb and yet was nominated for at least one Oscar because it was on Turner Classic Movies' 31 Days of Oscar. I always watch these and then look afterwards at what nominations the film got to see if I correctly guessed. This time I came up empty.
It's a good film to watch if you are recovering from a nervous breakdown because there is little to no real conflict of consequence going on. Dennis Morgan and Jack Carson - the Hope and Crosby of Warner Brothers - are going to open up a club next door to the home of opera singer Victoria Cassel and symphonic conductor Ladislaus Cassel, granddaughter and grandfather, played by Martha Vickers and S.Z. Sakall, respectively. I guess we can talk about the bizarre zoning that would allow a nightclub next to a mansion another time. Their manager (Donald Woods sporting a ridiculous looking mustache) tells Morgan and Carson that he will have them shut down because they are hindering his clients' ability to practice their kind of music in peace.
So Morgan and Carson invite Victoria and her grandfather over to listen to "their kind of music" and they admit there is nothing wrong with it. The real instigators of the trouble are the manager and the grandfather's wife, an ex opera singer herself, so the club is still shut down over the ignored protests of grandfather and Victoria.
The rest of the film is about Morgan and Carson attempting to "put on a show" instead of opening their club. Of course there are complications. Vicki and Morgan's character begin a romance of sorts, but Morgan tells her he is not the marrying kind. That issue is never settled by the way. There is a gold digging woman who is the image of Scarlet Johansson who is either helping or hindering the show financially depending on whether or not she thinks Morgan's character is sweet on her versus her desire take a Texas oilman (Alan Hale) for all he is worth. The eternal struggle of muscles versus money. So the main issues are will the show ever get enough financial backing to open and how will that happen, and will the trouble-making manager, who seems to be doubly threatened since he seems to have a thing for Vicki, thwart Vicki's involvement in the show and her involvement with Morgan.
One weird thing about the music - it turns out the film was nominated for best song for a very forgettable number. In fact, all of the numbers are pretty forgettable with the exception of the very hummable "Rainy Night in Rio". Also, all through this film, there is supposed to be a running argument about swing/jazz music versus symphonic music, with the swing music being what the show is supposed to be about and why the original nightclub was closed in the first place. The "show" that is the creation of Carson's and Morgan's characters consists of what I would call pseudo-symphonic music and production numbers tame enough for any garden variety MGM musical at the time.
Summarizing - I wasn't at all impressed by the music, although Dennis Morgan's voice is always pleasant to listen to. So it's both Morgan and Carson doing their usual comic schtick with Morgan being the smooth one and Carson being the cruder and more forward of the two that is the draw along with the well intentioned S.Z. Sakall also being pretty amusing.
It's a good film to watch if you are recovering from a nervous breakdown because there is little to no real conflict of consequence going on. Dennis Morgan and Jack Carson - the Hope and Crosby of Warner Brothers - are going to open up a club next door to the home of opera singer Victoria Cassel and symphonic conductor Ladislaus Cassel, granddaughter and grandfather, played by Martha Vickers and S.Z. Sakall, respectively. I guess we can talk about the bizarre zoning that would allow a nightclub next to a mansion another time. Their manager (Donald Woods sporting a ridiculous looking mustache) tells Morgan and Carson that he will have them shut down because they are hindering his clients' ability to practice their kind of music in peace.
So Morgan and Carson invite Victoria and her grandfather over to listen to "their kind of music" and they admit there is nothing wrong with it. The real instigators of the trouble are the manager and the grandfather's wife, an ex opera singer herself, so the club is still shut down over the ignored protests of grandfather and Victoria.
The rest of the film is about Morgan and Carson attempting to "put on a show" instead of opening their club. Of course there are complications. Vicki and Morgan's character begin a romance of sorts, but Morgan tells her he is not the marrying kind. That issue is never settled by the way. There is a gold digging woman who is the image of Scarlet Johansson who is either helping or hindering the show financially depending on whether or not she thinks Morgan's character is sweet on her versus her desire take a Texas oilman (Alan Hale) for all he is worth. The eternal struggle of muscles versus money. So the main issues are will the show ever get enough financial backing to open and how will that happen, and will the trouble-making manager, who seems to be doubly threatened since he seems to have a thing for Vicki, thwart Vicki's involvement in the show and her involvement with Morgan.
One weird thing about the music - it turns out the film was nominated for best song for a very forgettable number. In fact, all of the numbers are pretty forgettable with the exception of the very hummable "Rainy Night in Rio". Also, all through this film, there is supposed to be a running argument about swing/jazz music versus symphonic music, with the swing music being what the show is supposed to be about and why the original nightclub was closed in the first place. The "show" that is the creation of Carson's and Morgan's characters consists of what I would call pseudo-symphonic music and production numbers tame enough for any garden variety MGM musical at the time.
Summarizing - I wasn't at all impressed by the music, although Dennis Morgan's voice is always pleasant to listen to. So it's both Morgan and Carson doing their usual comic schtick with Morgan being the smooth one and Carson being the cruder and more forward of the two that is the draw along with the well intentioned S.Z. Sakall also being pretty amusing.