I'm experiencing something of an epiphany regarding this film. I've loved musicals- and just about any musical featuring Fred Astaire- for most of my life. With that said, this film used to frustrate me to no end because of its wafer-thin plot of mistaken identity. When I first reviewed it, I couldn't get past the plot- as if the plot should have carried the day. That was major impatience and intolerance on my part. Thanks to repeated showings of this one (as well as the entire RKO series) on TCM, I have recently viewed this again and allowed myself to just indulge. Indulge in the marvelous banter that Astaire and Ginger Rogers have- even when he's supposed to be annoying her in their first meetings. Quips that include, "Buy yourself a new hat," "I prefer being in distress," and perhaps my favorite line when Rogers- asking Astaire about the female pedigree of the horse he's driving- inquires with, "who was his dam?" he retorts with, "I don't know miss, he didn't give a d--!!"
That is brilliant scripting, especially for an otherwise G-rated film.
So even as he politely annoys her in their first exchanges, it's obvious that she's quite intrigued by him. And when they later dance in a gazebo in a glorious rainstorm as strangers who begin to fall in love, we fall in love right along with them. But then there is that 'mistaken identity' thing that goes on for the entirety of the film. And usually it's here that I write off the film- but if I did that then I could not acknowledge the brilliance of 'best friend' Helen Broderick- who, as the third member of this alleged triangle, tosses off some of the best dead-pan punchlines in the film. I could not acknowledge the two Eric(k)s- Blore and Rhodes, who make the roles of frustrated valet and would-be rogue absolutely hilarious. And I could definitely not acknowledge the stunning Irving Berlin music and routines, from the "Top Hat" shooting gallery of chorus boys to the sublime elegance of the feather-swathed "Cheek to Cheek" pas-de-deux. In retrospect, I can't get too worked up about the plot of this film, because it was 1935 and the middle of the Depression. Most films were light and decidedly cheeky during this sad period in history. If this film prompted some of the team's best box-office receipts in their 10-film history- and went on to garner an Oscar nomination as best picture- it must've been doing something right. I still prefer the plots of other A-R stories (like "Swing Time" or even "Shall We Dance") a bit more, but, as a poster before me stated, I should acknowledge that in terms of the mistaken identity formula, it's quite brilliant.
That is brilliant scripting, especially for an otherwise G-rated film.
So even as he politely annoys her in their first exchanges, it's obvious that she's quite intrigued by him. And when they later dance in a gazebo in a glorious rainstorm as strangers who begin to fall in love, we fall in love right along with them. But then there is that 'mistaken identity' thing that goes on for the entirety of the film. And usually it's here that I write off the film- but if I did that then I could not acknowledge the brilliance of 'best friend' Helen Broderick- who, as the third member of this alleged triangle, tosses off some of the best dead-pan punchlines in the film. I could not acknowledge the two Eric(k)s- Blore and Rhodes, who make the roles of frustrated valet and would-be rogue absolutely hilarious. And I could definitely not acknowledge the stunning Irving Berlin music and routines, from the "Top Hat" shooting gallery of chorus boys to the sublime elegance of the feather-swathed "Cheek to Cheek" pas-de-deux. In retrospect, I can't get too worked up about the plot of this film, because it was 1935 and the middle of the Depression. Most films were light and decidedly cheeky during this sad period in history. If this film prompted some of the team's best box-office receipts in their 10-film history- and went on to garner an Oscar nomination as best picture- it must've been doing something right. I still prefer the plots of other A-R stories (like "Swing Time" or even "Shall We Dance") a bit more, but, as a poster before me stated, I should acknowledge that in terms of the mistaken identity formula, it's quite brilliant.