"The Big Pond" is a rather archaic sort of movie...even compared to many other films from 1930. The sound is the major problem. Although it has a few musical numbers, the sound quality is pretty shabby on the copy I saw on YouTube. Could there be a better copy? Sure...but the film's problems aren't all because of the sound. The film itself seems as if the filmmakers weren't sure how to use the sound they had...and compared to the other musicals of the time it just seems flat and unappealing...which is amazing because Maurice Chevalier's films he made just after this were terrific.
The film begins with the Billings family in Europe on vacation. There, Barbara (Cluadette Colbert) falls in love with Pierre (Maurice Chevalier). The problem is that she comes from a rich family and Pierre is without a job. Her father agrees to bring Pierre to America and gives him a job in his chewing gum factory. While it might seem that the guy likes Pierre, he plans on giving Pierre a hard time--to work him so hard that he'll quit and the wedding plans will fall apart. However, Pierre manages to make good and become an important part of the family...and practically loses Barbara as a result.
Apart from having a chance to hear the same song made famous in the Marx Brothers film "Monkey Business" (where Groucho, Chico and Harpo try to use Chevalier's passport to disembark from the ship...and by singing "You Brought a New Kind of Love to Me" (from "The Big Pond"), there isn't a lot to distinguish the film. Chevalier is good in spite of everything and Colbert is, essentially, there but not particularly distinguished.
FYI--In the film, someone tells Pierre that a decent salary to obtain to enable you to get married is $20,000 a year. Back in 1930, the average salary was only about $1900 a year!
The film begins with the Billings family in Europe on vacation. There, Barbara (Cluadette Colbert) falls in love with Pierre (Maurice Chevalier). The problem is that she comes from a rich family and Pierre is without a job. Her father agrees to bring Pierre to America and gives him a job in his chewing gum factory. While it might seem that the guy likes Pierre, he plans on giving Pierre a hard time--to work him so hard that he'll quit and the wedding plans will fall apart. However, Pierre manages to make good and become an important part of the family...and practically loses Barbara as a result.
Apart from having a chance to hear the same song made famous in the Marx Brothers film "Monkey Business" (where Groucho, Chico and Harpo try to use Chevalier's passport to disembark from the ship...and by singing "You Brought a New Kind of Love to Me" (from "The Big Pond"), there isn't a lot to distinguish the film. Chevalier is good in spite of everything and Colbert is, essentially, there but not particularly distinguished.
FYI--In the film, someone tells Pierre that a decent salary to obtain to enable you to get married is $20,000 a year. Back in 1930, the average salary was only about $1900 a year!