A promising start doesn't transfer into a successful middle or end, leaving this romantic drama about a classical pianist as an interesting artistic disappointment. Catherine MacCleod, an innocent young pianist, like Ingrid Bergman in "Intermezzo", falls in love with her mentor, Philip Dorn. But unlike Leslie Howard in that 1939 classic, Dorn is not married, just a philanderer who treats MacCleod like a child and as any task master, work her too hard, often abusing her and when she shows him up in her Premier concert, accuses her of trying to overshadow him. In ascent, she's sort of a trilby to hit send golly, and not even his kindly Mother, Maria Ouspenskaya, can bring him down to earth.
One of Republic studio's more ambitious endeavors, this was filmed in color and certainly looks lovely. The performances for the most part are sincere, although Ouspenskaya's constant slow delivery of lines often bothers me. Elizabeth Patterson adds a humorous touch of warmth to the role of MacLeod's landlady who owns the farm boarding house with her kindly father, Felix Bressart. Patterson's son, William Carter, falls in love with the young Catherine, and is obviously more worthy of her love than the egotistical Dorn.
As directed by Frank Borzage, one of the great creators of classic melodramas, this is often very slow, plodding and sometimes even a bit too artistically over ambitious. There are many moments where thus feels like it is about to wrap up, but on it goes to another plot development which often changes its mood. While the first quarter is breezy and light hearted, the remainder bogs into pretentiousness which often makes it a bit of a bore. The music is of course lovely, but then again, so are lullabies.
One of Republic studio's more ambitious endeavors, this was filmed in color and certainly looks lovely. The performances for the most part are sincere, although Ouspenskaya's constant slow delivery of lines often bothers me. Elizabeth Patterson adds a humorous touch of warmth to the role of MacLeod's landlady who owns the farm boarding house with her kindly father, Felix Bressart. Patterson's son, William Carter, falls in love with the young Catherine, and is obviously more worthy of her love than the egotistical Dorn.
As directed by Frank Borzage, one of the great creators of classic melodramas, this is often very slow, plodding and sometimes even a bit too artistically over ambitious. There are many moments where thus feels like it is about to wrap up, but on it goes to another plot development which often changes its mood. While the first quarter is breezy and light hearted, the remainder bogs into pretentiousness which often makes it a bit of a bore. The music is of course lovely, but then again, so are lullabies.