(115 min) Released 1936-06-26
Director: W.S. Van Dyke (uncredited)
Stars: Clark Gable, Jeanette MacDonald, Spencer Tracy
Val Raset ... dances stager
Genres: Drama | Musical | Romance
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0028216/
First of 3 pairings of Gable and Tracy. (Others: Test Pilot ('38) and Boom Town ('40).) Tracy is very effective conveying both his admiration for and his disappointment in Gable's character. Tracy was nom'd for Best Actor; film nom'd for Best Picture. See all 6 Oscar noms.
JM sings a lot, including a lot of opera, primarily Gounod's Faust. Her stage costumes are superb. But the character she plays is a mess, easily swayed that she's in love with one man then the other, that she'll perform in one very different venue then the other (saloon versus opera), that she adheres to one morality then not. I suppose the idea is that CG is so compelling he confuses her, but her disloyalty to him is just as troublesome as any other switch.
The best part of the film is the 1906 SF earthquake and fire. As Gable stands before the fire, I had to remember this preceded the burning of Atlanta in Gone with the Wind ('39). They didn't start awarding Oscars for Special Effects until '38.
MGM, dir. Van Dyke; 6+
