(121 min) Released 1938-03-18
Director: Robert Z. Leonard
Stars: Jeanette MacDonald, Nelson Eddy, Walter Pidgeon, Buddy Ebsen, Leo Carrillo.
Albertina Rasch ... dances and ensembles creator
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0030182/
A big reason I've been rating JM/NE movies high is that they fall in love for the right reasons; they both play characters worthy of admiration. That rule is broken here. NE plays a bandit, posing as Mexican because he inherited his gang from a prior leader (there must have been one in between; the original Ramerez (sic) died when NE was a boy), and to make it harder to catch him. He's shown having a moment of conscience before his mentor dies, but loses it when he does.
They first meet when his gang holds up her stage coach. He's smitten by her bravery and is not very thorough when robbing her. He's in disguise of course, and she has nothing but contempt for him. He goes to her destination (to meet the governor in Monterey), and steals a uniform from her escort lieutenant to woo her. She falls for him, perhaps when he sings (and we're halfway through the film!), but he disappears when his victim Lt. shows up. Later, when she finds out that he is the highly wanted bandit, she still loves him; I don't know why she's so deeply attached that she doesn't reject him.
Monterey is where we get the elaborate A.Rasch dance that finally inspired me to add her to the list of worthwhile dance directors (she's been in the crew several times already); she seems to specialize in large numbers of dancers.
Buddy Ebsen plays well a bumpkin smitten with JM, but never dances; no room for his type of dancing here, but he does sing a few bars. JM sings plenty, but I could have used more NE singing.
I love the way JM walks: like the prospectors she grew up with. Even when she's dressed in a great ball gown, she waddles bow-legged. And the rest of her acting works for me too, including the adoring, beautifully lit closeups she gets. I think I'd like her even if she didn't sing.
This is not Puccini's music (mostly Sigmund Romberg); it's ok, but I didn't find any songs to love.
MGM, dir Leonard; 6+
