Eve Knew Her Apples

Poor Ann Miller . . . what was she thinking when she wanted to headline, instead of co-star, in a flick? Not content with being one of M-G-M's sturdy, yeoman supporting players, she somehow opted for this Columbia remake of It Happened One Night . . .and for that one commenter who opined, " . . . probably the original was better!" he/she needs to take Classic Hollywood Films 101 and brush up on one of the great comedies of all time. And turning that magnificent film into a musical really is someone's idea of a joke. The remake of THIS "musical," You Can't Run Away from It, is hardly any better; that is unless you like the warbling and mugging of June Allyson. Skip this one . . . William Wright is really a poverty-stricken excuse for Clark Gable and who can come close to to matching the comedic talents of Claudette Colbert? The original IHON swept the Oscars in 1935; the crew on this one is just possibly capable of sweeping the floor! . . . and WHO dubbed Ann Miller's voice?

Over-worked radio star Eve Porter (Miller) escapes celebrity whirlwind by falling into cross- country car of reporter Ward Williams (Wright) who mistakes her for a serial killer. Hi-jinks ensue, along with several songs.

Ann Miller starred in a number of these low-budget wartime musicals. All that I've seen are entertaining and sprightly, thanks to her general sparkle and likability, and I expect all made money— (Columbia knew what it was doing). This one is not front rank—the songs are undistinguished and without Ann's trademark toe-tapping zip. The romance, however, is a cute mix-up where Ward mistakes Eve for a serial killer, of all things. Wright is an obscure leading man who unfortunately died young (38). Here, he makes a good reporter but rather bland male lead for the lively Miller.

One notable feature—the hair-do's of that time. I'm wondering how long it took the ladies to coif all their hair into the elaborate buns and curls that Ann, for one, sports. I don't think there's been any style quite like it since. Anyway, someone at Columbia deserved a bonus for the cutest movie title of the year, one I certainly couldn't resist.

What's this? Ann Miller playing a singer (with vocals obviously dubbed, I've heard her singing voice in MGM musicals, and this ain't it) instead of a dancer? Seems like an odd casting choice. She plays a runaway singing star on a wacky road trip with a reporter who's initially only interested in her for the story/reward money, but (I trust I'm not spoiling anything here, as the outcome is very predictable) ultimately falls in love.

Sound familiar? Substitute "singing star" with "heiress" and you've got the basic premise of "It Happened One Night"... minus Frank Capra's directorial magic, Robert Riskin's witty script, and charismatic stars like Gable & Colbert.

If you've never seen "It Happened One Night"... go see it first! But if you happen to see "Eve Knew Her Apples" first... just don't, okay!? But if you *do*, you might find it a pleasant diversion. Fans of the far superior film will probably feel nothing but dismay and disgust.

How blatant are the thefts? In the end, Ann Miller's character dumps her wealthy fiancé, and William Wright, when questioned as to whether he loves her, steals Clark Gable's line, "YES! But don't hold that against me, I'm a little screwy myself!"

Oh my. Such direct theft only invites unfavorable comparisons. And Wright is NO Gable. I'm amazed the writers of "It Happened One Night" weren't given any credit here. Perhaps they were indignant and didn't want to be associated with a tacky rip-off of their classic? Perhaps Columbia simply felt entitled, since this studio released both films. But there's a reason nobody's heard of "Eve Knew Her Apples".

I could make some cracks about studio heads being such SNAKES, and how SINful it is to produce a cheap imitation that taints a beloved classic - but you get the idea.

The rating is higher than it ought to be simply because it is fascinating to watch a great movie remade on the cheap for no particular reason other than Columbia already owned it, and comparing it to the original.

I walked in on this in the middle. I love Ann Miller, so I kept watching. Suddenly I was hearing very familiar dialog. Hokey smokes, it's "It Happened One Night" only without the lighting, directing, production values, pacing and acting.

The sheer audacity of taking a classic (the only picture to win all five major academy awards up to that time) and turning it into a B semi-musical boggled the mind. I even was able to recite the script ahead of the actors (and better).

Contrary to the previous comment, they really did use the original brilliant dialog all over the place. It just goes to show that even a work of genius can be destroyed when placed in the wrong hands.

Eve Knew Her Apples (1945)

** 1/2 (out of 4)

Lighthearted remake of Frank Capra's It Happened One Night has a famous singer (Ann Miller) running away only to be picked up by a man (William Wright) who she doesn't know is a reporter. This is pretty much a scene by scene remake of the Capra film but it removes a lot of footage and just mainly copies the most famous scenes. There's nothing overly funny about this comedy and Ann Miller is a complete bore but fans of the previous film will be slightly entertained by seeing that film redone. Wright certainly steals the show and makes for several nice moments but the screenplay really doesn't allow him to do too much. The film runs a short 64-minutes and goes pretty quickly throughout.