Divorcé malgré lui

Wealthy and beautiful Loretta Young is all set to marry Broderick Crawford and settle down to a normal life, but for a lark she takes her gang of socialite friends to see the Great Arturo, the magician in town. Next thing you know, she's ditched her family and friends, married Arturo, and joined his traveling magic act.

David Niven is that charming showman Arturo and his bride quickly realizes that he's not only a showman but a thrill seeker--and a party animal, as well. One morning Young and Niven are both surprised to read in the paper that he has drunkenly promised to jump out of an airplane in handcuffs.

Niven thinks, I can't disappoint my audience! I have to do it even if it kills me! Young thinks, Wouldn't it be sweet to have a nice quiet home in the country? Therein lies the conflict that, unfortunately, drags on for the rest of the picture.

Young is fine as the earnest young woman in love with a disaster waiting to happen. And Niven is quite convincing as the out-of-control daredevil who just can't stop himself. However, the question is - What exactly do they see in each other? The characters just don't seem to have any reason to be together.

The strong supporting cast includes Billie Burke, Ray Walburn, Zasu Pitts, and C. Aubrey Smith. Hugh Herbert is very good as Niven's assistant.

It's a handsome production but while the stars do look good it's too bad that neither of their characters seems very bright.

If there was ever one thing every one could agree about David Niven is he had no small amount of debonair charm. It got him through many a film when the role required little else. I would say that is the case in Eternally Yours.

Loretta Young, granddaughter of Episcopalian minister C. Aubrey Smith, meets and falls in love with a magician. That would be David Niven. But he's more than a magician, he's the current Houdini wannabe who has skill as a hypnotist and an escape artist.

Niven likes the life of a traveling entertainer, but Loretta wants to settle down with a home. After a death defying leap from a plane when he's handcuffed behind him, Young can't deal with the tension any more and she leaves him. He finds he can't go on without her, but she ups and divorces him and marries Broderick Crawford.

Of course the rest of the film is about Niven winning Young back in the best tradition of Cary Grant who may very well have been offered this part before Niven. Loretta is certainly worth winning back. I'm betting that Ralph Bellamy turned down the Ralph Bellamy part so Broderick Crawford was cast. Niven enjoys tweaking him in this film, but I'm not sure why unlike Bellamy who was usually a well meaning goof, Crawford didn't just punch him out.

The climax takes place at the 1939 World's Fair and you might want to see Eternally Yours for some nostalgia footage of that event. But it is a film that really does get by on the charm of its leads.

This movie survived by a very effective layer of gloss, the class and distinctiveness of both Niven and Young's portrayals and the production values. But, oh, the surrounding stuff. Broderick Crawford as a love interest for Ms. Young? Magic acts? What an embarrassing entry this must have been for the star performers in the year of some of the most classic films ever made. This film is one good example of the leads overcoming the liabilities of the vehicle, thus saving the show. Well, sort of. Ms. Young later recounts the scene on the bed with Niven being her favorite subtle type of love scene. Reviewers cite this particular scene as what could have been a censor objection had not the actors handled it with so much sophistication and grace.

David Niven and Loretta Young pledge to be "Eternally Yours" in this 1939 film also featuring Hugh Herbert, C. Aubrey Smith, Broderick Crawford, Eve Arden, Zasu Pitts, and Billie Burke.

Young plays Anita, who is engaged to Don (Crawford); however, she attends a performance by The Great Arturo (Niven), a Houdini-type who also reads minds and palms, and it's love at first sight for both of them. They marry, and she becomes part of his act, traveling full time all over the world.

Anita is hoping to settle down with Arturo and have a home and family. With the help of her grandfather (C. Aubrey Smith) she secretly builds her dream home. When she shows it to Arturo, he dismisses it. She leaves him, divorces him, and marries Don.

Light comedy with a charming cast. Young is beautiful, 26 at the time, and she and Niven work well together, as they did in one of my favorite movies, The Bishop's Wife.

People commented that this is a horrible plot, bad script, etc. It seemed pretty typical to me of the type of comedy done back then, no better, no worse.

David Niven was a remarkable man who died an awful death from ALS. An accomplished writer as well as actor, he was a gentleman through and through.

When he died, the porters at Heathrow sent a wreath that said, 'To the finest gentleman who ever walked through these halls. He made a porter feel like a king'.

Plot: Anita (Young) divorces Tony (Niven) because he appears both unfaithful and more interested in his magic show than her. But despite their separation and new partners, the mutual attraction remains. So what will happen now.

Despite the two scintillating A-list leads, Niven and Young, the flick fails to gel. Maybe that's because I saw a badly edited version whose unfortunate number IMDB points out. Then again, maybe it's the cluttered result of 8 writers working on the same screenplay, which seldom works. Also, it's apparent the producers were clearly worried about the watchdog censors of The Motion Picture Code, since much of the narrative plays around with non-marital sex and how their characters might avoid it. Unfortunately, the solutions are highly contrived (e.g. Crawford getting the clumsy run-around from Young since they're not really married). Still and all, production did manage to sneak in a double bed for N &Y's early wedded bliss, a bed that also symbolizes their enduring love despite the many difficulties.

On the upside are magician Niven's stage tricks and a look at how they're done, though I found his should-be-suspenseful parachuting poorly done (needs more close-ups of his struggling while falling). On the other hand, there's the many close-ups of the lovely Loretta, a wholesome darling. And on a more minor note, how about a youngish Broderick Crawford as a romantic interest - that sure took me some getting used to.

Anyway, too bad the different parts of the romantic comedy fail to gel and that it took 8 writers to apparently keep the censors at bay. Nonetheless, the two photogenic leads show why their careers were long and popular despite the let-down here.