Musique dans mon coeur

MUSIC IN MY HEART is the kind of predictable little programmer that Columbia churned out on a regular basis during the late '30s and early '40s. It's not exactly an A-film--more like a classy B flick--but it's strictly formula stuff all the way with a predictable plot based on the boy meets girl--boy loses girl--boy wins girl idea.

TONY MARTIN, looking great and in good voice, gets a chance to dominate the proceedings with his strong vocal abilities, especially on a little number called "It's A Blue World." RITA HAYWORTH, with dark hair and low hairline, is attractive and fetching as his girlfriend, but she barely gets a chance to do more than shake her hips in her one dance number. It's easy to see that she was photogenic in all of her close-ups and on the verge of becoming a big star.

The supporting cast is a good one, including ALAN MOBRAY, ERIC BLORE and GEORGE TOBIAS. I'm not keen about EDITH FELLOWS (as Rita's younger sister), sorry to say.

It's pleasant, light entertainment with a silly story and some humor that is only mildly amusing, involving a rascal of a monkey.

This has to be one of the most underrated of Rita's films, yet is up there with the best. A very short runtime of just 69 minutes, it still manages to dish up a delightful 'boy meets girl' tale - when their cabs collide, of course changing both their destinies. A simple little musical, it gives Rita just the one dance, which is not photographed all that well, but shows what will be in years to come. Any Rita fans out there, you will thoroughly enjoy this I guarantee it. I almost didn't buy it when I had the chance due to not being able to find reviews anywhere, so I feel I have to write this to save someone else from passing it up!

Robert (Tony Martin) is due to be deported and so he is rushing to the harbor to board the boat. Sharing his cab is Patricia (Rita Hayworth) is a woman rushing to marry a rich guy (Alan Mowbray). However, when there is a wreck and the cab is delayed, both miss the boat and it changes the rest of their lives.

It's strange. For years, I haven't liked singing in most movies and hated that so many classic Hollywood films have songs planted right in the middle of them for no apparent reason. However, recently I have noticed that this doesn't bother me as much as it used to--particularly when the singer has such a beautiful voice. This is definitely the case with Tony Martin. While he didn't make a ton of movies, when he did, his singing was just amazing--among the best you could find. So, as I watched "Music in My Heart", I enjoyed the musical interludes, as Martin's crooning was quite nice.

So, apart from Martin's singing, is there anything else that could make this movie worth your time? Well, it might be worth seeing just to see Rita Hayworth in one of her films before her HUGE make-over. This is because she was a favorite actress of studio head Roy Cohn and he personally groomed both her career and her face. He ordered her hairline to be adjusted (owch!), her skin to be lightened and her hairstyle and color changed. Here in this film, she's about midway through her makeover--not as ethnic as she had been but definitely not the glamor girl she soon was to become.

Another reason to watch the film is the nice little touches. Lots of wonderful supporting actors are in this one--such as Eric Blore and George Tobias. And, more importantly, their dialog is excellent--providing the sort of clever and cute colorful touches that make a film memorable.

So, despite this being a B-movie (due to its short running time and budget), it's very, very good B--almost like a 'B+' film! Enjoyable, fun and well worth your time. And while I'll admit that the ending is hokey, it sure is fun!

"Music in My Heart" is a light comedy and musical romance. Columbia Pictures wasn't yet among the top studios in Hollywood, but it was beginning to compete well with the Big Five in comedies, musicals, and dramas. This film came out while World War II was underway, but a full year before the U. S. would enter the war. Rita Hayworth had been in films for six years, but her star was just beginning to rise after the 1939 smash hit with Cary Grant, "Only Angels Have Wings" Sill, she had second billing here to Tony Martin who was a popular singer and actor at the time.

Both Martin (as Robert Gregory) and Hayworth (as Patricia O'Malley) sing in this picture, and while it's not billed as a comedy, the comedy carries much of the film. It has a fine supporting cast of some top comedy actors of the period -- Eric Blore, Alan Mowbray, and George Tobias. Andre Kostelanetz and his Orchestra add to the music. A better screenplay could have made more use of Blore and Mowbray.

The plot is fair and has a very unusual, but funny and happy ending. Martin, by the way, was a very accomplished musician on a couple of instruments as well. Here are some favorite lines from the film.

Robert Gregory, "You don't mean Charles Gardner, the millionaire publisher?" Patricia O'Malley " Uh huh." Gregory, "Say, he's got lots of money." O'Malley, "Most millionaires have."

Robert Gregory, "If you don't mind me saying so, you don't sound very much in love with him." Patricia O'Malley, "I do mind." Gregory, "Well, then, I won't say it."

Griggs (Eric Bore), "Shall we try some more bicarbonate, sir?" Charles Gardner (Alan Mowbray), "No, the bicarbonate interferes with the brandy."

Rita Hayworth stars in a film that would have been better served by having Ginger Rogers in it.

Rita misses the boat and therefore an opportunity to wed wealthy boyfriend Alan Mowbray who has a contentious butler, played by the usual witty Eric Blore. In a taxi-cab mishap, she meets up with Tony Martin, who is about to be deported.

The rest of the film is devoted to hiding Tony out from immigration authorities. George Tobias plays a Russian chef whose major claim to fame was that he was honored by the tsar for his blintzes!

The gags are predictable and we can all guess what the plot shall bring. We needed Tony to be singing more. The film ends with him singing the title song. Hayworth has a one scene fling at dancing which is great but more of this was needed.