My Cousin

Enrico Caruso was one of the early global icons for his opera singing and here appropriately plays duel roles as a world famous Italian opera singer and his poor cousin living in NYC who works as a sculptor. Within the two roles he is quite distinct in his appearance and, indeed, the film begins with a sequence of various appearances the opera singer took on for his opera roles.

The plot hinges on the sculptor's love for Rosa who both works as his model and for her father in the restaurant the sculptor frequents. Although he has not seen his famous cousin since they were boys, he has sculpted a bust of him and seemingly likes to brag about his famous relative.

He takes Rosa to see his cousin play the old Metropolitan Opera house which is shot on location and offers a nice chance to see the place in 1918! But afterwards they attend a restaurant where the opera singer happens to be eating incognito. A brief meeting between the cousins who don't recognize each other on the opera star's way out is shortly followed by someone remarking upon who the man really was and Rosa believes the sculptor lied to her about having a famous cousin and breaks off their relationship.

I won't get any further into the plot to let the film speak for itself but there is interest in the line of people, fans and hopeful singers who want to meet the opera star and the greeting he gets while driving to his cousin in Little Italy which does seem like it might have been shot on location during a festival.