Seven Sweethearts

An American man from NYC arrives in a small town where Dutch people live.This is a very strange place to be ,predating Minnelli's "Brigadoon" .A place where time stood still:you do not pay when you are staying at the hotel,the girls all bear boys' name -cause dad wanted boys-and they can 't get married till the eldest does.By no means one of multi-talented Borzage's greatest achievements (most of them were behind him at the time),his movie retains freshness , a "Carpe Diem" spirit ,a good antidote to stress .My favorite scene takes place in the church.Good performances by the whole cast,particularly Van Heflin who learns to like another way of life.

Seven Sweethearts has Van Heflin as a news reporter sent on a puff assignment to cover the famous Tulip Festival in Delft, Michigan. Then as now Michigan has a large Dutch population, at the time it was represented in the US Senate by Arthur Vandenberg. But this particular town has turned into a veritable Dutch Theme Park.

All presided over by the local innkeeper S.Z. Sakall whose hotel staff includes his seven lovely daughters and Louise Beavers. All have some kind of talent, but Sakall wants to keep them near. The oldest daughter is Marsha Hunt and Sakall if he has to lose them wants them married off in descending order. He pushes Heflin and Hunt together who just wants to get out of Delft and go on the stage.

But Heflin has eyes for Kathryn Grayson. The plot premise is the same as in the Fred Astaire/Rita Hayworth classic You Were Never Lovelier being done the same year at Columbia. It's a much better film than Seven Sweethearts, having those two as leads and a Jerome Kern score give it an insurmountable boost over this film.

Not that Seven Sweethearts isn't bad. It's the kind of romantic tale that Frank Borzage loved and while this isn't one of his classics it's passable enough entertainment. Kathryn Grayson sings some nice melodies nothing special though. And Van Heflin is a favorite.

Seven Sweethearts is old fashioned, but still good entertainment.

Reporter Henry Taggart (Van Heflin) arrives in Little Delft, Michigan to write about the tulip festival. He encounters Mr. Van Maaster (S. Z. Sakall) who runs the local hotel with his seven beautiful male-named daughters. He falls for the youngest daughter Billie (Kathryn Grayson), but family tradition prevents her marrying until all the other sisters marry before her.

These are beautiful babes. This premise never made that much sense to me especially with so many daughters. I guess it's screwball fun, but it could be better with only one other sister aka Taming of the Shrew. The singing is not my style, but it doesn't detract. This is light entertainment which is good escapism for its time.

If I called 'Seven Sweethearts' not a bad little film I would be damning it with faint praise and that is not my intention. It is a nice film. It is slow and enjoyable, a pleasant fantasy for wartime with a happy ending for everyone. On the other hand: Kathryn Grayson is no Deanna Durbin, not by a long chalk. Her soprano is too thin for my taste; I could have done with less of her singing. Van Heflin tries too hard to be the tough newspaper man; as a result he comes across as distinctly unlikeable. Then again, S. Z. Sakall gives a convincing anxious father. On balance, there are more up- than downsides to this film - but only just.

I just saw this movie a few days ago on TCM (Turner Classic Movies), and I was not disappointed. I wasn't expecting much so I was pleasantly surprised to come away from this film with a smile on my face. The acting was even good for the type of film it was, I have not been the biggest Van Heflin fan but he is actually very likeable in this film, so much so that I think I may be a fan of his now. ;-)

The stand-out performances came from Heflin, Hunt, and Sakall but Grayson was very cute, although I am not a fan of her singing it wasn't THAT bad this time. Although still a little too high and chirpy sounding for me.

I must praise Marsha Hunt though, she seems to be good in every film she's in, even when the role doesn't call for her to do much of anything. In this role she really gets to show a comedic side that I've never seen from her before, and it gave me even more respect for her. It's such a pity she didn't become a bigger star cause she had the beauty and the talent for it.

I recommend this film if you're in the mood for some light entertainment, Toots. ;-)