La belle nuit

Although This Is The Night which is the feature film debut of Cary Grant is an enjoyable enough bedroom farce it probably has more significance as the possible inspiration of one of Paramount's best feature films of the Thirties, Love Me Tonight. This film directed by one of Paramount's more competent contract directors Frank Tuttle plays a whole lot like Rouben Mamoulian's classic. Possibly if Tuttle had better material to work with, this film would be better known.

This Is The Night has Cary Grant as a French Olympic athlete whose sport is the javelin. But apparently he's not spearing Thelma Todd enough and she's casting a roving eye. The eye of Roland Young meets her's and the two plan a holiday in Venice.

To which Mr. Grant arrives and rudely interrupts. Thinking fast on his feet as American Express agent Charlie Ruggles arrives with tickets at Todd's apartment, Young says that he'll be traveling with his wife and once outside frantically looks for a wife. He finds Lily Damita and hires her for a railroad holiday from Paris to Venice. Ruggles goes along as a fifth wheel on this carriage, presumably to catch whoever comes flying off the rebound. As he's soused most of the time, I can't see what appeal he would have. Of course I can't see what appeal he would have sober.

Cary Grant was billed fifth in this film, but in 1932 he gradually went up the billing ladder and by the time of She Done Him Wrong, he's co-starring with Mae West. His debonair charm could barely be concealed in a role which required him to be a bit of a fathead.

Ralph Rainger and Sam Coslow wrote a couple of forgettable songs and it's in the musical numbers that this film bares the closest resemblance to Love Me Tonight. Note the Italian gondolier in the Venice scenes. He gets no billing in the film, but it is Donald Novis one of the most popular singers of the day on radio. In three years he would move to Broadway and play the romantic lead in Rodgers&Hart's Jumbo where he would introduce The Most Beautiful Girl In The World and My Romance. Novis had a wonderful tenor voice as you'll agree if you see this film.

Speaking of Rodgers&Hart maybe if they wrote a score as good as the one they did for Love Me Tonight, This Is The Night would be more remembered than as footnote as Cary Grant's feature film debut.

I always wonder when I see the lists of "the hundred best films ever made" etc. You see, there is one thing that I have discovered over the years of delving around in old films, and it is this. It is not possible to compile lists of the best films ever made for the simple reason that some of the best films ever made are lying forgotten on shelves in film libraries, and, sadly, some are lost. There are so many great films that the public never get to see. The critics will have you believe that pictures like This is the Night is not particularly good, and is only of interest to fans of Cary Grant and Thelma Todd. People have forgotten all about it. The director, the star, the film is today forgotten.

Then you play the film. The acting is utterly superb, the comic timing superb. The film is cleverly and adventurously put together by the film makers. All the players, Grant, Todd, Ruggles and Young are excellent.

What is there to say about the lead, Damita? Well, with the coming of talking pictures, Damita with her French accent found it tough to get parts that would utilise her exceptional talents. Here is an exception. Not many people know that at Hollywood parties Damita was Chaplin's number one rival when it came to mime during party pieces. In one scene, we get a glimpse at the sort of thing that helped the Hollywood parties go with a swing. In dialogue Damita's comic timing is spot on, which just goes to show that you do not have to be mug ugly to be a comedienne. When she is on screen the laughter is the loudest. And sex appeal? She has been called "a French bombshell." If so, the French have to test her in the Pacific.

It would be criminal to ruin it all by telling everybody what the plot is. All I will say is that if you are not smiling or laughing at this film from beginning to end, then there is something wrong with YOU.

So next time you see a list of the 100 best films ever made, ignore it. My advice to you is to go out and find your own 100 best films. If you don't, you could miss gems like this, and the loser will be YOU.

Well this is a weird one. It's a Pre-Code sex comedy with very odd casting. Thelma Todd is cheating on her husband, Olympic javelin thrower Cary Grant. Wait until you see who she's cheating with -- Roland fricking Young! That's right, the mousy mumbly guy from Topper. On what planet, I ask you...on what planet!?! Anyway, to cover for their affair, Young hires Lili Damita to pose as his wife. Gradually he and Damita fall for each other.

Notable for being the feature film debut of screen legend Cary Grant, who makes quite an impression in his first scene. Cary's great in his minor role. Young is fine but I never liked his character enough to get invested in the story. Same with Todd. Damita is sexy but I couldn't understand half of what she said with her thick French accent. Charlie Ruggles does his usual shtick. If you're familiar with him, you'll realize he's very much an acquired taste. He's tolerable here though. Frank Tuttle's direction is nice. I think the blue-tinted night scenes are a good touch. Love the opening few minutes. It's an amusing movie at first but grows less so as each minute passes. It helps that the mood stays light. Didn't find much of it believable and, like I said, I didn't like the main characters much. Swapping Young and Grant's roles might have improved the overall picture. Although then we'd have the absurd image of Young as an Olympic athlete. But that's no more ridiculous than him being able to take any woman from Cary Grant. It's not a bad film and there's certainly enough of interest to entertain most classic film fans. Definitely one Cary Grant fans will want to see at least once.

A slight-but-enjoyable romantic farce, THIS IS THE NIGHT is an entertaining little film that should earn a place in cinematic history simply because it contains the feature film debut of Cary Grant, who soon become arguably the most famous movie star of all time. Although he is regulated to playing a largely secondary character, Grant's incomparable screen presence makes him a standout from the very start. Playing an Olympic athlete, Grant makes his entrance into the world of cinema with a light step and a sharp wit - singing about apartment keys, no less! It's a memorable debut, and there are numerous other moments throughout the picture in which Grant demonstrates much of the early promise that would soon flower into full-throttle, megawatt star power in just a few short years.

As for the rest of the film, it is a reasonably solid comedy of adulterous affairs, with some surprisingly risqué elements that were permitted in the days before the Production Code was heavily enforced due to pressure from the National Legion of Decency in l933. The film begins delightfully as a light comedic ballet, with director Frank Turtle providing some truly madcap slapstick and even recitative singing that sets the viewer up for a knockabout farce. Unfortunately, this progressively free-wheeling atmosphere is largely abandoned in the film's last half, which plays out in a more or less predictable manner. The film still holds up perfectly well, however, until the too-conservative ending, which is a big disappointment after over 70 minutes of uninhibited fun.

On the plus side, the film is very well cast, and the actors manage to keep the picture engaging even after the initial momentum of the exhilarating first-half is long gone. Although she makes somewhat of an delayed entrance, Lili Damita brings both pluck and intelligence to the female lead, Roland Young makes the transformation of his somewhat unsympathetic character highly believable, and both Grant and Charles Ruggles offer top-notch support. The lovely Thelma Todd also makes the most of a rather bland role, and her talent for making a relatively thankless character seem genuinely inspired serves as a bittersweet reminder of yet another comedic great that was taken from us way too soon. In the end, THIS IS THE NIGHT is far too inconsistent to ever be considered a great movie, but it sure is a lot of fun!

This Is the Night (1932)

*** 1/2 (out of 4)

Hilarious pre-code from Paramount has Roland Young playing Gerald Gray, a man dating a married woman (Thelma Todd). Things take a turn for the worse when the couple return to her home to find her husband (Cary Grant) there and in order to stay out of trouble the man's best friend (Charles Ruggles) tells the husband that the friend is actually married and the happy couple are on their way to Venice. The husband, not a bit fooled, decides to go along on the trip so the friend must find a fake wife (Lili Damita) to go along with the plan. This is a remake of a 1926 film and it's based on the play Naughty Cinderella. The naughty is certainly correct because this Paramount comedy has quite a few pre-code elements that would soon find themselves banned. Needless to say, having a film centered around a married woman dating other men was certainly a no no but it makes for one great laugh after another. After viewing the film I was really shocked to see that it wasn't more popular because the familiar cast is terrific and we get so many sexual jokes that it really stands out. The dialogue certainly implies many dirty jokes including one bit about "B.J." as well as our two lead actresses showing some skin. Of course we don't get any actual nudity but there's a very charming scene of Damita proving she can be naughty by taking her clothes off and coming off like a vixen. There's also a running joke with Todd constantly getting her clothes ripped off in a variety of ways. Both women have their legs constantly being shown as well as every other bit of skin they can get on camera. These elements certainly give the film a fresh touch and a pretty sexual one as well. Then we have the terrific performances that make the film memorable. Damita, who I had just seen in FRIENDS AND LOVERS, is must better here and in fact turns in a hilarious performance. I was really shocked to see how great she was here because her comic timing is right on the mark and she also plays the more dramatic, romantic moments just as well. Her coming timing really makes her character come to life and her previously mentioned seduction scene was priceless. Ruggles nearly steals the film as the silly assistant who gets this whole thing started. Todd delivers one of the best performances I've seen from her as her timing is great and just check out the wonderful scene where her married character gets jealous by her lover's fake wife. Young is also right on the mark and his chemistry with Damita is great. Then we have Cary Grant in his first role. I was surprised to see how natural he was but he plays the jerkish husband to perfection. I think the film starts to wear thin during the final act when every ones love starts to pour out but everything leading up to this is quite priceless. The performances, sexuality and laughs make this a must-see for fans of classic cinema.