Frisson d'amour

MGM could always depend on an ESTHER WILLIAMS movie to be breezy fun for movie fans who wanted escapism during the '40s in the form of light entertainment. And that's what they get here. VAN JOHNSON, a war hero she meets at a mountain resort, is her romantic interest and occasional swimming partner while her husband, CARLTON G. YOUNG, is neglecting her by performing his business duties.

And, of course, you have to have music in an Esther Williams movie. So, they have LAURITZ MELCHIOR, the chubby tenor from the Met, serving as a sort of S.Z. Sakall type providing gentle humor and suave charm in between some robust songs. Then they have TOMMY DORSEY and his Orchestra for fans of contemporary music with Buddy Rich beating on the drums.

The other standard ingredient is lush Technicolor that makes the most of some stunning scenery as well as some gorgeous shots of Esther in various swimming suits doing her thing in a pool of Olympic proportions. She also looks good on land in a series of smart outfits.

The weakness is a thin story that needs all the padding it gets. But for Esther Williams/Van Johnson fans, this had all the standard ingredients they looked for in this sort of musical.

I didn't recognize Esther Williams when I saw her with her hair down, and had to look here to see who the actress was...what a beautiful woman! And the costumes were wonderful, along with the scenery of Yosemite, making this movie the perfect diversion for a lazy Sunday afternoon. The plot was a bit slow, and at today's standards left a lot to the imagination, however the innocence of post-WWII "romance" made this an absolutely charming tale. Van Johnson was good (as always, in my opinion), but the tenor actually stole the show and provided the perfect sounding board for both characters so that we could see that they weren't really philanderers -- just caught up in a difficult situation. My husband and I both enjoyed this movie, and I got a lot of great costume ideas, as well! I recommend this movie to anyone who is nostalgic for a simpler time and doesn't want to have to think too much -- just watch and be entertained!

Thrill of a Romance is such a VERY nice film. I watched it last night and totally enjoyed this cute and entertaining film. Nice swimming scenes with both Esther and Van together. Wonderful diving from Esther in this film and the music was wonderful.

This film is a wonderful way to end any romantic evening. MonaK

While this was the first time both Esther Williams and Van Johnson were the leads in a motion picture, this wasn't the first time they were in a scene together onscreen: that was in A Guy Named Joe a few years before when Ms. Williams had a brief dancing sequence with him. He's not the only man in her life here, another one played by Carleton G. Young also figures but watch the movie if you want to know what I'm talking about. There's also amusing supporting turns by Spring Byington and Henry Travers as Esther's relatives. By the way, I always think of Mr. Travers first as Clarence Oddbody, Angel 2nd Class from my favorite movie It's a Wonderful Life. While I'm not an opera fan, I did enjoy the singing of Lauritz Melchior especially when he performed with Tommy Dorsey and His Orchestra. Incidentally, Tommy introes a teen named Helene Stanley-who does a fine piano and singing-as his daughter Susan but he wouldn't have such an offspring with that name until four years after this movie's release. There's also a nice singing performance by African-American teen Jerry Scott who plays a bellhop, which emphasizes the limitation of roles for his race in Hollywood at the time. Also, a fine drum solo from Dorsey's drummer Buddy Rich. In summary, I enjoyed this fluff Thrill of a Romance represented during this time of war all over the world that must have pleased many patrons looking for some distraction...

Enjoyed this 1945 film with young stars like Van Johnson and Esther Williams starting out on a brilliant career in the entertainment of swimming and musicals. Esther Williams,(Cynthia Glenn) was a swimming instructor at a pool and was noticed by a very rich business man who immediately swept her off her feet and got married to Cynthia. There honeymoon was a complete disaster because her husband had a business meeting in Washington, D.C. and he left her all alone without even making love. Van Johnson,(Major Thomas Milvaine) has a room next door to Cynthia and notices her crying on her balcony and gets acquainted with her and they begin to start seeing each other off and on. Cynthia finds out her husband will be gone for a whole week and in the meantime decides to teach Tom Milvaine some swimming lessons and they start dancing and taking long walks in the woods. Lauritz Melchior,(Nils Knudsen) sings many songs since he was a great opera star. You will even see Tommy Dorsey and his orchestra and Buddy Rich burning up his set of drums. Enjoyable musical with plenty of romance and entertainment from 1945.