Vivacious Lady (1938)

Vivacious Lady
Directed by George Stevens
Written by P.J. Wolfson and Ernest Pagano based on a story by I.A.R. Wylie
1938/USA
RKO Radio Pictures
First viewing

[box] Helen: I’m going to give you a piece of my mind…

Francey: Oh, I couldn’t take the last piece![/box]

If it weren’t for the preposterous story, this could have been one of the most delightful romantic comedies of the 1930’s.  It has everything else going for it.

Professor Peter Morgan (James Stewart) travels to New York to bring his cousin Keith back to the university town they live in.  He finds Keith waiting in the nightclub for a girl he lusts after to come out.  Peter waits while Keith gets his coat and, when he spots nightclub singer Francey (Ginger Rogers), it is love at first sight.  Sans Keith, he takes Francey on the town and they are married by the time the train leaves the next day.

Peter plans to introduce Francey to his parents right away but his father, the stuffy president of the university (Charles Coburn), meets them at the station with Peter’s fiancée in tow.  Dad assumes Francey is Keith’s girl and immediately labels her a hussy. For various reasons – his mother (Beulah Bondi) has a weak heart, Francey slugs the father accidentally during a cat fight with the fiancée – Peter delays revealing his marriage.

Ginger Rogers is adorable and Jimmy Stewart is almost sexy in this movie.  My favorite from the film was Beulah Bondi, who is very funny as the seemingly frail mother with a wicked streak.  This was one of Charles Coburn’s earliest films after a very successful stage career and he is good as always.  As always, George Stevens gets the best out of his actors and the story.  Even the dialogue has its high points.  But it is one of the stories that would have been over in a minute if anyone acted like an ordinary person and my eye-rolling got in the way a bit.

Vivacious Lady was nominated for Oscars for its cinematography and sound recording.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lG4IRC8MgiA

Trailer

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L-I7DkDuiu0

Teaching Beulah Bondi “The Big Apple” — love this!