You Were Never Lovelier (Columbia Pictures) is a 1942 Hollywood musical comedy film, set in Buenos Aires. It starred Fred Astaire, Rita Hayworth, Adolphe Menjou and Xavier Cugat, with music by Jerome Kern and lyrics by Johnny Mercer. The film was directed by William A. Seiter.
This, the second of Astaire's outings with Hayworth, avoids wartime themes, and benefits from lavish production values – a consequence of the box-office success of the earthier You'll Never Get Rich. Kern here created a memorable standard with "I'm Old Fashioned", and there is a faultless trio of classic dance routines. Initially, Kern was unhappy about the selection of Cugat and his orchestra; however, when production was complete, he was so pleased with the band's performance that he presented him with a silver baton. Although Hayworth had a fine voice, Harry Cohn insisted on her singing being dubbed throughout by Nan Wynn.
The film follows the usual conventions established by Astaire in his earlier musicals, such as an anti-romantic first meeting between the two leads, a virtuoso dance solo for Astaire, a playful dance duet and a romantic dance duet.
Synopsis
Robert "Bob" Davis (Fred Astaire) is an American dancer who is looking for a job in Buenos Aires after gambling away his money. Bob's friend, bandleader Xavier Cugat, invites him to perform at a wedding in order to catch the eye of the bride's father, Eduardo Acuña (Adolphe Menjou), the owner of a local nightclub. Acuña's four daughters prepare for the wedding of the eldest. According to family tradition, the sisters must wed from oldest to youngest. The beautiful Maria (Rita Hayworth), who is next in line, is notoriously picky with her suitors, much to the dismay of her two younger siblings.
During the reception, Bob tries to catch the Maria's attention, but his advances are rebuffed. While in conversation with Acuña, Bob remarks that Maria's personality is like "the inside of a refrigerator," quickly losing favor with his potential employer.
Acuña decides to address Maria's relationship woes and begins sending orchids and love notes to her from an unknown suitor, with the hope that she will eventually find a beloved. One day, Bob delivers the note and flower. Maria, who has become enamored with her secret admirer, sees Bob leaving and concludes that he is her suitor. Maria asks her father to introduce them, and Acuña reluctantly agrees. He makes a deal with Bob: in exchange for performing at the club, Bob will play the part of the suitor and repel Maria with his "obnoxious" personality.
Despite Bob's efforts to disillusion Maria, she grows attracted to him, and the two quickly fall in love. With his plan gone awry, Acuña orders Bob to leave Buenos Aires and composes a farewell love note on his behalf. Acuña's wife sees him writing the note and suspects him of cheating on her, drawing the whole family in with her discovery. Bob is forced to reveal the truth in front of Maria, who feels shocked and betrayed. Impressed by Bob's behavior, Acuña grants him permission to court Maria. After a series of romantic gestures, Maria finally forgives Bob, and the two reconcile.
Cast
Key songs/dance routines
Dance director was Val Raset, the one and only time he collaborated with Astaire, and his choreographic input into the film is unclear. According to Astaire’s biography, he worked out all the numbers with Hayworth while rehearsing above a funeral parlour. Although the setting is a Latin one, Kern felt unable to compose in this style, but Astaire was determined to continue his exploration of Latin dance, which he did with the help of special arrangements by Cugat and Murphy, and the inspiration provided by the enthusiastic and talented Hayworth. This became an important counterbalance to Kern’s tendency to compose sweet, occasionally saccharine, melodies. Hayworth's performance here establishes her claim as one of Astaire’s foremost dance partners.
- "Chiu Chiu": Cugat’s band performs this showpiece samba with music and lyrics by Nicanor Molinare in front of Astaire.
- "Dearly Beloved": Kern’s ballad became a major hit for Astaire – who sings it here, and it was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Original Song. Shortly after, Hayworth reprises the song with a brief but erotic dance, alone in her bedroom.
- "Audition Dance": "One of my best solos" was Astaire's verdict on his first solo routine on the theme of Latin dance, celebrated for its comic inventiveness and dexterity. Astaire’s number also inspired Jerome Robbins’ solo Latin dance in the latter’s first ballet Fancy Free, created in 1944.
- "I'm Old Fashioned": A Kern melody, with Mercer’s lyrics mimed by Hayworth, inspires Astaire’s second Latin romantic partnered dance, and one of his best known. This dance was chosen by Jerome Robbins as the centerpiece to his ballet of the same name, created by him for the New York City Ballet in 1983, as a tribute to Astaire.
- "The Shorty George": A synthesis of American Swing or Jive, and virtuoso tap dancing by Astaire and Hayworth, both in top form and exuding a sense of fun in an arrangement by Lyle "Spud" Murphy. The title refers to a popular dance step of the time, attributed to George "Shorty" Snowdon a champion African-American dancer at Harlem’s Savoy Ballroom and reputed inventor of the Lindy Hop or Jitterbug dance styles. Here, as in the "Pick Yourself Up" and "Bojangles of Harlem" numbers from Swing Time, Kern belied his claim that he couldn't write in the Swing style.
- "Wedding in the Spring": Overly sweet and soppy number performed tongue-in-cheek by Cugat’s band.
- "You Were Never Lovelier": A Kern melody, sung by Astaire to Hayworth, with a celebratory dance reprise at the film’s end, initiated by an armour-suited Astaire falling off a horse, and shedding his knight’s armour, only to reveal himself in white tie and tails. According to Astaire, the original dance number that followed the song was cut from the film after the preview as the studio felt it "held up the story".
- "These Orchids": Cugat's band provides an orchestral serenade in rumba style to Hayworth outside her bedroom window with this Kern melody.
External links
References
- Fred Astaire: Steps in Time, 1959, multiple reprints.
- John Mueller: Astaire Dancing - The Musical Films of Fred Astaire, Knopf 1985, ISBN 0-394-51654-0
