A great opening number that seems like it could have come from a hit Broadway show has the ghosts of this fictional European country dealing with invading enemies from Hungary. The reigning countess (Betty Grable) dealing with the head of the army (Douglas Fairbanks Jr.) while her husband (Cesar Romero) is in hiding, pretending to be a gypsy when he meets Fairbanks, gets help from the ghost of her grandmother, also Grable.
While this is beautifully photographed in Technicolor and features great costumes and sets, the problem is that Grable is far too modern appearing to be believable in a costume musical. So it's best to view this as a burlesque of operetta style musicals, such as how Mae West played Catherine the Great on stage, followed by Tallulah Bankhead in a similar variation on screen. Walter Abel, Reginald Gardiner and especially Harry Davenport are worthy in supporting parts.
It's ironic that the production team of that Bankhead comedy ("A Royal Scandal") Are involved in this with Ernst Lubitch, having originally been assigned to direct it and replaced by Otto Preminger after he padded away. The song "This is the Moment" that received an Oscar nomination is very pretty, and gets both a serious and comical version in its MacDonald and Eddy like duet. But I would have preferred a more serious version of the story minus the campiness, and unfortunately that would have meant a different leading lady. But I'll forever treasure that opening number that I easily could have seen performed by Judy Garland.
While this is beautifully photographed in Technicolor and features great costumes and sets, the problem is that Grable is far too modern appearing to be believable in a costume musical. So it's best to view this as a burlesque of operetta style musicals, such as how Mae West played Catherine the Great on stage, followed by Tallulah Bankhead in a similar variation on screen. Walter Abel, Reginald Gardiner and especially Harry Davenport are worthy in supporting parts.
It's ironic that the production team of that Bankhead comedy ("A Royal Scandal") Are involved in this with Ernst Lubitch, having originally been assigned to direct it and replaced by Otto Preminger after he padded away. The song "This is the Moment" that received an Oscar nomination is very pretty, and gets both a serious and comical version in its MacDonald and Eddy like duet. But I would have preferred a more serious version of the story minus the campiness, and unfortunately that would have meant a different leading lady. But I'll forever treasure that opening number that I easily could have seen performed by Judy Garland.