Review of Love Me Tonight (1932) by Devon B — 28 Nov 2011

Maurice Chevalier stars as a tailor who, in order to collect a debt from an aristocrat customer, poses as a baron (and falls in love with a princess). Of course, at some point the truth must come out, and then we find out if true love will prevail over a little white lie.

No, you don't have to watch many romantic comedies to know this storyline is well-worn, but "Love Me Tonight" isn't like those other movies. It's an absurdist musical. The princess (Jeanette MacDonald) has a stuffy old uncle, the Viscount (Charles Ruggles), and the songs he sings have lyrics like "I'd rather throw a bomb at her than have her wed a commoner" in them.

There's also some references to "Macbeth" thrown in, as well as an amazing, sprawling version of "Isn't It Romantic?" that was so well done it might've been 20 years ahead of its' time.

If you're unfamiliar with Maurice Chevalier, or only know him from "Gigi", you might be surprised by the amount of charisma the guy gives off (or maybe not, if you're familiar with "Pepe le Pew", his homage).

The last five minutes or so, with it's rousing songs ("the son-of-a-gun is nothing but a tailor!") and outstanding slapstick, could easily hold it's place with any Marx brothers movie, and the overall charm and character of this film should convince you it deserves to be mentioned in the same breath as the other great musicals of that era.