Review of The Gay Divorcee (1934) by Jonathan R — 29 Aug 2009

The general plot style is pretty familiar to fans of the dance team of Astaire and Rogers--they meet, they hate each other, they fall in love, they hate each other again and they make up in the end and live happily ever after. Yet despite this, the film is amusing and captivating.

Historically speaking, this is a super-important film, as it was the first film to star Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers in the lead. While they had danced together in a prior film, Flying Down to Rio, they were only supporting actors and the film lacked the beautiful chemistry and artistry of a true Astaire and Rogers film. Amazingly enough, even though this was their first starring film together, it is among their absolute best. It's really hard to say whether this or Top Hat is their best film. I tend to very slightly prefer TOP HAT because the songs are the best of any of their films, but this one is nearly as good and is definitely more original. And what's not to like about the film?! The acting, dancing, class, sophistication, direction and writing were all top-notch and make this among the best musicals ever made.