Can't Help Singing (1944)

I love this movie so much

I'll tell you why so serious

It's an amazing and heartbreaking story.

The tone of this movie is interesting -- the stakes are both dramatic and high, but it's balanced with a lot of fun, tongue and cheek dialogue.

In perhaps her only color appearance on film, Deanna Durbin is at her prettiest, spunkiest, wittiest and romantic best. Long before Doris Day sang about her secret love to the clouds and daffodils and Jane Powell sang in a glorious meadow about a wonderful, wonderful day, Durbin sang a love song overlooking the grand canyon. She's in love with army officer Robert Paige over the objections of her senator father (Ray Collins) and runs away to follow him to California. But missing her stagecoach, she ends up on a wagon train, involved with Indians, two phony European noblemen (really petty thieves) and a handsome cowboy, pretty much winning the affections of her traveling companions, winning over the audience as well.Some lovely Jerome Kern songs aide Durbin in her scintillating performance, surrounded by a great supporting cast. The former Aunt Polly and Auntie Em (Clara Blandick) gets some great lines in her small role as Durbin's understanding aunt. Akom Tamiroff, Leonoid Kinskey and David Bruce are also memorable in supporting parts. A subplot involving a supposed arranged marriage between chunky Thomas Gomez provides an amusing misunderstanding between Durbin and Paige. The beautiful photography, witty script and Durbin's charm makes this one a complete winner. The final reprise of the title song makes this absolutely magical.

Yup, even though I am a Deanna Durbin fan, I'll still recommend that you to skip this one.There were lovely sets, strange costume designs and good people in it, but the script dragged, there was no continuity between musical numbers, and very little creativity. And the songs looked like the director forgot about them and a studio head said, "Slap some in!" But the color was nice.The sad part was that the premise could have made for a great film - a drama with a lot of comedy, just like life. After all, taking a spoiled rich girl and stick her in the harsh environs of a wagon train with rather unscrupulous individuals will cause some very interesting results. But this was soooo poorly executed that I found myself having to take multiple breaks just to get through it. (I know I should have just shut it off, but that's what happens when you are a fan.) Add a star if you are a die-hard fan and plan to be bored. If you are not a fan or just starting, your time is better spent watching the grass grow.

This Durbin vehicle had just three songs worthy of Jerome Kern and E. Y. Harburg: "More and More," "Californ-i-ay," and the title song. These are really wonderful pieces, which fortunately recur throughout on a regular basis.The Technicolor is indeed glorious, and there's nothing wrong with the casting. It's also true that Durbin looks radiant in her first color film.Alas, the rest of the score is a disappointment, simply lacking in inspiration. They try to beef it up with production values, to little avail. Likewise, the script's just not quite up to Deanna's standards. One can admire the costumes, staging, photography--and those three songs. Durbin fans will be probably be pleased with everything here; others, probably less so.It's easy to see the Durbin magic as she lights up the screen with charisma and her beautiful voice. A pleasant trifle for the Durbin DVD "Sweetheart Pack."

Deanna Durbin's one Technicolor movie gives her a decent showcase, and adds a Jerome Kern score plus plenty of good settings and scenery, to make for enjoyable light entertainment and pleasant viewing. Its pluses include Durbin's singing and the colorful outdoors photography.The period setting makes it different from the stories in most of Durbin's other movies, but fortunately her character (an independent-minded Senator's daughter) is similar enough to many of her other roles, in giving her a lively character with a variety of material to work with. (It wasn't really necessary, though, to make her hair so much lighter - her dark hair would have looked great in color.) The settings range from 1840s Washington DC to the unsettled expanses of the Old West. In itself, the period atmosphere works pretty well, and it also throws in one or two ironic details along the way.As Durbin's co-star, Robert Paige is a bit bland as a character, but his singing is up to par. Akim Tamiroff has a good role as one of the scamps heading west with Durbin's character. In smaller roles, Ray Collins and Thomas Gomez give good performances. The combination of Durbin's voice, energy, and charm with the period story and settings works rather well.