Roberta (1935)

Powerful

Excellent but underrated film

If the ambition is to provide two hours of instantly forgettable, popcorn-munching escapism, it succeeds.

The film creates a perfect balance between action and depth of basic needs, in the midst of an infertile atmosphere.

Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers. To most, the names conjure up certain films: Top Hat, Swing Time, Shall We Dance. FG have a surprisingly large amount of "unknown" films, some of which arguably deserve their status, some of which arguably don't. Roberta is one of the latter. To me, it's the most undeservedly underrated of the FG films.Roberta doesn't emphasize the FG partnership. They are, like Follow the Fleet, the "second fiddle" couple. It could be called only technically a FG film; however, in the limited screen time they have, Fred and Ginger create a believable relationship, breathing life into their characters. That's the most important part of Roberta - its characters, as frothy as they may be, feel alive.Roberta is not like any of the popular FG films. It's not a silly confection brimming with antics. It has no Edward Everett Horton, Victor Moore, or Erik Blore. Of course, there isn't anything wrong with the silly confections - I enjoy them myself - but the added dimensions of Roberta give it that special life. It has poignancy, for all its fluffy subject matter. Like milk chocolate sprinkled with salt, it doesn't leave an overly sweet aftertaste; instead it leaves a sense of warmth because its happy ending feels real.On to the actors, starting with Irene Dunne. Roberta is the only film with Irene I've watched, and she impressed me. Apparently, she's known as a talented comedienne; however, her dramatic moments were what left an impact. The way she handled herself spoke volumes about her character, and never verged on the stereotypical. I sympathized with and liked her. She held her own but wasn't painted as disagreeable or illogical. Her singing was sweet, fit the songs, and didn't seem unrealistic (since it was her real voice!).Randolph Scott was also a pleasant surprise. My first exposure to him was in Follow the Fleet, where I disliked him, and so I was expecting the worst from his character in Roberta; but he was, as the script says, a big goofy Newfoundland. He played the role well! His character is a naive, somewhat sheltered man from inland America, and it shows. His opinions and behavior make sense given his background. Even in his more disagreeable moments I wasn't annoyed with him - rather, he was endearing.As a couple, John and Stephanie have more chemistry than might be expected. At their first meeting you can easily see their interest in each other. He's naive while she's sophisticated, and their personalities do clash eventually, but it's not fueled by blatant clichés. Even their reconciliation takes a bit of time. I also never got the feeling that either would control the relationship: they felt like equals.Fred plays, as he often did, a musical character, and does it with his usual aplomb. There's never much to say about his characters, but I will say that his sass comes across brilliantly - he gets many snappy lines and delivers them beautifully.Ginger is proof of how Roberta veers away from the usual storytelling clichés. At first glance, she's playing a Polish countess; very early on, Fred discovers she's an old friend of his, but this is never exploited for any hijinks. Ginger retains her persona, drops her guard around Fred, does a great job with both roles, and that's that. She has a chance to play both broad (as the countess) and subtler (as herself) comedy, which gives her more detail than the accented comedic hothead she at first appears to be.FG utilize the old-acquaintance part of their characters to great effect. One of the greatest numbers in the film is I'll Be Hard To Handle, which begins with FG chatting humorously about growing up back in the US. You feel they really did know each other, really are getting reacquainted. Both of them speak frankly about the relationship, and when things develop further, it feels entirely natural. What's more, there are no dramatic kisses or embraces - the relationship feels real. It's different than the main relationship but equally plausible.There aren't many supporting characters, outside from John's aunt Millie, his old flame the rich society girl, and a few others. None of them get much to do, but there's really only one character who stands out as being particularly stereotypical - the owner of a Parisian nightclub, who invited Fred's band over thinking they were (Native American) Indians rather than "Indianians" and yells about this almost every time he appears. But hey, the rest of the film makes up for his antics.Outside of the cast, the score is the main highlight. Jerome Kern's songs provide almost all of the film's poignancy. Even Lovely To Look At has a soft, fond edge. Yesterdays, sung by Irene in a pivotal scene, is one of the saddest songs found in an F&G movie: about the tragedies of lost youth, time, innocence and joys, it isn't at all overdramatic. Smoke Gets In Your Eyes is similar; the arrangement that plays during the penultimate FG dance number is one of my favorite instrumentals in a film. One of the weaker songs is actually an upbeat one, Let's Begin, performed by Fred; but the film doesn't lack good upbeat numbers. I'll Be Hard To Handle is catchy, cute, and leads into a lovely number, while I Won't Dance is enjoyable too.It's difficult to sum up my love for Roberta. It's like comfort food, but without that guilty-pleasure edge. It's got a witty dialogue; pretty sets given life by the acting; FG, both playful and romantic in dancing; a sympathetic main relationship that steers clear of clichés; humor balanced by poignancy, tragedy balanced by success, heartbreak balanced by romance. It's got lovely music, beautiful people, a world you want to live in. It glows. Roberta is unique and underrated.

Football player Randolph Scott and his dancer friend Fred Astaire go to Paris where Scott winds up running a ritzy dress shop and Fred reunites with old flame Ginger Rogers passing herself off as a countess. Scott also finds himself torn between two women -- fashion designer Irene Dunne and his snobbish ex-girlfriend Claire Dodd.It's not a bad movie; it's actually pretty good with nice songs and some likable characters. Unfortunately, for Fred & Ginger fans, this isn't a showcase for them. They take a back seat to Randolph Scott and Irene Dunne. Irene even sings some songs but be warned it's that operatic style that was popular in movies of the period that not everybody will be crazy about today. Scott does fine and isn't nearly as stiff as I've seen some reviewers describe him. His character is pretty corny ("Gee, you're swell") but intentionally so. Fish out of water and all that. Whenever they are on screen, Fred and Ginger sparkle. They're the highlight of the movie, whether it's their dance routines or just their playful banter. They had such wonderful chemistry. Songs include "I Won't Dance," "Lovely to Look At," and "Smoke Gets in Your Eyes". That last one is butchered by Irene Dunne due to her aforementioned singing style. Despite that and some other flaws, it's an enjoyable movie. Not one of Fred & Ginger's best but good. Oh and, for those interested in that sort of thing, there's a fashion show at the end. Pay attention and you'll notice Lucille Ball is one of the models.

1935 film ruined by the ridiculous plot.Fred Astaire and Randolph Scott land in Paris for a gig only to be turned down. Astaire's friend, Ginger Rogers, gets them and their band a job. Suddenly, we're told that Scott is a football player coming with Astaire to visit his Aunt Roberta, the owner of a fine dress shop with Irene Dunne as her assistant.Dunne's voice was never lovelier. Rogers masquerading as a European lady with an accent does her dance routines with Astaire so admirably well. The story goes down hill once the aunt, Helen Westley, dies in her sleep and Scott inherits the business.Scott falls for Dunne but his old flame appears and that sets the stage for conflict.They both walk out on the business and Astaire is left holding the bag to run it until cooler heads prevail. Yes, the plot is ludicrous, but Can't Dance, Smoke Gets in Your Eyes and other melodies are memorable.Is it any wonder that Scott stuck mostly to westerns after this film?

Huckleberry Haines (Fred Astaire) and his band, the Wabash Indianians, arrive at Le Havre, in France, for a season in a Russian nightclub. However, the owner Alexander Petrovitch Moskovich Voyda (Luis Alberni) expects the arrival of an Indian band and he calls off their contract.Haines and the band head to Paris, and his friend John Kent (Randolph Scott) decides to visit his Aunt Minnie (Helen Westley), who owns the fashion house Roberta, to use her influence to find a work for the band. John meets the manager Stephanie (Irene Dunne) and they immediately feel attracted for each other. Huck Haines meets in the Roberta's salon his old friend Liz with the artistic identity of Comtesse Scharwenka (Ginger Rogers) and she helps him to get a job with Voyda. When Aunt Minnie passes away, John Kent is the heir of her fortune and also Roberta. However he decides to give the fashion house for Stephanie, but she proposes a partnership between them two. But when John's old passion, the gold digger Sophie Teale (Claire Dodd) seeks out John, the infatuated Stephanie decides to leave the business and travel abroad with the Russian Prince Ladislaw (Victor Varconi)."Roberta" is an adorable musical with one of the most beautiful songs of the cinema ever. With music by Jerome Kern and lyrics by Otto A. Harbach, "Smoke Gets in Your Eyes" is performed by Irene Dunne. The plot is naive, but the musical numbers, the dances and the fashion parade are delightful. My vote is seven.Title (Brazil): "Roberta"