What starts off as a Jeanette MacDonald and Nelson Eddy operetta in the mold of "Naughty Marietta" and "Rose Marie" ends up a Dorothy Lamour movie, and she's not even in it! Enemies of France are sent to New Orleans to be sold into slavery, and aboard their ship is a former French nobleman (Eddy) fighting against his own class who falls in love with noblewoman MacDonald. Eddy manages an escape, boards the same ship that MacDonald is on to head to Martinique, and what happens? The weather starts getting rough, the medium size ship is tossed, and the ship's aground on the shore of a tropic desert isle.
Believe it or not, operetta like this was still popular in 1940, with several long-running hits being revived on Broadway in the 40's and MacDonald and Eddy continuing in spite of weaker reviews and box office returns. "Lover, Come Back to Me" is as camp today as "Ah Sweet Nystery of Life" and "Indian Love Call" were in their first two hits. (Of their duets, "Will You Remember?" from "Maytime" remains the only one to come off as a serious love duet without the camp effect, but I think you can blame Mel Brooks for utilizing "Ah Sweet Mystery of Life" in "Young Frankenstein" for the camp elements of their duets being enlarged), but "Softly, as in a Morning Sunrise" is a beautiful solo for Eddy who gives a livelier performance than usual, especially in "Stout-Hearted Men". This is filled with a lively supporting cast, most notably Mary Boland, H.B. Warner and George Zucco. It is also lovely to look at and certainly one of the least high brow of the MacDonald/Eddy pairings.
Believe it or not, operetta like this was still popular in 1940, with several long-running hits being revived on Broadway in the 40's and MacDonald and Eddy continuing in spite of weaker reviews and box office returns. "Lover, Come Back to Me" is as camp today as "Ah Sweet Nystery of Life" and "Indian Love Call" were in their first two hits. (Of their duets, "Will You Remember?" from "Maytime" remains the only one to come off as a serious love duet without the camp effect, but I think you can blame Mel Brooks for utilizing "Ah Sweet Mystery of Life" in "Young Frankenstein" for the camp elements of their duets being enlarged), but "Softly, as in a Morning Sunrise" is a beautiful solo for Eddy who gives a livelier performance than usual, especially in "Stout-Hearted Men". This is filled with a lively supporting cast, most notably Mary Boland, H.B. Warner and George Zucco. It is also lovely to look at and certainly one of the least high brow of the MacDonald/Eddy pairings.