The legendary Claudette Colbert was usually presented as a free thinking, independent woman who dealt with her situations in typical Hollywood ladylike way in this third version of an old French play. Rarely did she get to show any spitfire, but that has come to an end as she plays a touring French cabaret performer with a bit of moxie who attracts all sorts of male attention and ends up the girlfriend to a sophisticated upperclass businessman (Herbert Marshall) whom she later finds out is married. A meeting with his wife and daughter changes her feelings about how she's going to handle that blockade in her relationship with him. When she becomes the toast of Paris, she scans the audience for his presence, hoping for a glimpse. It's Colbert at her most risque, and even showing a bit of temper and revealing her plotting nature which goes against the grain of her inner self.
There's really little plot and not really much performing other than the montage sequences and one song that comes out of nowhere, but it does show Bert Lahr clowing on stage, much like his character in the Broadway revival of "Burlesque" would do. Also on her side are Helen Westley as her feisty mother and Constance Collier as her devoted maid, but basically those two actresses are interchangeable and could easily have played each other's roles. The best scene comes when Colbert meets Marshall's friendly daughter (Ann Todd), having gone to his wife's apartment for a showdown and ending up with so much more. This is a very rare film, having had minimal TV showings and never released on video, perhaps more artistic than classic, yet giving Colbert a great character to sink her teeth into even if she really doesn't have a strong story to wrap those acting chops around. It is beautifully filmed with the typical George Cukor touch (on a rare loan-out to Paramount from MGM), filled with beautiful gowns and sets.
There's really little plot and not really much performing other than the montage sequences and one song that comes out of nowhere, but it does show Bert Lahr clowing on stage, much like his character in the Broadway revival of "Burlesque" would do. Also on her side are Helen Westley as her feisty mother and Constance Collier as her devoted maid, but basically those two actresses are interchangeable and could easily have played each other's roles. The best scene comes when Colbert meets Marshall's friendly daughter (Ann Todd), having gone to his wife's apartment for a showdown and ending up with so much more. This is a very rare film, having had minimal TV showings and never released on video, perhaps more artistic than classic, yet giving Colbert a great character to sink her teeth into even if she really doesn't have a strong story to wrap those acting chops around. It is beautifully filmed with the typical George Cukor touch (on a rare loan-out to Paramount from MGM), filled with beautiful gowns and sets.