User Reviews

Hollywood movies of the 1930s and '40s frequently tried to stir up a rivalry between long-hair classical music and contemporary tunes. I find this attitude bizarre: surely it's possible to enjoy both modern *and* classical music. And if you only like one of the two, surely it makes sense to live and let listen, permitting others to enjoy music you don't choose to hear.

'The Champagne Waltz' is an enjoyable and well-made minor musical which unfortunately hangs its plot on that unnecessary rivalry. Paramount is my favourite of the Hollywood studios, the one that produced the funniest comedies of Hollywood's classic era. By my definition, the studio that made the best comedies was the best studio. I find it very intriguing, however, that Paramount churned out many musicals that were proficient and enjoyable, yet never in its entire history did Paramount produce a genuinely *great* musical. The nearest they came was probably 'Holiday Inn'. 'The Champagne Waltz' is delightful froth, but it's nobody's idea of a great musical.

Fred MacMurray was in real life a bandleader before his movie stardom, and the script of 'The Champagne Waltz' is shaped to show MacMurray's musical talents. He plays Buzzy Bellew, a brash Yank bandleader who brings his swing band to Vienna (of all places), where they hole up in a nightclub next-door over to a dance palace that favours classical music. The kapellmeister in residence there has the interesting name Franz Strauss, a monicker that evokes the names of at least three classical composers. Strauss is very well played by Fritz Leiber, a classically-trained actor who deserved to be much better known. (Full disclosure: Leiber's son Fritz Jnr was a friend of mine. He told me that Fritz Leiber Snr did all his own instrumental performing in this movie, with no dubbing.) Pretty soon, the brassy music from the swing band is chasing away the patrons of the waltz palace. Strauss's daughter Elsa -- an operatically-trained singer -- goes next door to give Buzzy a piece of her mind. Guess whom she falls in love with.

SPOILERS COMING. Fred MacMurray (not a nice guy in real life) usually played affable easy-goers on screen, but here his role has a bit of an edge and he plays it well. The script gives him an opportunity to demonstrate his considerable skill with several instruments. The film's ending is the obvious one, in which the proponents of jazz and classical music decide that both forms can co-exist after all. I was especially pleased with a nice bit at the very end of the film, in which the two bandmasters trade instruments and music. MacMurray takes Leiber's violin and plays a few notes of a classical piece. Not to be outdone, Leiber takes MacMurray's clarinet and blows a hot jazz lick. Cool, man! There's also a nice supporting cast, although Benny Baker (as always) is unfunny, and Maude Eburne (also as always) is so disgusting and annoying that I wanted to push her out the window. Despite their presence, this is a good-not-great musical, expertly directed by the brilliant Eddie Sutherland. I'll rate this movie 7 out of 10.

"Champagne Waltz" is a comedy that stars Gladys Swarthout, Fred MacMurray and Jack Oakie. It's not billed as a musical on the IMDb Web site, although Paramount promoted it as such. The IMDb mavens, with the advantage of hindsight, wisely label the film just for its prominent aspect and value. Although the plot is centered around music, there are so few actual songs sung and played. There is a lot of noisy background music in some scenes. Except for the early formal dance scene with the orchestra playing Strauss's Blue Danube, and a couple of songs by Swarthout, it's more noise than music, as Franz Strauss (played by Fritz Leiber) calls the American jazz band playing.

This is the third of four musical comedy films that Paramount made with Swarthout. She was a well known singer in the Metropolitan Opera of New York. Paramount was hoping to make her a movie star. She had a very good film persona and could act. But the material she got to perform in was strictly second class. Even with a co-star like Fred MacMurray, or the biggest stars of the day, these films wouldn't be big hits.

What little there is of Swarthout's singing is very good. But the goofy plot of this film instead has a terribly exaggerated picture of jazz music. MacMurray's American band is a big hit in Vienna, playing its exceptionally loud and noisy jazz along with some goofy routines. Five members of the band slither along the floor and bark and clap their hands in imitation of seals. It's really hard to believe that this would have been a sensation in Austria at any time and to have drawn all the business away from the Strauss Waltz palace. But that's the gist of this film

MacMurray was a musician before he got into films. In some of his early films, he sings and plays one or more instruments. Here he sings and plays woodwinds briefly - a clarinet and a saxophone. His character, Buzzy Bellew, isn't very likeable for most of the film. He seems to have been a consummate liar most of his life. Swarthout plays Elsa Strauss, the granddaughter of Franz Strauss. He is the son of the famous composer, Johann Strauss.

The relief in the film, and what keeps it from being an outright flop, is the comedy. It's not great stuff, but it's mixed situations and dialog throughout the film. Jack Oakie and some others of the supporting cast provide a few chuckles and smiles. Oakie plays Bellew's manager, Happy Gallagher. Vivienne Osborne, as Countess Mariska, provides the only hilarious comedy. She plays - or fakes it at being a fugitive member of the former Russian royalty. The film is never clear on this, so the little nagging question about that is part of the what makes her part so funny. She takes some of the Bellew's band members, one after the other, to the cleaners. Starting with Gallagher, she lures them to her apartment. He intercepts her note to the second trombone player. It reads, "I will be waiting for you in the lounge. You will recognize me immediately. I am very beautiful. Countess Mariska."

In her apartment, the countess pitches a sob story about having to sell her precious silver tea set that had been given to her father by the Czar. Each pigeon winds up buying the tea set, and promises to keep it a secret. Ergo, the continuing success of the same ploy time after time. The scenes with her pigeons and the instantaneous returns of her butler with the wrapped tea are very, very funny. I don't recall having seen another movie with so many actors doing double-takes. And, a later scene shows where and how the countess gets so many of the tea sets. Gallagher happens across her at a carnival shooting gallery. Her shots hit every target and she does a couple Annie Oakley shots over her shoulder using a mirror held in one hand. Gallagher sure as heck isn't going to raise a fuss with a sharpshooter like the countess, even after she takes the top prize from the stand owner - a silver tea set.

All of that makes this film worthwhile. It drags some toward the end as the screenwriters, director and studio must have struggled to bring the romance to a closure and end the film. But for the comedy, this would have been a pretty dull and distasteful film to watch. Here are some of the few humorous lines form this film.

Max Snellinek, played by Herman Bing, "There is no king. This is a republic." Happy Gallagher, "Fair enough. Bring me the republicans then."

Happy Gallagher, "All the years I've known you, you've never told the truth - not once. What's the matter with you anyway?" Buzzy Bellew, "Who wants the truth? A good lie is more fun to tell and more fun to listen to any day."

Countess Mariska, "We who are the victims of the revolution must be cautious. You will come to my apartment, yes?"