Customer Reviews

Rose Marie [VHS]

5 star:		(26)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

There have been surprisingly few performers in the history of movies who have possessed operatic type voices. Mario Lanza, Kathryn Grayson, and Nelson Eddy and Jeanette MacDonald very nearly completes the list, though a nod should be made to Allan Jones, who, though never a star, managed a few notable appearances in various films, including two Marx Brothers films (A NIGHT AT THE OPERA) and this film, as Romeo to Jeanette MacDonald's Juliet early in the movie, and in TOSCA, near the end.

Jeanette MacDonald and Nelson Eddy were, therefore, a unique aberration in the history of cinema history, the only operatic partnership in Hollywood, ever. They were the operatic equivalent of Astaire and Rogers, and if their films never achieved the polish or brilliance of those two, they nonetheless managed to make some very fine films. ROSE MARIE is probably their most famous, and perhaps their finest.

The various renderings of "Indian Love Call" in the film are what the film is best known for, but upon reviewing the film last night with my daughter (who loved it, although she found many moments so embarrassing that she had to hide her head under a pillow, especially during the movie's closing moments), I was amazed at how enjoyable the movie is as a whole. The movie is delightful from beginning to end, gorgeous to look at (filmed, unfortunately, at Lake Tahoe, instead of the Canadian Rockies), and infinitely less dated than one might expect from an operatically driven 1936 comedy. The movie was also enhanced from a barrage of excellent supporting players. Reginald Owen, David Niven, Alan Mowbray, Una O'Connor, the aforementioned Allan Jones, and Jimmy Conlin (familiar to anyone who has seen many Preston Sturges comedies) provide a deep cast. Jimmy Stewart has a smallish role in the last film he made before becoming a lead actor.

One of the more intriguing segments was filmed at an actual Indian camp. Visually, it is a stunning sequence, but unfortunately MGM in the best Hollywood fashion marred the scene with added orchestral music and choreography. And no, this is not the film that breaks the mould by having an actual Native American play a Native American. George Regas, who made a career out of playing Indians, was actually born in Greece.

I don't know what kept me away from this movie so long. I'd seen it so many times browsing the shelves at the library, but had no idea who was in it or what it was about. Then I saw The Whale Who Wanted to Sing at the Met, got entranced with baritones all of a sudden (yes, me the tenor fanatic), and decided to see some of Nelson Eddy's movies... the first one was The Phantom of the Opera, which I have reviewed separately, then I saw The Chocolate Soldier and I Married an Angel, which I shall review separately later, and then this one. Besides the fact that Nelson cuts a dashing figure in the spiffy uniform (okay, so the britches ARE a bit weird), I found it an incredibly touching, sweet little story, and also enjoyed all the songs. Coming from me that says a lot, because I am not in the least a musical fan - there are very few musicals I count as favourites.

Nelson and Jeannette have the ability to be very spontaneous in dialogue and work very well together, even depsite the fact that Nelson can be rather stiff at times - his singing more than makes up for it.

One thing I found particuarly striking was the scene toward the end when Jeannette is singing "Tosca": she is literally cracking up. We can hear what she hears - Nelson's Indian love call - and feel the discord between it and the words she must sing on stage. It reaches a pitch and then she faints.

I also felt that for a lightweight piece of "fluff" the character development wasn't half-bad, either - Right from the beginning it's well-established that as far as Jeannette is concerned the entire world revolves around her, so as the movie progresses it's good to see how Jeannette turns from a selfish, slave-driving diva to a sprightly, energetic, loving human being. Not everyone has the opportunity to cross the Canadian mountains with a mountie (unfortunately!), but I'm sure that figuratively there is something like that in each person's life, some backwoods experience that creates real character because of the necessity of facing adversity, learning what sacrifice and love are all about, and that life isn't all "me", and sometimes we have to eat bacon...

I found the totem pole dance scene rather amusing as well. I was very into Indians for a long time as a child, and learnt quite a bit about them, so it struck me funny that this tribe had it all - the totem poles of the Pacific Northwest, the feathered headdresses and tipis of the Plains... Still, it was an interesting sequence, despite the fact that it was very 1930's Hollywood and far from authentic.

James Stewart's small role as Jeannette's brother was fine as well - it was interesting how he really was only on screen for a few minutes, but all through the film, you were seeing the wanted posters and thinking about him to a point where he was really a main character.

I recommend this film very much, along with The Chocolate Soldier, which is another truly delightful musical.

Rudoph Friml's "Rose Marie", filmed in the 1930s, stands strong, even in 2001. Its stars shine as a memorial to the era. At her elegant best as an opera singer seeking to save her brother, a young Jimmy Stewart, from a life of crime, Jeanette MacDonald follows his trail to the Canadian Rockies. There, Royal Mounted Police Sgt. Bruce played by Nelson Eddy, committed to his duty as an officer of law, uses MacDonald, (Rose Marie) as a decoy to get his man. Their words of love are painfully sacrificed in the echoing hollows of the magnificent Northwest. The music haunts the story throughout. The pace of the drama is flawlessly done, directed with total honesty to Friml's artistry. No detail is overlooked in this poignant drama of idealistic love, so masterfully commanded by both MacDonald and Eddy. It's almost as if they were not acting at all.

Considered by many to be the best of the Eddy/MacDonald cannon, "Rose Marie", while not my personal fave, is nevertheless quite good and makes for an excellent introduction to their films. MacDonald is a tempermental opera diva with a soft spot for her criminal brother (James Stewart) and Eddy is a Canadian Mountie sworn to capture said brother. They end up searching for him together through the Rockies, making time to sing the famous "Indian Love Call".

Other songs include "The Mounties", snippets of "Tosca" and "Romeo et Juliette" and the title song. The music is good, the costumes are stunning, and the secenery is, well, scenic. Jeanette and Nelson have great chemistry as always, and there are plenty of light moments to offset the angst. We also get to see a very young Jimmy Stewart and a huge Indian tribal dance number. What more could you want?

If you like "Rose Marie", be sure to check out "Naughty Marietta" (my favorite Nelson/MacDonald) and the tragic "Maytime". Jeanette and Eddy made a total of eight films together, most of them wildly popular. Watch "Rose Marie" and know why. GRADE: A-

Rose Marie is a wonderful movie for all ages. The story of a fiery tempered opera star and the mounty sent to arrest her brother. This movie is great the chemistry between Jeanette MacDonald and Nelson Eddy is great. This movie includes such great songs as "Indian Love Call" and "Rose Marie". It's one of the best of the MacDonald and Eddy movies.

If ever a film deserved the label "classic romance," Rose Marie is the one. It starts out kinda slow, but gradually builds to a heartwrenching climax. Marie de Flor (Jeanette MacDonald) is an opera star who learns her brother, John Flower (James Stewart) has escaped from prison, allegedly killing a Canadian Royal Mounted Police in the process, and is in hiding. De Flor hires an Indian guide to take her to him. Along the way into the Canadian wilderness, she meets up with Sgt. Bruce (Nelson Eddy), the Mounty tracking down her brother. She starts to give him a false name, "Rose . . ." but he recognizes her as a star, and assumes her full name is Rose Marie de Flor. Sgt. Bruce is immediately attracted to de Flor, but before long he guesses her relationship Flower, his prey. It's one of the all time classic dilemmatic situations as love develops between the two, who are each using the other to their own, opposite ends. De Flor depends on Bruce to survive the rugged trek through the wilderness, not knowing how much he knows; he expects her to lead him to her brother, while pretending to be along to protect her. I don't think it's ever been done more effectively, with "Indian Love Call" adding a haunting effect all the while. The cast also includes Reginald Owen, Alan Mowbray, Una O'Connor, and David Niven in an early, one scene, bit part.

WHAT MORE CAN YOU ASK? THIS MOVIE MAY BE OLD AND BLACK AND WHITE - BUT IF YOU LIKE CLEAN MOVIES WITH OLD FASHIONED MUSIC, ADVENTURE AND ROMANCE, WITH A TOUCH OF COMEDY - YOU WILL ENJOY THIS VERY MUCH. YOU WILL ALSO CATCH A GLIMPSE OF A VERY YOUNG JIMMY STEWART, PLAYING AN UNEXPECTED ROLE, IN PERHAPS HIS FIRST MOVIE. I HAVE SEEN IT MANY TIMES AND ENJOY IT EACH TIME I SEE IT.

Until and unless Turner/MGM releases this movie on DVD in the USA, this Brazilian DVD version is a great alternative to the VHS tape released in the 90s. Even though it is a foreign release, the movie is in English; the speaking voices of all the actors are the originals and so are the singing voices. The DVD is "All Region" and plays on USA Region 1 DVD players. The only drawback, which is not much of a drawback, is that the text on the DVD cover and Menu are in Portugese, but it only takes a few seconds to figure out how to "turn off" the Portugese subtitles and to get the movie started. Then the fun begins.

This was the 2nd pairing of Nelson Eddy & Jeanette MacDonald and is the movie for which they are best remembered. Opera prima donna, Marie de Flor (Jeanette), who is the terror of her entire staff, has time in her life for only one man: her younger brother. When she learns he has killed a Royal Canadian Mounted Police officer during a daring prison escape, she goes in search of him, intending to help him flee the country. Along the way, she meets Sgt. Bruce, the RCMP officer sent to bring her brother to justice. She allows Bruce the misconception that her first name is Rose Marie, but is surprised to discover he recognizes her for the opera star she is. Just as their mutual attraction blossoms, Bruce realizes the true reason for her visit, but when he goes to her hotel to confront her, he finds she has vanished and sets off after her, figuring she will eventually lead him to her brother.

Circumstances reunite the couple and in the ensuing days during their trek through the rugged and scenic wilderness, they fall in love. But the Mountie won't allow his love to interfere with his commitment to duty and when given the opportunity, he arrests her brother. Rose Marie is left behind with a broken heart and a deep sense of betrayal that sends her emotional and physical health on a downward spiral, until she and Bruce are reunited in a touching final scene.

Two relative newcomers to the Hollywood scene make notable appearances in this movie. David Niven has a brief role as one of Marie's eager suitors and Jimmy Stewart is terrific in the role of her convict brother.

Even Louis B. Mayer's attempt to ruin Nelson Eddy's appeal to fans by ordering his makeup grossly overdone and his scenes kept to a minimum couldn't destroy the chemistry between Nelson and Jeanette, who were engaged to each other in real life during much of the filming of this movie. Add to that, their wonderful voices blending in the memorable Indian Love Call and their very able portrayals of their characters and this movie is worth every second of viewing.

Rose Marie is one of my favorite films. America's Sweethearts go to a Pow Wow! Wow! Being part Apache myself, it's fun to watch the strange way Indians, in this case Canadians, are portrayed in this film. I was not offended. I don't even mind that the "half-breed" character was played by a Greek actor. There's too much to like here. A little romance blown up to universal proportions is fun sometimes. There's always something new on each viewing. I hope we're not too jaded and cynical today to get lost in a little light romance.

Rose Marie has it all. Wonderful music, a great story. Good clean entertainment. As for acting, this is Jeanette's and Nelson's best. It is also the first movie Jimmy Stewart was in.
2 of my favorite scenes is when Jeanette and Nelson are in the canoe and he is singing to her. They other scene is she is hungry and he his cooking beans. The looks on their faces are perfectly acted.