Rent Roberta (1935)
3.7 of 5 from 57 ratings
1h 45min
- General info
- Available formats
- Synopsis:
- Legendary producer Pandro S. Berman acquired this sell out Broadway success and turned it into a hit motion picture starring Fred Astaire and not one but two of the greatest stage and screen dancers Irene Dunne and Ginger Rogers. The magic of 1920's Paris is the backdrop as the City of Lights illuminates this film and also brings us the first great rendition of "Smoke Get's In Your Eyes". A template for future great Hollywood musicals. This is the third screen pairing of Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers.
- Actors:
- Irene Dunne, Fred Astaire, Ginger Rogers, Randolph Scott, Helen Westley, Claire Dodd, Victor Varconi, Luis Alberni, Ferdinand Munier, Torben Meyer, Adrian Rosley, Bodil Rosing, Lucille Ball, Hal Borne, Halbert Brown, Candy Candido, William Carey, Virginia Carroll, Lynne Carver, Diane Cook
- Directors:
- William A. Seiter
- Producers:
- Pandro S. Berman
- Writers:
- Jerome Kern, Otto A. Harbach, Alice Duer Miller, Jane Murfin, Sam Mintz, Allan Scott, Glenn Tryon, Dorothy Yost
- Others:
- Dorothy Fields, Jimmy McHugh
- Studio:
- Blackhorse Entertainment
- Genres:
- Classics, Comedy, Music & Musicals, Romance
- Collections:
- 10 Films to Watch if You Like: The Bishop's Wife, Dancing Queens: Guide to the Musical Films That'll, Films & TV by topic, Films by Genre, Films to Watch If You Like..., Fred and Ginger: Duets and Solos, Holidays Film Collection, Romantic Film Pairings for Valentine's Day
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Reviews (1) of Roberta
Musical Comedy. - Roberta review by Steve
Strange musical comedy which is a mishmash of miscellaneous ideas. There's Irene Dunne as a Russian aristocrat exiled in Paris who runs a fashion house and falls in love with a rich American jock (Randolph Scott). And there's Fred Astaire as a US jazz band leader abroad who romances Ginger Rogers, a compatriot posing as a Polish countess.
It feels like a classic Astaire and Rogers vehicle wedged into a subpar Ernst Lubitsch film. It's further unbalanced by some comisseration for the plight of Russian émigrés grubbing along in Paris since the 1917 revolution. It's the forgotten Fred And Ginger musical, yet there are some amazing numbers.
Of course, we get their wonderful dance routines together, especially the closing reprise to I Won't Dance. And a couple of songs by Otto Harbach and Jerome Kern are among the greatest compositions for musicals ever: Yesterdays and Smoke Get in Your Eyes. Though they are not presented in the fashion we are now used to.
Irene Dunne sings them in an operetta style, which was probably in keeping with the original Broadway versions. They are fine but far from definitive. Plus there's Hard to Handle and the Oscar nominated Lovely to Look At. And the exotic fashions and deco studio sets. It's a must-see for fans of Astaire and Rogers, but generally a mixed bag.
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