89 min. Black and White
Love me Tonight is a madcap musical tour de force of infectious melody, effortless vivacity, and ceaseless invention from first frame to last. Building on a foundation of songs by Rodgers and Hart (Babes in Arms, Pal Joey), director Rouben Mamoulian (Applause) shepherds Maurice Chevalier and Jeanette MacDonald through an exuberant romp that film maven Leslie Halliwell declared, ""the most fluently cinematic comedy musical ever made.""
Carefree tailor Maurice Chevalier leaves a backlot Paris where music literally radiates from every stoop, sidewalk, and boudoir to collect on a past due bill at a recalcitrant artistocratic client's family chateau. Mistaken for royalty, Maurice runs a gauntlet of lunatic blue-bloods, including love-happy Myrna Loy and screwball icon Charlie Ruggles. But it is Princess Jeanette MacDonald's closely guarded heart that Maurice desires and it will take every ounce of his ingenious pluck to woo her without revealing his well-meaning romantic deception.
Rouben Mamoulian nimbly packs Love Me Tonight with enough high-spirited cinematic invention to fill a dozen films. Using everything from zoom lenses to slow motion (both unheard of in 30s Hollywood), Mamoulian erased the lines that defined the musical genre, breaking rules that were still being established. Bravura musical performances, cheeky pre-code innuendo, and astonishing modern filmic touches are blended into a showstopping movie confection decades ahead of its time. Available for the first time on DVD, Love Me Tonight is an assuredly spontaneous musical milestone fo sophisticated absurdity an risqué enchantment.
Extras on DVD
•Maurice Chevalier sings ""Louise""
•Jeanette MacDonald sings ""Love Me Tonight"" (form the Paramount newsreel series Hollywood on Parade
•Audio commentary and booklet essay by Miles Kreuger, founder and president of the Institute of the American Musical, Inc.
•Original theatrical trailer
•Screenplay excerpts of deleted scenes
•Production documents and censorship records
•Gallery of photos and promotional material