The song of the golden west

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Movie
German title The song of the golden west
Original title Can't Help Singing
Country of production United States
original language English
Publishing year 1944
length 87 minutes
Rod
Director Frank Ryan
script Lewis R. Foster
John D. Klorer
production Felix Jackson
for Universal Pictures
music Jerome Kern
camera Elwood Bredell
W. Howard Greene
cut Ted J. Kent
occupation

The song of the golden west (original title: Can't Help Singing , alternative title: Das Lied des Wilden Westens ) is an American film musical filmed in Technicolor with western elements from 1944 with Deanna Durbin in the lead role.

action

Washington at the time of the gold rush: Senator Martin Frost disapproves of the romance between his daughter Caroline and Lt. Robert Latham. He persuades James K. Polk , President of the United States, to send Latham to California in the hope that Caroline's feelings will quickly cool down. But the young lady has her own plans and just gets on the next train to the west. The concerned father is offering a $ 5,000 reward for whoever brings his daughter back safely. Caroline has meanwhile switched from the train to the covered wagon to follow her lover. On the way there is still a lot of mix-up before Caroline realizes that she actually loves the daredevil Johnny Lawler.

background

After appearing as the disaffected hostess and wife of a psychopathic murderer in Christmas Holiday , Deanna Durbin returned to the genre of light comedy with plenty of vocal interludes with Can't Help Singing . The studio invested a lot of money in the production, most of which was filmed on location in Utah and Technicolor . In contrast to other popular singing stars of the era such as Alice Faye , Betty Grable or Judy Garland , Deanna Durbin has so far only appeared in black and white films, mainly to keep the costs of her productions under control. The renowned composer Jerome Kern wrote the film music, among which the pieces Cant't Help Singing and Califor-i-ay in particular became hits for Deanna Durbin. Walter Plunkett , who as a designer had already designed the costumes for Gone With the Wind , dressed the star in a wide range of elaborate ensembles. Even in the middle of the wilderness, Durbin wears a new dress with ruffles, flounces and matching gloves and hat in every scene. The film was a huge box office hit, but Deanna Durbin's career was drawing to a close. Over the years, their relationship with the studio had become increasingly mutual. Both sides had different ideas about the further development of their image, but could not come to an agreement in the long term. A cost of $ 2,600,000 made The Song of the Golden West one of the studio's most expensive productions.

music

As usual in a Deanna Durbin film, there are numerous musical interludes. Jerome Kern composed the music. In the course of the plot, the following pieces of music are used and sometimes repeated several times:

  • Can't Help Singing
  • Elbow Room
  • Any moment now
  • Swing your sweetheart
  • More and more
  • Californ-i-ay

Awards

The film went to the 1946 Academy Awards with two nominations :

  • Best Song - More and More (Jerome Kern and EY Harburg)
  • Best film music (music film) - Jerome Kern, Hans J. Salter

criticism

Bosley Crowther of the New York Times found the amount of excellent songs to be the best thing about the cheesy color film.

Variety described the film as a bright, colorful and cheerful film musical. The melodies by Jerome Kern and the accented camera work in Technicolor are remarkable.

The lexicon of international films saw the work as a "romantic western drama with lavish equipment, thin plot and soulful music".

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Review of the New York Times (English)
  2. ↑ Critique of Variety (English)
  3. ↑ The Song of the Golden West. In: Lexicon of International Films . Film service , accessed June 12, 2019 .Template: LdiF / Maintenance / Access used