We were dancing

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Movie
Original title We were dancing
Country of production United States
original language English
Publishing year 1942
length 95 minutes
Rod
Director Robert Z. Leonard
script Claudine West
George Froeschel
production Robert Z. Leonard for MGM
music Bronislau caper
camera Robert H. Planck
cut George Boemler
occupation

We Were Dancing is a 1942 American comedy film starring Norma Shearer and Melvyn Douglas . The film was directed by Robert Z. Leonard . The script is based on two one-act plays from Noël Cowards Tonight at 8:30 .

action

The wealthy lawyer Hubert Tyler is about to marry the Polish Princess Victoria Wilomirska. But just on the evening of the engagement, the completely destitute Austrian Baron Nicholas Prax turns up. The inevitable happens: Victoria and Nicholas fall madly in love with each other. They run away, get married and then Victoria learns what kind of man she has married: Nicholas makes his living accompanying older women. After a year the love is over and Vicky wants to go back to Hubert. Everything is going well, but during the court divorce hearing, Nicky represents himself and forces Vicky to swear under oath in front of everyone present how much she still loves him. A few more, all harmless entanglements follow, before the two finally trust each other again.

background

Norma Shearer's career had gone one way after marrying Irving Thalberg : up. With the advent of sound film Shearer was appointed the "First Lady of the talkies" and the "Queen of MGM". She had unrestricted access to the best technicians, makeup artists and costume designers and only appeared in A-productions. But the death of Thalberg in 1936 ended their rule. After some public disputes with the studio over the legacy of Thalberg, Shearer agreed on a contract for six films with a fee of 150,000 US dollars each. The studio offered the actress numerous good roles, including Susan and God and Mrs. Miniver , but Shearer turned it down. Her career finally ended in 1942 with appearances in two salon comedies, We Were Dancing and Her Cardboard Lover , both of which flopped at the box office. The actress turned down offers to move to competing studios such as Warner Brothers or 20th Century Fox , who then withdrew more and more into her private life, which she shared with her second husband, who was 20 years her junior.

Theatrical release

The cost of production was $ 1,085,000, which was the average budget for an A-movie at MGM at the time. At the box office, the film flopped across the board. In the United States played We Were Dancing catastrophic 581,000 US dollars, to which only further 498,000 US dollars from abroad were added. With cumulative box office earnings of just $ 1,079,000, the studio ended up losing $ 409,000.

Reviews

The critics rightly pointed out that this type of frivolous comedy was not only out of date, but also openly contradicted the current situation of the war.

Bosley Crowther , a long-time fan of the actress, found particularly praiseworthy words in The New York Times for the clothes Shearer wore, which is never a positive sign. He said the costumes would take your breath away (“ Miss Shearer wears clothes that will knock your eye out. ”).

Variety was clearer with the reference to the rather old-fashioned events from the better society on the screen, which would not fit the current events at all (" such uppercrust antics ... seem entirely out of place in times like these. " ).

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