Why I'm still thinking about The Merry Widow (1935)

Is this movie worth your time today? Absolutely. Especially if you want to see what 'naughty' looked like in 1934 before the censors really ruined everything.

If you like sparkly dresses and people who burst into song for no reason, you'll love it. If you can't stand old-fashioned singing that sounds like a bird trapped in a flute, maybe skip it. 🥂

I sat down to watch this expecting something dusty. Instead, I got a movie that feels like it’s constantly winking at me.

The story is basically about a place called Marshovia. It’s a tiny kingdom where everyone wears uniforms that look like they were stolen from a toy soldier. 💂‍♂️

Jeanette MacDonald plays Sonia, the widow. She has all the money in the country, and she decides to leave for Paris because she’s bored.

The King gets terrified. If she leaves and marries a foreigner, the country goes bankrupt.

So he sends Captain Danilo (Maurice Chevalier) to go get her. Danilo is a guy who spends all his time at a club called Maxim’s with girls who dance in circles.

The whole movie is basically Chevalier trying to be charming and MacDonald trying to pretend she isn't interested. Spoiler: She is definitely interested.

There is a scene early on where the King is talking to Danilo. The King is played by Edward Everett Horton, and he is so jittery it’s actually kind of stressful to watch.

He keeps adjusting things. It’s a small thing, but it made me laugh more than the actual jokes.

The sets are completely insane. Marshovia looks like a giant wedding cake that someone accidentally lived in. 🍰

Everything is white and shiny and has way too many carvings. It’s the kind of movie where you can tell the budget was huge.

I kept thinking about how it compares to something like Lady Killer from around the same time. That movie feels like a punch in the face, while this feels like a tickle with a feather.

Jeanette MacDonald has a voice that is... well, it's a lot. She hits these high notes that probably made every dog in the neighborhood bark back in 1934.

But she’s actually a really good actress. She has this way of looking at Chevalier like she knows exactly what he’s thinking, and she’s not impressed.

Chevalier is just Chevalier. He’s got that lip thing going on. He wears his hat at an angle that shouldn't be physically possible.

I noticed one scene where they are dancing the 'Merry Widow Waltz.' The camera just follows them around the room in one long shot.

It’s actually really beautiful. It makes you feel a bit dizzy, but in a good way, like you’ve had one too many glasses of cheap champagne. 🍾

Some of the humor is a bit dated, I guess. There are a lot of jokes about 'wives' and 'mistresses' that feel very 1930s.

But the 'Lubitsch Touch' is real. That’s what people call it when the director, Ernst Lubitsch, makes a scene funny without anyone saying a word.

Like a door closing at the right time. Or a look between two servants in the hallway.

I loved the part where Danilo gets arrested. He doesn't even care. He’s just happy he doesn't have to go to a boring party.

It reminds me of the pacing in Little Friend, where things just sort of happen and you have to keep up. This movie doesn't wait for you to get the joke.

There's a lot of secondary characters too. Akim Tamiroff shows up as a waiter or something, and he looks so young it’s weird.

I did find myself checking my watch during some of the longer singing parts. Sometimes the movie stops dead so someone can finish a verse.

But then it picks right back up. The energy is weirdly high for a movie that is basically just people talking in rooms.

The costumes are heavy. You can see Jeanette MacDonald struggling a bit with the weight of her dresses sometimes. 👗

One of her hats is so big it has its own zip code. It’s fantastic.

Is it better than Sleepless Nights? I think so. It feels more expensive and the jokes land better.

I should mention the ending. It’s very fast. Like, they realized they only had five minutes of film left and had to wrap it up.

But it works for this kind of story. You don't need a deep ending for a movie about a man in a cape chasing a widow around Paris.

I also noticed the sound is a bit fuzzy in spots. That's just old movies for you, I guess.

The way they use the music as a character is cool though. The 'Merry Widow' theme keeps coming back in different ways.

Sometimes it’s a sad violin. Sometimes it’s a big loud band.

It’s a bit like Going Spanish in that it tries to be exotic but feels very 'Hollywood.' Not that that’s a bad thing.

If you want something deep or life-changing, this isn't it. It’s just a very well-made piece of fluff.

But honestly, sometimes fluff is exactly what you need. ☁️

I’m still huming that waltz. It won't leave my head. Help.

Go watch it if you can find a good copy. It’s much better than the later remakes that try too hard to be serious.

This one knows it’s ridiculous. And it loves it.