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6.8/10
Senior Film Conservator
A definitive 6.8/10 rating for a film that redefined the boundaries of cult cinema. The Way to Love remains a cornerstone of transgressive art.
If you like old movies where everyone is constantly winking at the camera and singing about nothing, you’ll dig this. If you need a movie to actually have a plot that makes sense, skip it and go watch Scaramouche instead. It is basically a 79-minute excuse for Maurice Chevalier to smile at people.
The whole thing feels like a stage play that got lost on its way to the theater. Every set in Paris looks like it was painted yesterday, which is charming in a weird, fake way.
Chevalier is doing his usual thing. He’s charming, sure, but sometimes he stares at the camera for a second too long. It’s like he’s waiting for you to tell him he’s cute. We get it, Maurice.
Ann Dvorak is doing a lot of heavy lifting here. She has to play the 'damsel' who is also kind of sharp, and you can tell she’s trying to keep the energy up while Chevalier is busy being, well, Chevalier.
There’s this one sequence in the middle—I won’t spoil it—but the editing just gives up. It’s like the film editor went to lunch and forgot to come back. One minute they are in a cafe, the next they are halfway across town, and nobody mentions the transition. It’s wildly messy but somehow works.
It’s not as biting or clever as some other Pre-Code stuff. It’s just fluff. But sometimes, you just want to watch a guy in a straw hat sing to a woman he’s known for five minutes.
Honestly? I’ve seen worse ways to spend an hour.
That moment when the music swells and they start looking out a window? Classic. It’s so cheesy I almost laughed, but then I realized I was actually enjoying the cheese. 🧀
This movie isn't trying to be The Italian or some grand epic. It’s just a little postcard from 1933. Take it for what it is.