Friday, August 09, 2019

Movie review - "It Started with Eve" (1941) ***1/2

This has a reputation as one of Deanna Durbin's best films as an adult, which it may be, but while there were good things about it, it wasn't as strong on re-viewing.

The good thinks - Durbin is charming and rarely looked better. I'm not wild about her singing but that's my personal preference. She's a delight in her scenes with Charles Laughton - their "friendship romance" is the core of the movie, especially at the end when they go to dinner, she gets drunk and they do dancing. Both seem to be enjoying themselves enormously.

Robert Cummings is a very strong leading man. But he and Durbin don't have enough scenes together - it's like she just falls in love with him like that. There's a lot of padding.

It's beautifully shot and well played by the cast.

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