This Is the Night (1932 film)

Last updated

This Is the Night
This Is the Night (1932 film) poster.jpg
Lobby card with Lilli Damita and Cary Grant
Directed by Frank Tuttle
Written by Benjamin Glazer
George Marion Jr.
play Naughty Cinderella
Avery Hopwood
play Pouche
Henri Falk
René Peter
Produced byBenjamin Glazer (uncredited)
Starring Lili Damita
Charles Ruggles
Roland Young
Thelma Todd
Cary Grant
Cinematography Victor Milner
Music by Ralph Rainger
W. Franke Harling (uncredited)
John Leipold (uncredited)
Production
company
Distributed byParamount Pictures
Release date
  • April 8, 1932 (1932-04-08)
Running time
80 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

This Is the Night is a 1932 American pre-Code comedy film directed by Frank Tuttle, and starring Lili Damita, Charles Ruggles, Roland Young, Thelma Todd, and Cary Grant in his film debut. It was made by Paramount Pictures.

Contents

The picture is based on the 1923 play Pouche by Henri Falk and René Peter, and the 1925 English-language adaptation Naughty Cinderella written by Avery Hopwood. The plays had already been adapted for film once before as Good and Naughty (1926) with Pola Negri.

Night scenes in this film were intended to be seen in blue tint. Tinting is used on the restored 2011 single DVD version released by Turner Classic Movies. However, tinting was absent from recent prints prior to restoration. The version shown on the TCM cable channel in the 1990s was not tinted, nor is the version in the 2016 DVD set "Cary Grant - The Vault Collection".

Plot

Thelma Todd, Roland Young and Lili Damita in This Is the Night Thelma Todd, Roland Young, Lili Damita.jpg
Thelma Todd, Roland Young and Lili Damita in This Is the Night

When Claire Mathewson's husband Stephen comes back unexpectedly from the 1932 Summer Olympics, where he was supposed to compete in the javelin throw, he discovers the train tickets for a romantic Venice getaway she has planned with her lover Gerald.

Gerald's friend, Bunny, lies and says that the tickets are actually for Gerald and his wife. With Stephen still suspicious, Gerald must find a fake wife to go to Venice with him. He tries to hire the actress Chou-Chou, but since her boyfriend is a jealous man, she gives the job to out-of-work Germaine, who needs the 2000 franc fee to keep from starving. At first, Gerald thinks she is too demure, but she soon convinces him that she can pretend to be a glamorous wife.

The two couples go to Venice. Bunny, attracted to Germaine, decides to join them. On the train, Stephen questions Gerald and Germaine about how they met. When they arrive in Venice, Claire quickly becomes jealous, as both Stephen and Gerald seem fascinated by Germaine. Claire eventually demands that Gerald send Germaine away immediately, so he orders her to leave the next day. Meanwhile, a drunken Bunny climbs a ladder into Germaine's bedroom and offers to take her away. After she turns down his offer, he falls into a canal on his way out and is apprehended by two policemen. Stephen believes he hears a burglar and goes to her room to investigate. The two are then caught in a seemingly compromising position by Gerald and Claire. However, Bunny reappears and explains what really happened. Her love for her husband rekindled, Claire breaks off her affair with Gerald. Germaine reveals to Gerald that she is not in fact Chou-Chou and decides to return to Paris, but Gerald catches up to her in a gondola and asks her to marry him.

Cast

Charles Ruggles, Cary Grant, Lili Damita and Roland Young in This Is the Night This is the Night.jpg
Charles Ruggles, Cary Grant, Lili Damita and Roland Young in This Is the Night

Production

This Is the Night is Cary Grant's feature film debut. He disliked his role, believing that a man accepting the unfaithfulness of his wife so calmly was unbelievable. After seeing the film, he decided to quit the movie industry; his friend Orry-Kelly talked him out of it. [1]

Reception

The film received a mixed to positive reception from critics. The reviewer from the Times stated that the "plot is hardly worth repeating, for it is occupied only with the ritual humours of infidelity and intoxication", but he praised Roland Young, Charlie Ruggles and Claire Dodd's performances, describing them as "very skilful". Bob Wagner of Script thought that the film was made to a high standard, with "exceptionally beautiful" cinematography. He spotted Cary Grant as a newcomer in the film and thought that he made a "splendid figure". [2]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cary Grant</span> English-American actor (1904–1986)

Cary Grant was an English-American actor. Known for his Mid-Atlantic accent, debonair demeanor, lighthearted approach to acting, and sense of comic timing, he was one of classic Hollywood's definitive leading men. He was nominated twice for the Academy Award, received an Academy Honorary Award in 1970, and received the Kennedy Center Honor in 1981. He was named the second greatest male star of the Golden Age of Hollywood by the American Film Institute in 1999.

<i>One Hour with You</i> 1932 film

One Hour with You is a 1932 American pre-Code musical comedy film about a married couple who are attracted to other people. It was produced and directed by Ernst Lubitsch "with the assistance of" George Cukor, and written by Samson Raphaelson from the play Only a Dream by Lothar Schmidt. It stars Maurice Chevalier, Jeanette MacDonald, Genevieve Tobin, Charlie Ruggles and Roland Young. A French-language version titled Une heure près de toi was produced simultaneously, with Lili Damita playing Tobin's role.

<i>None but the Lonely Heart</i> (film) 1944 film by Clifford Odets

None but the Lonely Heart is a 1944 American drama romance film which tells the story of a young Cockney drifter who returns home with no ambitions but finds that his family needs him. Adapted by Clifford Odets from the 1943 novel of the same title by Richard Llewellyn and directed by Odets, the film stars Cary Grant, Ethel Barrymore, and Barry Fitzgerald.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lili Damita</span> French-American actress (1904–1994)

Lili Damita was a French-American actress and singer who appeared in 33 films between 1922 and 1937.

<i>Topper</i> (film) 1937 film by Norman Z. McLeod

Topper is a 1937 American supernatural comedy film directed by Norman Z. McLeod, starring Constance Bennett and Cary Grant and featuring Roland Young. It tells the story of a stuffy, stuck-in-his-ways man who is haunted by the ghosts of a fun-loving married couple.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wesley Ruggles</span> American film director (1889–1972)

Wesley Ruggles was an American film director.

<i>The Match King</i> 1932 film

The Match King is a 1932 American Pre-Code drama film made by First National Pictures, directed by William Keighley and Howard Bretherton. The film starred Warren William and Lili Damita, and follows the rise and fall of Swedish safety match tycoon Ivar Kreuger. Based on the novel by Einar Thorvaldson, the film was released on December 31, 1932.

<i>The Flame of New Orleans</i> 1941 film

The Flame of New Orleans is a 1941 American historical comedy film directed by René Clair and starring Marlene Dietrich and Bruce Cabot in his first comedy role. The supporting cast features Roland Young, Andy Devine and Franklin Pangborn. It was made and distributed by Universal Pictures. It was the last of three films Dietrich made with producer Joe Pasternak who called it "in many ways, our most interesting."

<i>Im No Angel</i> 1933 film

I'm No Angel is a 1933 American pre-Code black comedy film directed by Wesley Ruggles, and starring Mae West and Cary Grant. West received sole story and screenplay credit. It is one of her early films, and, as such, was not subjected to the heavy censorship that dogged her screenplays after Hollywood began enforcing the Hays Code.

<i>Blonde Venus</i> 1932 film

Blonde Venus is a 1932 American pre-Code drama film starring Marlene Dietrich, Herbert Marshall and Cary Grant. It was produced, edited and directed by Josef von Sternberg from a screenplay by Jules Furthman and S. K. Lauren, adapted from a story by Furthman and von Sternberg. The original story "Mother Love" was written by Dietrich herself. The musical score was by W. Franke Harling, John Leipold, Paul Marquardt and Oscar Potoker, with cinematography by Bert Glennon.

<i>Das Spielzeug von Paris</i> 1925 film

Das Spielzeug von Paris is an Austrian silent film released in 1925, and directed by Michael Curtiz. It was the first film to feature French actress Lili Damita in the leading role.

<i>When Youre in Love</i> (film) 1937 film by Robert Riskin, Harry Lachman

When You're in Love is a 1937 American musical film directed by Robert Riskin and Harry Lachman, who was not credited, and starring Grace Moore and Cary Grant. Moore sings "Minnie the Moocher" and the Ernesto Lecuona classic Cuban song "Siboney". Two of the other songs in the film – "Our Song" and "The Whistling Boy" – are by Jerome Kern and Dorothy Fields.

<i>Devil and the Deep</i> 1932 film

Devil and the Deep is a 1932 American pre-Code drama film directed by Marion Gering, based on Maurice Larrouy's novel, and starring Tallulah Bankhead, Gary Cooper, Charles Laughton and Cary Grant. It follows a naval commander who has alienated his wife due to his insane jealousy over every man she speaks to. After his obsessive behavior drives her to the arms of a handsome lieutenant, tragic drama ensues.

<i>Ladies Should Listen</i> 1934 film by Frank Tuttle

Ladies Should Listen is a 1934 American comedy film directed by Frank Tuttle and starring Cary Grant, Edward Everett Horton, Frances Drake and Nydia Westman.

<i>Kiss and Make-Up</i> 1934 film by Harlan Thompson

Kiss and Make-Up is a 1934 romantic comedy film starring Cary Grant as a doctor who specializes in making women beautiful. Genevieve Tobin and Helen Mack play his romantic entanglements. The film was based on the play Kozmetika by István Békeffy. All of the WAMPAS Baby Stars of 1934 were cast in roles in the film.

<i>Good and Naughty</i> 1926 film

Good and Naughty is a 1926 American silent romantic comedy film directed by Malcolm St. Clair and starring Pola Negri and Tom Moore. It was based on the play Naughty Cinderella by Henri Falk and René Peter. Released in 1926, it is a romantic comedy of mistaken identity about an attractive interior decorator (Negri) who is forced to make herself unattractive so she can be hired by a firm that has a policy against hiring attractive women.

<i>Merrily We Go to Hell</i> 1932 film

Merrily We Go to Hell is a 1932 pre-Code film directed by Dorothy Arzner, and starring Fredric March and Sylvia Sidney. The supporting cast features a prominent early appearance by Cary Grant, billed ninth in the cast but with a larger part than this would suggest. The picture's title is an example of the sensationalistic titles that were common in the pre-Code era. Many newspapers refused to publicize the film because of its racy title. The title is a line March's character says while making a toast.

<i>Sinners in the Sun</i> 1932 film

Sinners in the Sun is a 1932 American pre-Code romantic drama film directed by Alexander Hall, and starring Carole Lombard, Chester Morris, Adrienne Ames, and Alison Skipworth. It was produced and distributed by Paramount Pictures.

<i>The Famous Woman</i> 1927 film

The Famous Woman is a 1927 German silent drama film directed by Robert Wiene and starring Lili Damita, Fred Solm and Warwick Ward. It was based on the play Die Tänzerin by Melchior Lengyel, who also wrote the film's screenplay. While performing in Barcelona, a dancer falls in love with a Spanish aristocrat. He proposes marriage to her providing she give up her profession. She agrees and the wedding preparations begin. When her troupe returns to Spain, however, she is drawn back to her true calling as a dancer and her aristocratic lover reluctantly allows her to go free. Damita's performance was particularly praised, as was the cinematography of Otto Kanturek who had done location shooting in Barcelona.

<i>The Naughty Flirt</i> 1931 film

The Naughty Flirt is a 1931 American pre-Code romantic comedy film directed by Edward Cline and starring Alice White, Paul Page and Myrna Loy.

References

  1. Eliot 2005, pp. 63–64.
  2. Deschner 1973, pp. 32–33.

Sources