AniInterview Sorry, this movie sucks

SpuffyWeb Sadly Over-hyped

Moustroll Good movie but grossly overrated

TaryBiggBall It was OK. I don't see why everyone loves it so much. It wasn't very smart or deep or well-directed.

TheLittleSongbird Fred Astaire, Rita Hayworth and music by Jerome Kern are three great reasons to see You Were Never Lovelier. And even though the story is very flimsy and predictable and there are a few moments of skimpy budget like in the sets You Were Never Lovelier is a lovely film. Most of the production values are very nice to look at, Rita Hayworth's costumes make her look more elegant than she already is and the photography is skillful. Jerome Kern's score and songs are superb, the scoring is whimsical and lively and of the songs, none of which are less than good, I'm Old Fashioned, You Were Never Lovelier and Dearly Beloved are the stand-outs. The script is playful and sweet, and there is a lively energy in the story for all its flimsiness and it also is both good-natured and warm-hearted. The choreography is appropriately spirited while not being too difficult and is beautifully danced by both Fred and Rita. William A Seiter directs in a way that's never overdone or slack, everything is well-paced and he accommodates his stars rather than fight them. Fred Astaire is really charming and dapper and dances a dream as always, while Rita Hayworth makes us not miss Ginger Rogers too much, she was one of the most beautiful women in Hollywood and she certainly radiates here as well as more than capable with the dancing. In support, Adolphe Menjou is the most memorable, how he manages to be a total grouch while also being quite likable is impressive. All in all, a lovely film and ideal for Fred and Rita fans. 8/10 Bethany Cox

Hunt2546 I can't add much to what's been said, only that it seems to me it's Astaire's best comic acting role and that Rita is adorable, magnificent, talented, and beyond compare. When they dance, it's magic. What did strike me as curious was the fact that the film was set in Argentina for no apparent reason, and its version of "Argentina" seems to be any wealthy American suburb in America, New Canaan possibly, or maybe Kenilworth or Chevy Chase? It's as "Argentinian" as your aunt's patootie, whatever that means. Was it a response to FDR's "Good Neighbor" policy back in '42 perhaps? Or perhaps the South American stylings, as mild as they were, were to justify Xavier Cougat's presence in the pic, although he's characterized as "coming down from New York". His Latin-themed orchestrations are the only verifiably "hispanic" touch. Very strange. The Acunas are a wealthy family who speak perfect upper-class yankee patois and only show the remotest familiarity with hispanic culture. Mr. Acuna's secretary is one of those flitty, maybe gay fussbudgets always breaking down into hysterics or bumping into the furniture. Nobody speaks Spanish, nobody tries an accent, and nothing in the design or culture of the picture suggest Buenos Aires. Seen today, it seems quite odd, maybe even crazily charming in an anthropological sort of way.

TxMike As a kid growing up in the 1950s I had heard of Rita Hayworth but knew nothing about her or her acting. So I have been watching select DVDs of her movies. This one, with Fred Astaire, was made 4 years before her famous role as "Gilda". Astaire was already is his 40s, while Hayworth was just past 20. Still, they made a nice pair on screen.Hayworth was a trained dancer, and she does fine with Astaire, but when you watch the dance sequences in 1/8 speed slow motion is when you realize how much better Astaire was. He was one of a kind, and he made it look so easy.In this movie Fred Astaire is Robert 'Bob' Davis, nightclub singer and dancer who makes his way down to Argentina. His weakness is horse racing, and he finds himself broke when he happens on his old bandsman fiend, Xavier Cugat as himself, with his band, playing at a club called Acuna. So he sets out to get work there. But Adolphe Menjou as the difficult, hard-headed Eduardo Acuña, wealthy owner of the club, won't even give Bob the time of day, but Bob is persistent. But there is a much bigger issue, Mr Acuna's daughters. The two youngest ones have men and are ready to get married, but their family tradition is to have the daughters marry in order from eldest to youngest. The problem is with Maria, who just seems to cold to fall for a man.Rita Hayworth is that daughter, Maria Acuña. When dad hatches a plan which involves a fictitious anonymous admirer sending Orchids and notes every day, Bob accidentally gets in the picture as a delivery boy and Maria thinks he is the admirer. Dad does not approve of Bob, but his younger daughters are putting pressure on the situation. What is a dad to do? So the rest of the movie is to see who wins, will dad dispatch Bob back to New York, or will he and Maria get together in the end? Easy guess.I really enjoyed this movie. The story is all fluff, for sure, but it was great fun seeing the three lead actors. The production numbers are all fun, with songs by Jerome Kern. Now that I have seen several of her early movies it is easy to see why she became such a star.

jc-osms Light and frothy Fred Astaire musical paired this time with the young and very lovely Rita Hayworth as his unlikely paramour. Amazing that surrounded by a horde of young hunks in their best bib and tuckers rich ingénue Hayworth falls for old hair-receding lantern-jawed Fred, but hey, hooray for Hollywood, go with the flow and accept this pleasant confection for what it is. Adolphe Menjou enters into the spirit of the piece with an endearing turn as Hayworth's crusty papa who of course eventually relents and accepts Fred into the family. The rest of the cast ditter and fritter about pleasantly, in their fine clothes and slight roles in a narrative replete with the customary ups and downs, coincidences and happy ending of every Fred musical ever made. The interior settings are plush befitting Menjou's part as the richest man, it would appear, in the whole of South America and the direction is brisk - I always find myself watching for the cuts in the dancing sequences, cleverly disguised as usual. The music I found a little ho-hum, all moon-in-June rhyming down Dingly Dell, certainly no Hart or Porter - type witticisms present here. Fred is Fred as usual, a little bit hammy, unbelievable, as I've indicated as Hayworth's love interest but great in his dance routines as ever (shame about his singing). Hayworth is best of all, alluring and sophisticated and already hinting here and there at the depths of future parts such as "Gilda" and "The Lady From Shanghai". Here she is captured, however, in her innocent youth, lighting up the screen, dancing well into the bargain opposite the maestro. In summary, not a movie on a par with the Fred and Ginger classics of the 30's but enjoyable on its own terms for all that.