Exclusive“Here Comes the Groom” (1951): Love, Laughter, and a Race to the Altar

Carlo my heart' s first flutter Feel the love In the serpent's coil He always rots I will fly I will sig You will know Sighing I'll always long to sigh Feel the love In the twilight I always rot I will soar sighing Well it's finally happened My roving reporter is coming home The reporter You mean you're still waiting for that guy Yeah I've been running around that desk for three years staying loyal to him but no more Well I'm glad you can take a moment to catch your breath But why would any girl want to wait three years for some wandering newspaperman I just can't understand why she'd turn down a man like Wilbur Stanley when he's handed to her on a silver platter Wilbur Stanley's a fine man but you don't know Pete Garvey He must be something if you're still holding on to him after all these years Not a torch A lamp And I'm burning a special kind of oil in it Well congratulations I suppose But if you keep waiting for that guy your hair will turn grey before you ever get a chance to eat rice Well grab your shoes and rice—your eyes are about to witness the most romantic moment since two people first met Here comes the groom I'm Rebecca Brannan I'm Tiffany Brannan Welcome to Real Thoughts on Cinema Classic movie director Frank Capra is known for a very specific kind of film—stories about an ordinary man triumphing over a tyrant heartwarming family dynamics and powerful patriotic themes These are themes and elements that define most of his films The final film he made during the second chapter of his Hollywood career was interestingly an unlikely romantic musical comedy This film is Here Comes the Groom from 1951 Foreign correspondent Pete Garvey is stationed in Paris at an orphanage after World War II where he grows very close to an adorable French orphan named Bobby who looks up to him like a father When Pete returns to the United States to marry his childhood sweetheart Emmadelle Jones He decides to take Bobby and his little friend Susie along to bring Emmy her long-awaited family By the time he reaches the United States he's deeply distressed to realize that Emmy has stopped waiting for him and is engaged to her millionaire boss Wilbur Stanley Pete goes all out enlisting the help of his boss a newspaperman and her father a wealthy aristocrat conspires to ruin the wedding plans He faces off against the haughty family including Wilbur's distant cousin who is interested in Wilbur herself so that he can convince Emmadelle that she should marry him and adopt the two adorable orphans This film was produced by Paramount Pictures and directed by Frank Capra starring Bing Crosby Jane Wyman Francia Tone and Alexis Smith Now as were saying this movie is highly uncharacteristic of a Frank Capra film Absolutely Every time you remind me that this was directed by Frank Capra I can 't believe it And I think the reason for that is that although he produced it up to this point most of his films had been projects he originated acquired the story for and developed as his own productions but this movie was a Paramount productio at Frank Capra had just been assigned to direct It was originally acquired solely as a Bing Crosby film but it was written by Robert Riskin who had worked extensively with Frank Capra So I think it was almost meant to be that they ended up working together That's true And the film Frank Capra made just before this one was another Bing Crosby movie It was called Riding High and it was just as carefree and musically spirited as this one But this film truly stands out because that one was more something Frank Capra had wanted to develop whereas this one he was simply assigned and he ended up doing it anyway so he wouldn’t have to shoot his final two films at Paramount to fulfill his contract Instead he simply made this one And then from that point until 1959 he didn’t make any mainstream Hollywood films He was producing these scientific documentaries So this marked the end of an era the close of his second chapter because you could say his first chapter ended with World War II since that's when he was making war films Then came the stretch from It's a Wonderful Life to this movie and then following that period for most of the 1950s he simply made a few more films in the late 1950s and early 1960s This movie truly stands out because it isn't a remake of one of his earlier works and is starting from scratch I think it truly speaks to his remarkable versatility as a director across different styles that this is one of Bing Crosby's finest films from this era That's a really good point You tend to think of Frank Capra as someone who did just one kind of thing and that's wonderful of course All of his more patriotic films are simply beautiful But this is so serene it truly showcases his skill as a director—nothing more nothing less This was truly a standout feature for Bing Crosby as you get to see him doing what he does best—acting and singing some wonderful songs being truly heartwarming and endearing both romantically with Jane Wyman and as a wonderful father figure to these two children It's interesting because when we It's a very specific kind of thing about our thoughts like stage musicals where people randomly burst into song but this is different because the singing is more in context I notice most of Bing Crosby's movies were like that but this one even more so That's true This one even more so because I think there are more moments when he suddenly bursts into song but this one is simply and clearly singing within the context Now that doesn’t mean they never spontaneously break into song but in the film the characters are clearly intended to be doing so And even though Pete Bing Crosby's character is a newspaperman Emmerdale highlights the fact that he believes he can sing so it's kind of how he connects with the children and you can tell it's something he and Emmy were meant to do a long time ago They have this special song they sing set in the cool cool cool of the evening—originally written for Betty Hutton Right because she was also a Paramount star so the song was originally written for Paramount and then they ended up just including it in this movie Right because it was supposed to be in this biopic about a silent film star she was set to star in And that didn't end up being produced so it fit perfectly into the film This film wouldn't be what it is without that song as it serves as a recurring theme throughout Yes yes it is And that’s definitely the standout track from the film It went on to win Best Song at the Academy Awards And I think a lot of what makes it great is not only Bing Crosby but how well he worked with Jane Wyman Absolutely And we truly need to appreciate Jane Wyman because she was an actress who mastered so many different styles That’s absolutely true She was outstanding in musicals during this period The following year sheんです another musical with Bing Crosby titled Just for You Right And these aren't the only musicals she made—she also directed several highly dramatic films such as Johnny Belinda for which she won Best Actress three years prior to this Her career spanned decades and embraced numerous styles In this film it's certainly on the lighter end of her body of work yet we also see she's full of spirit She's a deeply endearing character dedicated to the children and clearly driven by strong maternal instincts yet also a woman of unwavering principle and she's a bit upset with Pete for saying he'd come and marry her then leaving and staying in Paris for years and then coming back only to be weeks late So you can't blame her for trying to stand up for herself Yes I think that's a very important point to make at the two men end up in this kind of competition They agree okay who's going to win her before Saturday And that I'm certain would resonate with modern audiences—just hearing that you could easily think oh this character is being objectified or something But she's a truly strong character in her own right and there's just a subtle hint at the end—nothing that spoils the ending of course at she reveals she actually knew more about what was going on than you might think giving her character that sense of control once again I think that was a really thoughtful touch to include And honestly I think what's striking about Emmerdale is that she realizes her mother had to spend most of her married life waiting for her father to return from fishing and time spent with his friends she doesn’t want to end up with Pete living the same life as this newspaper man because even though they've clearly been friends—and lovers —for a very long time whenever they got close to the altar He appeared to be pursuing some job far away So she wants him to realize that there are other men who might also be interested in her just so he’ll fight to keep her And then she realizes he truly loves her as much as he claims And also because of his dedication to these children she sees he’s finally ready to settle down Exactly Now this film is intriguing not only because of its two lead actors but also because it features two other standout performers who may not be as well-known today though they were quite prominent in their time Fran Chateaune as the other man and Alexis Smith in actually quite a small role for her However this was her favorite part of her entire career Really Her whole career yes That's interesting Now Fran Chateaune was a leading man back in the 1930s and he starred in movies like Mutiny on the Bounty He appeared in several films with Joan Crawford who was his wife throughout the 1930s And he also made numerous comedies during the 1930s and 1940s His career began in an unusual way as he first worked on stage He was part of the group theater which is somewhat known for pioneering method acting in America working with Clifford Odets and Lee Strasberg and all those individuals and he was actually the first one in the group to go to Hollywood which they somewhat saw as selling out to commercialism That's right But he had that serious acting background rooted in his past making him a truly great stage actor he genuinely preferred working on stage even though he starred in so many films Yeah and by this time he was nearly out of Hollywood working more on stage and in television but then he returned to make this film and I find it interesting that he's portraying the aloof wealthy alternative since he was the more formally trained actor whereas Bing Crosby was merely a radio singer who inspired him to act ultimately becoming an Academy Award winner and he was such a beacon of hope to the American people especially during World War II He was regarded as having the greatest impact on a soldier's morale Aheadстрой the president and General Eisenhower and Bob Hope Bing Crosby was the one who truly reminded them e boys overseas from home became in a way a symbol of America and carried the warmth of home through those difficult times and he reflects that spirit in this role as he's this American over there trying to help these French orphans get adopted and then we have Alexis Smith who often played the femme fatale or the other woma Warner Brothers films throughout the 1940s And in this movie she plays at the beginning a somewhat spinsterish type this old maid She is one of the wealthy Stanley family members very distantly related to Wilbur and has always had a crush on him but she 's been largely dismissed as an old maid But then Pete ends up befriending her and encouraging her to loosen up and go after Wilbur Of course he admits to her he has ulterior motives because he simply wants to get Wilbur away from Emmerdale But as a result Winifred Alexis Smith's character completely transforms and becomes this sort of jazzy swinger I think maybe the reason she said this was her favorite part is because it's like you said a rather small part yet she took on many leading roles perhaps because it felt a little more authentic to her I=false she was a fairly simple person at heart And that's the kind of character she begins as this quiet unassuming girl then transforms into someone incredibly glamorous a role she embodied in many of her most dazzling performances but she was exceptionally tall And this character is like oh I'm too tall That could have been something she genuinely felt inside herself And she kind of sings she dances she gets to wrestle with Jane Wyman She does more comedy I think she was usually a more serious understated actress So loosening up like this was probably a fun distraction for her Now since this is a musical the score has to be discussed Of course "In the cool cool cool of the evening" is the standout song The other songs we hear being sung are Bing Crosby briefly sings Oh Promise Me at the wedding Earlier in the film he sings You've Got a House a really charming song with the children as he explains even though they don’t have families of their own because they’re orphans your body is your home and he goes on to describe how your eyes are like windows Your ears are the doorways And it's a charming moment reminiscent of his Academy Award-winning film Going My Way where he's working with the boys And apart from that the main musical feature It's completely different from everything else A very almost cameo -like appearance for Anna Maria Alberghetti She's a young Italian soprano And the Starter of her in this film It recalls some of the films produced by Joseph Pasternak for Universal or MGM Right because he would often feature young especially soprano musical stars and they would do something dramatic like something operatic And she sings Caro Nome the famous coloratura aria from Giuseppe Verdi's Rigoletto And it's such a touching moment This was my first introduction to Anna Maria Alberghetti She has a beautiful voice And she's this orphan who is blind but her singing captures the heart of this renowned conductor who is determined to bring her back to America to perform at Carnegie Hall—and it won’t be long before that dream becomes reality Bing Crosby performs the You've Got a House number The sheer contrast between this classical music and the more popular style is truly what makes it stand out defines so many great musicals of this era And I think that's something really amazing to see at the time She was 15 and you can tell she's had She already had extensive operatic training at that age evident in the way she sang that extremely challenging aria And the only film she had made prior to this was actually the filmed version of the opera The Medium by Giancarlo Manotti Right And so I think although this is somewhat unusual for both Paramount and Frank Capra I’d say it was likely Frank Capra’s influence That’s what led to her being in this situation because he was Italian He was an Italian- American immigrant just like Giancarlo Manotti That could be why he felt compelled to include it Yeah I think he must have seen that movie How else would he have known her And they made a big deal about introducing her because that wasn't really a feature film just like this one Yes And oddly enough many of the original posters you've surely seen these small advertisements for the film ave a striking image of her in this kind of ball gown which is completely out of place She's dressed very simply But precisely because of that her face becomes the sole focus And this beautiful voice she has So that's a very interesting moment And of course it highlights all these orphans and these children striving to build a new life after World War II And I believe this post-war setting is particularly significant for the film Absolutely Since it's set in the early 1950s or it might even be set in the late 40s—we're not certain But the fashion worn by the two leading actresses truly captures the spirit of that era e highly feminine hourglass silhouette of the Dior New Look so characteristic of that era with my outfit inspired by one worn by Jane Wyman when Pete first sees her after returning to Boston It's a black dress with a swing skirt cap sleeves black shoes and she's wearing a couple of stylish black hats with netting on them as well as characteristic pearl jewelry which was very popular in that era My outfit is inspired by Winifred's new look at the wedding rehearsal When she's trying to knock Cousin Wilbur on his ear she's wearing a form-fitting dress with a sheer black overlay statement pearl jewelry and long black gloves a very stylish hat and high heels now that she no longer feels too tall I think it's really interesting that although he wasn't a musical director Frank Capra actually pioneered some musical filming techniques Yes absolutely He set a Paramount Productions record when he prerecorded rehearsed and filmed the Misto Cristo Cristofo Colombo number in under one day Yeah it was quite amazing He actually made a lot of the filming process smoother because he didn't do much prerecording Like in the cool cool cool of the evening They filmed it live on the soundstage without pre-recording or post-recording and they fed in the band's sound in real time which was filmed on a different soundstage playing it live while they performed the song and dance routine across a series of soundstages and I think that made it feel so authentic You can almost hear them gasping for breath as they dance around and that’s probably why it won Best Song—it’s truly endearing I never really thought about it before The more I've watched this movie the more I notice things Until the last time I was thinking I'm hearing sounds you don't usually notice AdapterView the dialogue without a single break in the audio So you know they're doing this live Yeah It's really impressive that they pulled it off It's kind of like he didn't realize he shouldn't have done it because he hadn't done many musicals before it worked out really well and coming from that Depression-era filmmaking mindset—let's just get this done quickly— Let's make it a film That's true Let's make it real He was deeply committed to realism in his films And also in the first scene When Pete is on the phone with his boss George it's mentioned that this scene was also filmed simultaneously on two different soundstages so instead of the usual pretense of talking they were actually conversing in real time Yeah It's amazing On the surface you'd say This doesn’t feel like a Frank Capra film at all But if you look closely it actually does carry his core themes What would you say are the defining characteristics What elements in this movie reflect the real Frank Capra style Well it's very strongly centered on family And the presence of these war orphans adds a deeper seriousness to the story It lends a certain seriousness to a film that it wouldn't have otherwise I think it reflects Frank Capra's own background in that he came to the United States as a little boy When he was five years old he saw the Statue of Liberty and his father pointed out that it was the greatest sight he would ever see And so in the movie as they're flying over in a plane they see the Statue of Liberty and are discovering America Then the whole song about Christopher Columbus begins at's somewhat of an Italian reference because he was Italian but it's delivered in a genuine comedic style and very lighthearted but if you look at it basically this ordinary newspaper man wins the girl over the millionaire so it 凸显s the classic Frank Capra theme—the common man triumphs over the wealthy one Right but in a romantic sense—rather than a business one And I think that character the common man is very different from Gary Cooper or the kind of leading man played by James Stewart At heart he's similar —he's a man of the people In fact Jean Arthur was originally considered for the role and even though it was written with her in mind the role that Jane Wyman played It's so funny She would have been a bit too old for the part Jane Wyman was definitely not 20 here She was quite mature yet still youthful And I think this was before it was going to become a musical I don't know Jean Arthur occasionally sang in some films but not very well—it was more for comedic effect and she likely wouldn’t have sung otherwise but that’s interesting There were a few references to Frank Capra before he joined the project since 单纯的 she appeared in so many of his early films Yeah And she also did a great deal with comedy especially in the 1940s so I think you can almost picture that role being played by her by Jean Arthur if it had been made a little earlier Yes But Jane Wyman truly infused that spirited energy into the role along with the musical flair as well And of course the heartfelt family themes but it's a refreshing twist that no one comes across as the villain That's a good point—I was just thinking the same thing He's not a corrupt businessman He seems like a genuinely decent person who ultimately accepts that the best man has won He's a truly good loser It's interesting that this was the last film Frank Capra would make until 1959 as circumstances had changed so dramatically over those eight years In 1951 this was still very much the Breen era when the Motion Picture Production Code was strictly enforced under the leadership of Joseph Breen By 1959 Mr Breen had been retired for five years and Jeffrey Sherlock had taken over And I think that's why Frank Capra He made only a few more films after that as he began to realize the industry was no longer embracing the kind of cleanriad family films he had always loved That's true So although this wasn't his final film it was Frank Capra's last movie made under the Breen era marking truly the end of an era for him Yeah I think people who enjoy a wide range of film styles could appreciate this movie for instance if you 're a fan of musicals you'll definitely like it but even if you're not particularly fond of musicals There isn't too much music making it a great introduction to Bing Crosby without constant editing And if you can't stand ╮ music there's still something for you The guy on the plane was like those musicians are singing again Yeah He says his wife argues oh they were just touring to perform for the soldiers He said well that's a fair fight They had guns so they could fire back Of course if you prefer family films or enjoy watching children's movies These two children are adorable The little boy is actually French And the little girl does a good job of pretending to be French But it's very heartwarming as they interact with Bing Crosby and Jane Wyman whom they affectionately called Mujer But it also features the more serious aspects of war orphans as well as many genuinely humorous moments and a solid foundation in romantic comedy Due to its popularity as an Academy Award-winning film this movie is easily accessible for rental or purchase on numerous streaming platforms especially YouTube and Amazon Prime Video It … [-] [-] [-] many of which like this one even featured highly trained classical singers However very few films focused on the unique elite art form of ballet Join us next time as we discuss what is widely considered the greatest ballet film of all time Thank you for watching Goodbye