The Love Parade (1929)

Picture yourself in 1929. The stock market just crashed and things in the economy look bleak in the near future for most people in America. Many people at that time enjoy the distraction that motion pictures bring to their lives, especially with the recient advent of "talkies" and even musicals. A movie would come out being the first talking picture directed by a German, starring a Frenchman, and takes place in the in the country of Sylvania dealing with royalty and well to do people that enjoy the lap of luxury simply because of birthright. This sounds like an odd mix, but it worked as The Love Parade would be one of the more popular films of 1929/30 garnering the most Academy Award nominations than any film had that year or any of the previous years. This romantic comedy/musical, I personally think, was a step in seeing how the genre of musical can define itself on the movie screen.

The plot of The Love Parade concerns Count Alfred (Maurice Chevalier), a ambassador of Sylvania to France who is ordered back to his home country for philandering around with many affairs causing quite a stir in Paris. Upon his return to Sylvania Alfred would use his charm to mix himslf in the business of the very person who is to punish him for his extra curricular activities, Queen Louise (Jeanette MacDonald), whom up until the two meet had no interest in any men as a suitor for herself. The two would seem to be a perfect match until they are wed when Alfred is dubbed a prince, not a king for he was not royalty before the wedding. The first near two thirds of the movie is simply the build to the real conflict as after the two are married Alfred realizes he has no power and has nothing to do while Louise rules the land. As Alfred becomes increasingly bored and angry that he is not taken seriously, he manifests and plays around with the idea that he in fact has all the power over his wife while Louise is boxed in as a ruler and must always act as such. When Alfred decides to leave the marriage, due to quarrelling and unhappiness, Louise learns to respect her lover and include Alfred giving him power in her life as king-like ruler of the country for they are one as a couple. Upon that realization the two are happy once again.

Directed by veteran German filmmaker Ernst Lubitsch, this would be his first talking picture and musical upon that. Based on the play The Price Consort, that film feels like a direct adaptation of a stage musical. The songs come out of the characters as part of the normal dialogue, as if it were a perfectly normal part of life that people randomly burst into song. The actors at time even sing directly into camera, in a way removing the forth wall and speaking directly to the audience through music. The picture does however use the magic of film to its advantages at times which you cannot do with a stage play. This would include a musical number where a dog would sing (or rather have its barking edited) along with the music. At times the film is blocked very much like a stage play, but Lubitsch does use the camera to his advantage at times giving layers to the story that a stage play could not recreate.

My personal thoughts on the picture is that for its time it is rather good, but it struggles as well. Most of the picture is simply getting the two characters romantically together, which you as the audience see being forced to happen. Through this part there is no surprises or moments of great interest. The movie plays out with a stage play feel with a choir of players following the main characters as they carry out the linear story, repeating that which is already said. This first part is very dull, but the last half hour the film picks up as Alfred discovers his new troubles as husband to the queen, playing it to his humorous advantage as we move to a conclusion. It is rather entertaining when Alfred privately mocks Louise out in public knowing she cannot retaliate and that he can destroy her reputation if she were to openly display the unhappy side of their marriage. His lack of duty in the relationship is made fun of as he is refered to as "a wife," not meaning that a wife is a bad thing, but rather that him being a man he has once had great respect before the marriage, but now is simply a trophy of the queen and that distrubs him very much. This last part of the movie is very enjoyable, despite you not wanting to like Alfred through the first part of the movie, we end up rooting for him to earn his respect from the queen and her peers. You just wish they got to the second part of the film earlier instead of dragging through the first half.

The film was a success in Hollywood, receiving a tremendous six Academy Award nominations at the third award ceremony in 1930. Despite not winning any catagories the nods included: Best sound recording, a new catagory with sound taking hold as a major player in Hollywood. Best art direction, as the film included some large, lavish sets. Best Cinematography for Victor Miller's work, here I did not see as too great of a job as most shots where medium or wide shots that more or less just covered the action rather than directing it in any artful manner, but maybe it was just good for its time. Maurice Chevalier was nominated for best actor in only his second film. Lubitsch would get the nod for best director, his second nomination in as many years. The film was also nominated for best picture, which I guess it should be since it was nominated for about half the awards given out that night. The film was also know as the debut of young Jeanette MacDonald who would go on to make movies for 20 years and continue to use her operatic singing voice flexed in this movie on stage for years to come.

The Love Parade could be seen as a new step for musicals in the young time of talking pictures. Music on the stage and music on the screen I think are handled differently, and this picture shows a little of the growing pains of how to separate the two. Despite its dull beginning the film ends up clever and enjoyable. Too bad the whole film was not like that. The film is yet a minor footnote to those that would have part in it. In the end The Love Parade is a film that is more play than picture.