Copyright 31 October 1938 by Loew's Inc. Presented by Metro-Goldwyn- Mayer. New York opening at the Capitol, 24 November 1938. U.S. release: 4 May 1939. Australian release: 22 December 1938. 10 reels. 104 minutes.COMMENT: Like "Gone With The Wind" this film is an extraordinarily successful collaboration — or rather amalgamation — of a number of disparate talents. That the film is so wonderfully artistic as a whole is due in no small measure to the talents of the producer, the skill of the cinematographer and the incomparable expertise of the film editor. Tom Held was deservedly nominated for an Academy Award, but was beaten by Ralph Dawson who also had the unenviable task of combining the work of more than one director. While the enforced union of Curtiz and Keighley on Robin Hood is both credited and well-documented, the unlikely trio of Duvivier, Victor Fleming and Josef von Sternberg on "The Great Waltz" has barely been hinted at. I had to go through MGM's files.When Duvivier signed for "The Great Waltz" (his first U.S. film), he informed MGM he had to be free by a certain date as he had prior commitments in France on firstly "La Fin du Jour" and secondly "La Charrette Fantome", both starring Louis Jouvet. Neither of these vehicles could be put off or delayed or even entrusted to another director as Duvivier had worked on the scripts himself and had put a great deal of work into their preparation.Unfortunately for Duvivier (or fortunately for us), "The Great Waltz" was filmed with a meticulous care and a total disregard for cost unusual even in these halcyon days at MGM. The project had originated with Thalberg some years earlier and Hyman was determined to do the late producer proud no matter what the expense.When it became apparent that the picture was going to run over schedule, Victor Fleming was signed to direct the straight material, while Duvivier concentrated on the elaborate musical episodes.Fleming directed many of Luise Rainer's scenes, the first encounter between Strauss and Franz Joseph, the whole of the epilogue, the whole sequence in which Poldi disturbs Strauss at his work ending when Gravet sings "One Day When We Were Young", and much of the revolutionary material including the fight between Bois and Kinsky, the flight of Strauss and Carla Donner and their night scene with Christian Rub. The morning after brings us back to Duvivier for his magnificent set-piece, "Tales of the Vienna Woods". Duvivier stays with the film right to the swirling camera finale in the courtyard of the inn, though Fleming worked on the first part of the interior scene between Carla and the innkeeper's wife and has also dubbed Munier's dialogue with some other actor and has post-synced Rub's lines in reply. From this point on, most of the film is Fleming's, including Rainer's scenes with Kruger and Korjus and her extraordinary encounter with Lionel Atwill. Duvivier directed Rainer's spectacular entrance to the theater with its astonishingly effective Eisenstein- inspired jump cuts to the beat of the music. Fleming staged the operetta with the help of Albertina Rasch.When Duvivier was forced to return to France, he left one major musical sequence undone. To direct this portion of the film, Hyman turned to no less a talent than Josef von Sternberg. Although actually born in Vienna, von Sternberg had been signed by MGM to direct a frivolous Hedy Lamarr vehicle, "New York Cinderella". Before starting work on this epic (on which, incidentally, he walked out after only 18 days' shooting), von Sternberg was induced to direct the climax of "The Great Waltz". We pick up his work in the coach. Notice the low angle, the deliberately jolting movement of the camera and the darker texture of the photography, all trademarks of von Sternberg's style. The ensuing song as the boat pulls away (filmed from a satisfying multiplicity of dramatic angles) topped with the grandly exuberant "Blue Danube" montage, makes a flourishing finish to an eye-and-ear- popping movie.

Directed by Julien Duvivier, with a screenplay by Samuel Hoffenstein and Walter Reisch that was based on a story by Gottfried Reinhardt, this fictionalized biography-drama of Vienna's Johann 'Schani' Strauss II features Fernand Gravet (aka Gravey) as the prolific composer, who is perhaps best known for his waltz The Blue Danube aka "On the Beautiful Blue Danube".Several of Strauss's compositions, waltzes and operas, were given lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II for Gravet and/or Miliza Korjus as opera singer Carla Donner, from Budapest, to perform. The operatic Korjus earned a Best Supporting Actress Academy Award nomination for her film debut which was also (effectively) her only movie role. Luise Rainer plays Strauss's delicate yet not too fragile wife Poldi (née Vogelhuber); she apparently tolerated her husband's indiscretions like his affair with Carla, depicted in this film. Cinematographer Joseph Ruttenberg won his first Oscar (on his first nomination) for his swirling camera work and Tom Held's Editing was also nominated.Quirky Hugh Herbert plays Strauss's music publisher Julius Hofbauer, Lionel Atwill plays Count Anton 'Tony' Hohenfried who covets Carla, Leonid Kinskey plays Dudelman, Herman Bing plays the proprietor Otto Dommayer who first gave Strauss a chance to play his music in public, Alma Kruger plays Strauss's mother (Poldi's understanding mother-in-law), Henry Hull plays Franz Josef, who would become Emperor of Austria after the uprising during which this film's story shows he'd encountered Strauss, Sig Rumann plays the banker who fires the future composer at the beginning of the story, and Christian Rub plays the coachman who (in this movie, at least) helped Johann and Carla compose the recognizable "Tales from the Vienna Woods", also during the Austrian revolution.

The New York Times has spoken long of Julien Duvivier. Does he deserve a retrospective? Yes, he indeed does. A good place for the English speaking world to begin is the 1938 'Great Waltz', with a grand cast of mainly European actors: Luise Reiner, Fernand Gravet, Miliza Korjus, Herman Bing, Sig Ruman, and the usual American character actors like Hugh Herbert and Leonid Kinsky and the British Lionel Atwill, who once played the lead opposite Marlene Dietrich in von Sternberg's 'The Devil is a Woman'. Is it too much to say in this sentimental, romanticized Hollywood rewriting of Strauss' life, with music and song and dancing and period costumes that it had something that we find in the UFA films Nazi Germany churned out with the likes of Zarah Leander. Grand fluff to distract the masses from the Great Depression and daily hardship and the gathering of war clouds in Asia and Europe. The year 1938 and the idealization of Vienna is an anachronism, for it was that very year that Hitler's troops annexed Austria to Germany. And the pogrom against Jews and leftists and anti Nazis began with the outcome we tragically came to know. It was Luise Reiner's first film, and she won the Oscar for best actress, which she well deserves as Poldi Strauss' wife. The contralto Korjus added great glamour and the argent clarity of her voice as the other woman. Gravat infused his Strauss with the fantasy of the musical genius he was, as the film had his inspiration say for Tales of the Vienna Woods and Blue Danube come into his mind as though they were generated spontaneously. And then Hollywood enlisted the lyrics of Oscar Hammerstein II to make sure our toes were tapping to the rhythm of the waltz...making everything so Gemutlich and coating the story with more sugar than necessary. Almost 78 years later, it's a grand, but silly film to watch.

This is my all-time favorite musical. Second in line are the Busby Berkeley-Warner Bros. flicks of the '30s.A couple of tin-ear critics decried the arrangements and/or the Korjus singing. Fie on them and their errant poor taste.One critic, edwa green, I think, wondered why she never made any more movies. If he had done a little research he would have found out. Jeanette MacDonald was the big MGM draw and when she realized how successful Korjus was in this movie she told the studio if they used Korjus any more, she and her box office bucks would walk out.Tensaip (that should be minus the 'i') spent his writing time paralleling the story with Hitler's rise, a review that came complete with more than a hint of anti-Semitism. If the Jews bother you that much, scrap your teevee set.Gleywong, or something like that- probably grey wrong - decried Korjus with stupid digs at her singing. A few other critics had hissy fits because the story was more fiction than non. Wanna find out about Strauss? Read a book, or have someone read it to you.Got all that off my chest. I would like to ask one critic where he got a copy of the film. TCM doesn't even have it but, bless their hearts, they have scheduled it often.Now - Korjus is gorgeous in looks and vocally. Her singing was the highlight of the beautiful film. The music (arrangements) were pure beauty, the dance scenes unparalleled, and I even thoroughly enjoyed the Spike Jones-like music at the beginning.Gravet was handsome and convincing, Rainer was, as usual, cute and convincing. One reviewer was bothered by her. Obviously, he knows more than the folks who awarded her a couple of Oscars.To sum it up, and to quote Tony the Tiger --- "The Great Waltz" truly is grrreeeaaat. Okay critics, eat your cereal (use a fork, not a spoon) and be quiet.