Stolen Holiday (1937)

Director:

Michael Curtiz

Writers:

Warren Duff (story) and
Virginia Kellogg (story) ...

Release Date:

6 February 1937 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Romance

Plot:

Nicole Picot is working as a model in a Paris dress salon when she is picked by Stefan Orloff to help...

Plot Keywords:

Fraud | Model | Mob Violence | Suicide | Investment

Cast

Kay Francis	...	Nicole 'Nicky' Picot
Claude Rains	...	Stefan Orloff
Ian Hunter	...	Anthony 'Tony' Wayne
Alison Skipworth	...	Suzanne, Nicole's Assistant and Friend
Alexander D'Arcy	...	Leon Anatole, Orloff's Assistant
Betty Lawford	...	Helen Tuttle
Walter Kingsford	...	Francis Chalon, Publisher
Charles Halton	...	LeGrande (Credits) / Marcel Legrand, Mayor of Courney (on Sign)
Frank Reicher	...	Charles Rainer, Credit Municipal
Frank Conroy	...	Dupont, Crooked Policeman
Egon Brecher	...	Bergery (Credits) / Deputy Duvalais (In Film)
Robert Strange	...	Prefect of Police
Kathleen Howard	...	Madame Delphine
Wedgwood Nowell	...	M. Borel, Swiss Printer (as Wedgewood Nowell)

Runtime:

80 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

USA:Approved (PCA #2503)

Filming Locations:

Big Bear Lake, California, USA

Company:

Warner Bros. Pictures

Trivia:

The movie is loosely based on the French bond scandal involving Serge Alexandre Stavisky. After the fraud was discovered he either committed suicide or was murdered by the French police.

Movie Connections:

Version of Stavisky... (1974)

Soundtrack:

Stolen Holiday

C Rains, K Francis in mix of crime drama & love story

That card at the beginning of the film stating that all characters, events, and names are entirely fictitious was pretty rare back in those days, so the director must have been a little concerned making this one! Then we learn that we are in Paris in 1931 at a fashion show. Nicole (Kay Francis) and Suzanne (Alison Skipworth) work for a fashionable dress shop. Stefan Orloff (Claude Rains, a couple years before Casablanca) comes along and has a proposition for her. She follows through on her end of the bargain, and he sets her up in a shop of her own. We get through that in the first 15 minutes, but Nicole isn't done with him yet... their lives stay intertwined, against the advice of her friend Suzanne. Then, all at once, about a half hour into the film, we bluntly find out exactly what Orloff and his cronies are up to, and by association, now Nicole is involved too. The timing is a little strange, but the script and direction are good. Francis certainly had a successful career, but it might have been even more successful if not for her problem pronouncing the letter "R"... Directed by Michael Curtiz, who would also direct Rains in Casablanca in 1942. Produced by Hal Wallis, who also produced all those silly Elvis movies. The story here is interesting to follow, and the outdoor scenery is beautiful, even if its not really Europe we're seeing.