Café Metropole (1937)

In Paris, a young American is in debt to a nightclub owner, who forces him to woo an heiress in hopes of reaping her fortune.

Director:

Edward H. Griffith

Writers:

Jacques Deval (screen play), Gregory Ratoff (original story)

Stars:

Loretta Young, Tyrone Power, Adolphe Menjou

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Loretta Young	...	Laura Ridgeway
Tyrone Power	...	Alexander Brown aka Alexis
Adolphe Menjou	...	Monsieur Victor
Gregory Ratoff	...	Paul / Real Prince Alexis Paneiev
Charles Winninger	...	Joseph Ridgeway
Helen Westley	...	Margaret Ridgeway
Christian Rub	...	Maxl Schinner
Ferdinand Gottschalk	...	Monsieur Leon Monnet
Georges Renavent	...	Captain
Leonid Kinskey	...	Artist
Hal K. Dawson	...	Arthur Cleveland Thorndyke
Paul Porcasi	...	Police Official
André Cheron	...	Croupier (as Andre Cheron)
George Beranger	...	Hat Clerk (as Andre Beranger)

Storyline

Victor Lobard, the smooth and nimble owner of the Café Metropole in Paris, has only ten days to replace a small fortune he embezzled from the business; he and a clerk face prison if he fails. He thinks he's won the money at a casino then learns he's in possession of a rubber check written by Alexander Brown, a well-mannered but penniless Yank. Lobard cooks up a scheme: to have Brown pretend to be a Russian prince, woo a visiting American, and get her rich father to give Brown the money Lobard needs. Several problems: Brown's not a very good impostor, a real Russian prince presents himself, and the two young people fall in love. Does prison await or do wild strawberries?

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Plot Keywords:

russian prince | money | russian | prince | impostor | 

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Romance

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English French Russian

Release Date:

7 May 1937 (USA)

Also Known As:

Cafe Metropole

Filming Locations:

20th Century Fox Studios - 10201 Pico Blvd., Century City, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Twentieth Century Fox

Technical Specs

Runtime:

83 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Mirrophonic Recording)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Hollywood Reporter production charts and news items listed Jean Hersholt in the cast, but he did not appear in the movie.

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Quotes

Paul: Have you forgotten who I am? Do you realize that Panaieff is the name of the family who for the last 300 years were related to the czars of Russia 25 times? 5 times legitimately! Why I'd rather have my blood changed to borscht.
[mumbles]

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Connections

Featured in Hidden Hollywood: Treasures from the 20th Century Fox Film Vaults (1997)

User Reviews

With all that beauty, who listens to what they're saying?

A broke American is forced to pose as a Russian prince in order to pay a gambling debt in "Cafe Metropole," a film written by the multi-talented Gregory Ratoff, who also plays a role in the movie. This is a funny, light, romantic comedy where the best scenes are saved for the character actors Charles Winninger and Helen Westley, who have great banter. Menjou is a duplicitous restaurateur who blackmails Tyrone Power into going along with his scheme; Loretta Young, romanced by Power, is the beautiful daughter of Charles Winninger.

If you're a shallow person, this is the movie for you because it's Eye Candy City. Power and Young, two people very, very high on any "most beautiful" list, are so ethereally, incalculably gorgeous that it's hard to listen to a word they're saying while they're on screen. And Young's fashions are divine '30s couturier. This is one of Power's very early films; he was only 22 when it was made, and though only a year older than he was, Young had been around since silent film days. For me, Power's looks reached their full dazzle about two to three years later but if you only saw him in Cafe Metropole, you'd have a hard time believing there could be any improvement in that face. And in a tuxedo for so much of the movie. Almost too much of a good thing.

Anyway, if you can concentrate, Cafe Metropole is a delightful film.

As a bit of trivia, Power and Young made several films together in Power's early days at Fox. They remained friends, and in 1958, Young showed up for Power's funeral straight from filming her TV show, decked out and unrecognizable in Oriental garb and makeup to match. In the late '70s, she was photographed with Power's son, Ty, Jr., and you would swear you'd gone back in time. His resemblance to his father was so striking, and she was still so very beautiful.