A Song to Remember (1945)

Biography of Frederic Chopin.

Director:

Charles Vidor

Writers:

Sidney Buchman, Ernst Marischka (story)

Stars:

Paul Muni, Merle Oberon, Cornel Wilde

Nominated for 6 Oscars. Another 1 win.

Cast

Cast overview:
Paul Muni	...	Prof. Joseph Elsner
Merle Oberon	...	George Sand
Cornel Wilde	...	Frédéric Chopin
Nina Foch	...	Constantia
George Coulouris	...	Louis Pleyel
Howard Freeman	...	Kalkbrenner
Stephen Bekassy	...	Franz Liszt

Storyline

Prof. Joseph Elsner guides his protégé Frydryk Chopin through his formative years to early adulthood in Poland. At a recital in a duke's home Chopin insults the new Russian-installed governor, and must flee the country. The professor takes him to Paris, where he eventually comes under the wing and influence of novelist George Sand and rises to prominence in the music world, to the exclusion of his old friends and patriotic feelings towards Poland.

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Plot Keywords:

poland | pianist | composer | writer | paris france | 

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Taglines:

A New Kind of Motion Picture! A New Miracle of TECHNICOLOR!

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Genres:

Biography | Drama | Music

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

18 January 1945 (USA)

Also Known As:

Chopin

Company Credits

Production Co:

Columbia Pictures Corporation

Technical Specs

Runtime:

113 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Mirrophonic Recording)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Was originally set to be directed by Frank Capra following Lost Horizon (1937) and to star Francis Lederer as Chopin, Paul Muni as Elsner and Marlene Dietrich as George Sand after an attempt to borrow Spencer Tracy and Greta Garbo from MGM failed. Production delays on 'Lost Horizon' forced Capra to abandon the project until Columbia Pictures revived the project in 1944 with Charles Vidor directing and Paul Muni appearing as Elsner. Capra sued for breach of contract in 1946 but the lawsuit was eventually was settled out of court.

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Goofs

Almost all the pianos in the movie are artcase pianos made after the death of Chopin, the sound we hear is also of modern pianos.

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Quotes

George Sand: [to Chopin] Discontinue that so-called Polonaise jumble you've been playing for days.

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Connections

Featured in Liberace (1988)

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Soundtracks

The piano music of Frédéric Chopin is played by José Iturbi

User Reviews

Colorfully bad, with good music

Knowing that this was Liberace's favorite film should give you an idea of what this film is like--in fact, his trademark candleabra on the piano was taken from one of the most memorable moments in the film.

This was a high profile production for Columbia in 1945, with lots of money thrown at the sets and costumes, and actually filming in color (remember, Columbia was still a second-rank studio during World War II--usually only spending major money on its Rita Hayworth films). Consequently, this biography of Chopin is beautiful to look at--but a bit overboard at the same time. It's certainly not minimalist!

As if competing with the lavishness of the design, the acting (particularly by Paul Muni) is waaaay over the top, and the storyline refashions Chopin's life into a very heavy melodrama. The dramatics are so ham-handed that the Harvard Lampoon in 1945 gave the film an award for the "ketchup on the keys" sequence. Possibly the most interesting aspect of the film (other than its campiness) is how this costume biography is inflected with aspects of 40s film noir. Merle Oberon as author George Sand is the film's femme fatale, potentially drawing Chopin down the wrong creative path. And, since the film was made while World War II was still being fought, the film has to make allusions to patriotic duty (especially since Chopin was Polish, and World War II officially broke out when Hitler invaded Poland in 1939).

So--you have tons of visual excess, some sumptious renditions of Chopin pieces, and a weird discussion of gender relations and wartime responsibilities. All in all, it's a wild piece of gorgeous junk.