Heartbeat (1946)

In Paris, a young woman runs away from a reform school, joins a pickpocket academy, and finds herself falling for the handsome diplomat she's been blackmailed into stealing from.

Director:

Sam Wood

Writers:

Morrie Ryskind (adaptation), Hans Wilhelm (original screenplay)

Stars:

Ginger Rogers, Jean-Pierre Aumont, Adolphe Menjou

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Ginger Rogers	...	Arlette Lafron
Jean-Pierre Aumont	...	Pierre de Roche (as Jean Pierre Aumont)
Adolphe Menjou	...	Ambassador
Melville Cooper	...	Roland Latour
Mikhail Rasumny	...	Yves Cadubert
Eduardo Ciannelli	...	Baron Ferdinand Dvorak
Mona Maris	...	Ambassador's Wife
Henry Stephenson	...	Minister
Basil Rathbone	...	Professor Aristide

Storyline

A young female escapee from a reform school joins a pickpocket academy in Paris. She is caught red-handed on her first attempt at stealing by an upper class man. He recruits her to do him a favor at a society party where she meets and falls in love with a young, handsome, rich diplomat. Whether or not she can land him is another story.

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Plot Keywords:

screwball comedy | reform school | pickpocket | diplomat | paris france | 

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Taglines:

A daring, exciting adventure...in the world's most exciting capitol!

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Genres:

Drama | Romance

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

May 1946 (USA)

Also Known As:

Corazonada

Company Credits

Production Co:

Robert & Raymond Hakim Company

Technical Specs

Runtime:

102 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Quotes

Yves Cadubert: When I lie, everybody knows. Maybe I should go into politics where it doesn't matter.

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Connections

Remake of Beating Heart (1940)

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Soundtracks

Can You Guess ?
(The Heartbeat Song)
Music by Paul Misraki
Lyrics by Ervin Drake
Sung by Ginger Rogers

User Reviews

Does Have Its Moments, But Never Really Comes Together

Despite having some talent and material to work with, this feature produces just a few good moments, and it never really comes together the way it might have. The cast, headed by Ginger Rogers and including some fine supporting actors, certainly supplied plenty of talent. The story idea was only mildly imaginative, but it had the potential for some decent comedy and entertaining romantic mix-ups. But it seems to go in too many different directions at different times, and perhaps as a result, it has a few stretches of good material packed amidst some longer, less interesting parts.

Rogers was easily one of the more attractive and talented actresses of her era, but the role of Arlette just doesn't seem to work for her. The character is not really as interesting as the situation, and Rogers often seems to be trying too hard. In any case, the character never quite rings true.

The story starts with Arlette, a reluctant enrollee in a school for petty criminals, getting roped into a scheme by an unscrupulous aristocrat that plunges her into a series of romantic and personal complications, as she develops a tangled relationship with a diplomat played by Jean-Pierre Aumont. The story is pure fluff, deliberately implausible but with some good possibilities, and it would likely have worked better with a lighter, more farcical touch all around.

Basil Rathbone is well cast as the 'professor' at the crime school, and there are some amusing details in his classes and teaching methods, but all of the sequences in the 'school' are essentially just elaborations on the basic gag idea. Adolphe Menjou was an ideal choice for the unprincipled nobleman, but he has to contend with some clunky dialogue in his part. For all of these and other reasons, "Heartbeat" - though probably worth seeing - never hits its stride, and it delivers less than it could have.