The Jessie Matthews Revue Vol 3

Jessie Matthews was in some or many respects very much THE British pin-up girl to a legion of male admirers in the 1930’s. This DVD double-set will be a rare treat for them, if there are any still alive.

Of the two films on offer here (The Man From Toronto and Head Over Heels), the second is by far the more interesting.
The Man From Toronto (1933) is derived from a rather hackneyed old plot with an inevitable conclusion that is rather played out. Englishwoman Leslie Farrar (J. Matthews) and Canadian Fergus Wimbush (Ian Hunter) have each been left a considerable amount of money courtesy of an inheritance. However, there is a hook attached to it: they only will receive the proud sum if they agree to marry each other! One wonders if they could have simply married, split the money and then get divorced… but then we would not have a film. Unfortunately Leslie is broke and her jolly old uncle Bunston (Frederick Kerr) who just happens to be a solicitor as well, finds a nice little country cottage where she can stay for a while. Soon enough, the man from Toronto arrives at the cottage where Jessie pretends to be the maid. After the usual comic misunderstanding, it soon becomes clear that love is in the air… and it’s all played out in an idyllic little village. Hunter and Matthews are perfectly suited the lead roles, and Kerr supplies even more fun.

As for Head Over Heels (1937), this is much more in keeping with what you legion of Matthews fans (anybody over 95 out there?) would want to have in your collection. This is Jessie for what she was famous for – singing, tap-dancing and oh, that chipmunk smile.
Set in Paris, here we have shy Frenchman Pierre (the oh so English Robert Flemyng) as a brilliant sound technician who falls in love with Jeanne Colbert (J. Matthews) - but being a bit slow he initially loses out to his slippery and fast-moving lothario of a flatmate, Marcel Larimour (Louis Borel). Within no time Marcel, despite an obvious lack of talent, is in a singing and dancing double act with Jeanne, who is one of the leading lights at the Garden Of Eden night club. However, on the first night leading Hollywood starlet Norma Langtry (Helen Whitney Bourne) is in the audience and is immediately smitten by Marcel’s ‘talent’. An equally quick worker, it takes her no time at all to get Marcel into her hotel room from which he is unable to extricate himself.

Unfortunate this, as it happens to be the night of his engagement party to Jeanne! Suffice to say it’s ended before it began! Later seeing Marcel cavorting with Norma in the audience, Jeanne can no longer control her emotions and runs off the stage… losing her job in the process. As for Marcel, the lucky sod, he is soon whisked off to Hollywood by Miss Langtry as her new lover AND leading man. This set of circumstances puts Pierre back in the picture who comes up with a unique idea of having Jeanne singing jingles, something which takes off real big time. After a short time, Marcel returns as a Hollywood star (still talentless) with his American star girlfriend and we can have a bit more fun…
Not altogether bad, this little film!