Astute salute to a charming rake, deceptive satire disguised as a bubble.
This movie has Ameche as an innocent Casanova, shown from infancy to his death at age 70.
The film opens with a deceased Ameche standing before the Devil, Cregar, requesting his
passport to Hell. Cregar studies his newest applicant and then reviews Ameche's carefree
and often careless life. Based on the Hungarian play Birthdays by Ladislaus Bus-Fekete,
with additional bromides from Samson Raphaelson. But Ameche is short on charm and too
hapless for the role; he can't get any real chemistry cooking with Tierney. Still, it's
compensated by a supporting cast of pros, and Lubitsch's deft direction. This was
Lubitsch's first color film; the Basevi-Fuller Hell is a fabulous sight to see.
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