Movie Reviews by Edwin Jahiel

HEARTBEAT (1946)

Directed by Sam Wood. Written by Hans Wilhelm, Max Kolpe, Michel Duran, Morrie Riskind. Photography, Joe Valentine. Music, Paul Misraki.

French gamine Ginger Rogers goes to a school for pickpockets, run by Basil Rathbone. Eventually she and one of her victims, diplomat Jean-Pierre Aumont, fall in love. Adolphe Menjou and Melville Cooper round off an excellent, bouncy cast. Charming little movie had been made earlier in France as "Battement de Coeur" (1940), with Danielle Darrieux directed by Henri Decoin, her then-husband. Michel Duran co-wrote it as well as the 1946 film. The French original is, as usual,the better choice. Darrieux is more refined and subtle as ingenue-comedienne than Rogers,though Ginger is not bad at all. On the other hand,in the US edition, Aumont is a far greater charmer than Claude Dauphin (in "Battement..") as the male lead. Crime-professor Rathbone is also more colorful than his French counterpart. The American remake may have no major claims to fame, but it is certainly an underrated comedy that's fun to watch. (Edwin Jahiel)