winstonchurchill-93755 My family immigrated at a time when America was the land of opportunity. The "Protestant Work Ethic" (they were Roman Catholic) was that any work that provided for one's Family was "holy" or "honorable." Anyone could work hard and dream big. This sustained them in the Great Depression where self sacrifice and American rugged individualism triumphed. This movie, like so many of the classics, remind us of what a great country America was, in an era of hard times. The success story of love and hard work is touching in spite of its overuse. This movie works. The immigrants came to work and assimilate. They took the oath of citizenship, eschewed welfare and prevailed. The setting of the underdog works here. Another feel good oldie to enjoy!

JohnHowardReid Francis Lederer (Karel Novak), Ginger Rogers (Sylvia Dennis), Arthur Hohl (Pander), Jimmy Butler (Frank Dennis), J. Farrell MacDonald (Murph), Lillian Harmer (Mrs Schultz, the landlady), Helen Ware (Miss Anthrop), Eily Malyon (Miss Evans), Donald Meek (minister), Sidney Toler (police sergeant), Oscar Apfel (judge), Reginald Barlow, Wade Boteler, Frank Sheridan (customs inspectors), Spencer Charters (license clerk), Andy Clyde (liquor store owner), James Donlan (cab manager), Paul Hurst (Joe, a policeman), Harold Goodwin (doctor at police station), Jack Pennick (cab driver), Edward Le Saint (customs official), Irving Bacon (counterman), Dick Curtis, Max Wagner, Richard Alexander, Billy Dooley (men at East River), Christian Rub (joyful immigrant on ship).Director: STEPHEN ROBERTS. Screenplay: Jane Murfin, Edward Kaufman. Story: Don Hartman, Norman Krasna. Photography: Nicholas Musuraca. Film editor: Jack Hively. Art directors: Van Nest Polglase and Charles M. Kirk. Make-up: Mel Berns. Special effects: Vernon L. Walker. Miniatures: Don Jahraus. Music director: Al Colombo. Research: Elizabeth McGaffey. Stills: John Miehle. Assistant director: Dewey Starkey. Sound recording: John E. Tribby. Producer: Pandro S. Berman.Copyright 11 January 1935 by RKO Radio Pictures. New York opening at the Radio City Music Hall: 17 January 1935 (ran only one week). U.S. release: 18 January 1935. Australian release: 27 March 1935. 78 minutes.SYNOPSIS: A fairy tale about an illegal immigrant (Lederer), a kind- heart-ed chorus girl (Rogers) and her orphaned kid brother (Butler).COMMENT: A flag-waving romance that strains credulity to breaking point and then finally snaps altogether in a slapstick-style climax that fades out not on the principals, but on minor character player Donald Meek who has just entered the picture at this point! Francis Lederer makes a somewhat weak hero, but Ginger Rogers looks great (despite some unattractive costumes and odd eyebrow make-up). A goodly supply of our favorite support actors also help out. And, breaking the Hollywood mold, Jimmy Butler presents as quite a personable kid.

abcj-2 I have seen over 2,000 classic films in the last 6 years, and somehow I let this one slip by me. It is rare that I uncover a new classic film favorite, but I did with this film."Romance in Manhattan" works so well thanks to the wonderful performances by Ginger Rogers and especially Francis Lederer. I would have loved to see him hit stardom, but he had a long career and lived 100 years despite not becoming a household name. Lederer is so charismatic and handsome in this film with such an exuberant spirit. A young Ginger Rogers is lovely, has great chemistry with Lederer, and is a loving sister. There are two subplots, but this is mostly about a man coming to America to live the "American Dream" which he does while finding romance along with it. If that appeals to you, then I highly recommend this delightful little gem.

mukava991 A sensitive and skillful performance by Francis Lederer makes this minor film enjoyable enough to sit through. He plays a Czech immigrant who escapes deportation back to his native land by jumping ship, ending up penniless but full of spirit on the bustling streets of New York City. Soon he encounters a kindly chorus girl (Ginger Rogers) who takes him home and with the help of her 11-year-old brother helps him find work. The dialogue is peppered with lines about the state of the economy in 1934, an understanding of how difficult it was to find a job and even wry commentary on New Deal federal policies (someone on the writing team had to have been a Republican). Otherwise, the impact thins as the plot thickens. We are supposed to believe, in line with the moral code of movies at that time, that Lederer willingly agrees to sleep on the roof of Rogers's apartment building for months, coming inside to the stairs only when it rains. Somehow the summery weather never seems to change even though a significant stretch of time evidently passes during which he rises from newspaper seller to taxi driver (even "scabbing" during a strike), sporting an ever-improving wardrobe, savings account and self-confidence. To top it all off, he is helped out of legal snags relating to his immigration status (and marriage to Rogers) by the convenient fact that Rogers just happens to be very good friends with a sweet Irish cop who has connections in the municipal power structure; call it corruption for good ends.Lederer's progress through the streets of New York City is represented by crudely staged actions in front of rear projections. Interior scenes, however, are handled imaginatively and catch the eye. Ginger Rogers is only secondary here, but when you see how many films she cranked out during this period, you have to allow her some slack. Lederer gets top billing and deserves it.