The golden age of Hollywood in its heyday was distinguished by typical feature films, united by the universal theme of love. As a rule, the main characters - a man and a woman - are forced to pass tests on their own feelings to finally make sure of love for each other. Of course, such films took on different forms, starting with banal melodrama and ending with action thrillers. One of the brightest examples of such films is the musical melodrama “Beloved”.
Spouses Gwen and Ernest for several years together perform in production shows, winning hundreds of viewers from all over Broadway. However, their success has long been intrigued by Hollywood producer Norman Trumpett, who dreams of luring the couple to the movies. However, the couple is too devoted to the theater. Then the producer decides to take a daring step and tries to separate Gwen and Ernest, but their love is not destined to just die.
The film involves a motley cast, among which you can see eminent actors, at least if the viewer is familiar with representatives of old Hollywood. So, Janet McDonald played the role of Gwen, an ever-positive singer, trying to preserve not only love, but also her own honor and dignity. Nelson Eddie played the role of Ernest, the same positive singer who did not notice how he became a pawn in the cunning game of the ill-fated producer.
W.S. Van Dyke and Robert Z. Leonard directed a typical Hollywood romantic comedy with musical elements. As usual, the characters sing in operatic voices, confessing to each other the sincerity of their feelings. So here we see quite a banal story about how the insidious producer decides to quarrel a married couple, pursuing selfish goals, but eventually fails, which symbolizes the steadfastness and steadfastness of true love. Of course, all this is accompanied by musical numbers with smiles, cheerful dances and loud concert music, which, as it were, should immerse the viewer in the semblance of ecstasy.
The script of the film is also quite simple. In the story, Gwen and Ernest work as actors on the Broadway stage, gathering crowds of loyal fans, especially those who fell in love with their duet with the song Sweethearts. Their success cannot be rejoiced by their director Felix Lehman, who always fears that the couple will one day decide to leave the stage and move to the movies. In fact, they are constantly pursued by calculating producer Norman Trumpett, who made several proposals to the spouses, which they refused. Not giving up, the producer organizes a conspiracy against the couple, forcing Gwen to believe in the betrayal of Ernest, because of which they are even ready to part. But, of course, love finds a way out.
In general, “Beloved” turned out to be a very simple and even banal film. Of course, you can find its positive aspects in it, but now it is simply morally outdated and does not carry any semantic load. But since I can judge the audience, I can only recommend it.