The Chocolate Soldier (1941) Online

After their seventh teaming in Bittersweet did not fare as well in the box office the previous year, MGM decided to split Nelson Eddy and Jeanette MacDonald for their next films. Nelson was given his choice of leading lady and he picked Rise Stevens of the Metropolitan Opera.

If nothing else, Louis B. Mayer prided himself on bringing class to the cinema and he never met a diva he didn't want to sign for MGM. Eddy, who didn't really get along with Mayer and was soon to leave MGM after a spat with him, I think knew just how much it would cost to sign someone from the outside and he made Mayer spend the dough.

Rise Stevens had appeared with him on radio so Nelson's motives weren't completely to hurt Mayer financially. They worked well together here and maybe they could have been a screen team themselves. Rise Stevens had a good gift for comedy, very much like that other singer/actress Irene Dunne. But after The Chocolate Soldier and an appearance in Going My Way with Bing Crosby, she left the silver screen.

Like the Eddy/MacDonald feature Sweethearts this utilizes the music, but not the plot. Like Sweethearts the leads are appearing on stage in The Chocolate Soldier, but it's a backstage story for the plot. And the plot used is The Guardsman which MGM owned the rights to, having filmed it in 1931 with Alfred Lunt and Lynne Fontanne.

Eddy and Stevens look so good and sing so beautifully on stage, but that doesn't account for Eddy's all consuming jealousy over his wife. His Othello act doesn't even need an Iago for a boost, he's creating all kinds of imaginary lovers for Stevens. Finally he decides to put her to the test, playing a phony Russian opera singer with beard and Cossack costume. Stevens however is up to the challenge and it's a pretty funny film that follows.

The two leads have some nice duets together, particularly the My Hero duet from Oscar Straus's Chocolate Soldier. But the big hits of this film are Moussorgsky's Song of the Flea and another song While My Lady Sleeps written by Bronislau Kaper and Gus Kahn. Both were standard items in Nelson Eddy concerts. Eddy recorded both, however the version I have of the Song of the Flea is in English and in The Chocolate Soldier, Nelson sings it in the original Russian.

It was a good teaming Eddy and Stevens and since right after this Jeanette and Nelson would be doing their last film together, I Married an Angel, it's unfortunate Stevens and Eddy did not do a few more films together themselves.

A mix of the operetta The Chocolate Soldier and the play The Guardsman, this is one for those of us with incurably romantic hearts ... Eddy is as reliable as ever (The Song of the Flea and Sympathy especially good) and Rise Stevens in her debut film is pretty, witty and charming, as well as being in fabulous voice. One for rainy winter afternoons.

Those who actually KNOW Oscar Straus's original operetta will have a great time watching how MGM turned somersaults using it as the show-within-a-show that Nelson Eddy and Risë Stevens (who would later record the original operetta for RCA) are performing "on stage" in this musical film trading on the famous show's title when they couldn't get the rights to film the full show.

The history of the original operetta is fairly well known: Straus wanted to adapt one of G.B. Shaw's earliest and arguably funniest plays, ARMS AND THE MAN to the operetta stage. Shaw was amenable but doubted the result would work and didn't want to undercut the ongoing royalty stream of one of his most successful plays (it is regularly performed to this day).

In compromise, Shaw demanded a number of conditions: 1) they WOULD use his basic plot (in fact the authors and Stanislaus Strange in his English language translation shoehorned most of Shaw's interpersonal comedy into the first and third acts of their operetta but omitted almost entirely the Fabian class comedy Shaw held dear to his heart), 2) they would not use any of the original character names or a single actual LINE of his dialogue, 3) all programs for productions in England had to carry the producers apologies to Shaw "for this unauthorized PARODY of one of his plays." 4) In return for these concessions, Shaw would decline ANY royalties for the operetta (but reserved the right to hate the result - which he did - probably at least in part as a result of the fortune he had declined on principle). Straus and company happily accepted the deal.

As Shaw expected, the operetta left out most of his best and funniest ideas; to his great surprise, it retained ENOUGH and had music GOOD enough that it was an enormous success anyway.

In 1940, when MGM wanted to continue their series of successful operetta films with Nelson Eddy, they found they had to approach the still very active Shaw - who had won an Oscar for Best Screenplay just two years before for his adaptation of his own play, PYGMALION. The great man was willing to be persuaded but unenthusiastic. He really didn't like the bowdlerization of one of his best perennial plays.

MGM had hoped/expected to snap up the rights to the old show on the cheap, but Shaw was not to be shortchanged. No deal could be struck on terms as cheap as MGM wanted. Still, MGM HAD the rights to the music and lyrics and the famous title so they went ahead anyway.

Technically they used Molnar's play THE GUARDSMAN as the basis for their film (it's really a generic but funny "jealous husband tests wife's fidelity with a masquerade she sees through" tale that's as old as the hills and Lubitch did it better in the 30's), but they didn't bother trying to adapt it to the old score.

Instead, they justified the TITLE and score they had bought by having the leads fairly obviously performing the operetta on stage between the off-stage comedy scenes (the credits in the opening "crawl" are among the most bizarre you will see anywhere). They just didn't show the plot scenes from the operetta and near the end rather outrageously had Eddy's character play the Second Act Finale from the operetta on the Act I set and in a brand new costume to make an offstage point - as if the audience in the theatre in the film wouldn't notice (watch the reactions of the delightful Nigel Bruce, tossed in as the befuddled best friend/observer).

MGM might as well have done DIE FLEDERMAUS for the same basic story and even better music, but what they got was and remains good fun - and Eddy wasn't ever up to a ...FLEDERMAUS in vocal or acting ability. Risë Stevens, a more down to earth actress than the bubbly MacDonald who usually left Eddy in the dust (and with a singing voice every bit as good), proved to be a solid, believable acting partner for him and (together with a relatively solid comedy book) makes Eddy seem to give one of his best performances on screen.

It's our loss that the declining popularity of Eddy and the quality of his vehicles deprived us of more pairings with Stevens who was so perfect for him. MacDonald was back for I MARRIED AN ANGEL (1942), he really didn't have a leading lady for the Claude Rains PHANTOM OF THE OPERA (1943) or KNICKERBOCKER HOLIDAY (1944) and then, except for NORTHWEST OUTPOST (1947), it was all but over.

Now that both are in the public domain, it would be wonderful to get actual movies of ARMS AND THE MAN (the original 1932 British film has not been seen in years) and the *real* CHOCOLATE SOLDIER (there was a 1915 silent film of the 1909 operetta co-directed by the American translator) with the Stanislaus Strange libretto out of Shaw, but until they are appear, this hybrid comedy with healthy glimpses of an over produced version of the original is good fun.

Proof positive that NELSON EDDY finally was able to shed his "wooden" image is THE CHOCOLATE SOLDIER. Whatever inspired him to do this performance (some say it was his frequent radio work that developed his acting talent), his impersonation of a Russian Cossack is both hilarious and convincing. He has a great time squeezing every bit of humor out of his sardonic dialogue and is never for a moment upstaged by the talented Rise Stevens. In fact, although she is carefully photographed and seems to be brimming with good humor, her performance is considerably weaker than Eddy's. One can only speculate how much better the film would have been if Eddy's usual co-star (with her great sense of comic timing) had been available.

Both singers are in fine voice but it's Eddy who steals the show with his rendition of "Song of the Flea". Nelson Eddy was rarely praised for his acting prowess, but here he delivers a solid, sensational performance with great flair and dexterity. Absolutely his best work as an actor!

The pleasant supporting cast includes Nigel Bruce and Florence Bates.

I heard so much about The Chocolate Soldier from watching clips of both Nelson Eddy and Rise Stevens on YouTube and people telling me how good it was, and desperately I wanted to see it. I finally saw it, and you know what, I wasn't disappointed.

I will agree that the story about a man suspecting his wife of infidelity is predictable and creaks with age, and the choreography at times was disappointingly unexciting and pedestrian. But putting these flaws aside, this is a truly beautiful and entertaining film. One thing for certain, the production values were simply fabulous. The lavish costumes and beautiful sets were really a wonder to look at. The score is phenomenal, featuring some Oscar Strauss hits like My Hero, Thank the Lord the War is Over, Sympathy and of course the Chocolate Soldier, and some well known opera gems like Mon Couer s'oeuvre a Ta voix from Saint Saens's Samson and Delilah and Evening Star from Wagner's Tannhauser. While my Lady Sleeps was stunning too, but the real highlight was the enormously entertaining Song of the Flea. The performances were sublime; while the beautiful Rise Stevens is probably at her loveliest and sings beautifully, it is the wonderful undervalued Nelson Eddy who steals the show with his beautiful resonant voice and flawless comic timing and stage presence. Nigel Bruce and Florence Bates are good too.

All in all, a beautiful film. Not perfect, but the production values, score and performances make it a treat. 8/10 Bethany Cox

This is one of those forgotten musical comedies from the vaults that is well worth taking the time to sit back and watch. The set-up for the plot takes a little more time than it should, but once the deceptions begin, the banter and the inter-play between Nelson Eddy and Rise Stevens carry the show. Nelson Eddy is in fine voice, and Rise Stevens' sparklingly burnished vocal range and comedic talent shouldn't be missed. 'The Chocolate Soldier' is well-filmed and crisply edited, presented in glorious black and white. The costumes alone should have merited a Technicolor production.

Fearing that Nelson and Jeanette had hit their last high note at the box office, Louis B teamed Nelson with Rise Stevens in "The Chocolate Soldier" in 1941. The two make a lovely team, both good-looking with beautiful operatic voices. The plot? Well, this married couple star together on stage. The husband (Eddy) thinks the wife (Stevens) is losing interest, so he disguises himself as another man and romances her.

It takes a long time, but the music is beautiful, including "My Hero," "Mon coeur" from Samson and Delilah, "Evening Star" from Tannhauser (in English - I'm guessing in 1941, no one wanted to hear German), and many others. A friend of mine worked for Stevens, and she would occasionally comment that she was quite a looker in her day, to which my friend would reply, "Yeah, Miss Stevens, you were all right." She was a little more than that, at a time when opera singers who had true glamor was rarer than it is today.

Eddy and MacDonald were reteamed for one more film; the world had changed too much for their operatic fantasies. When Mario Lanza starred in films that used opera ten years later, he played, among other things, a truck driver and a soldier. It's too bad; Stevens and Eddy and MacDonald and Eddy both made beautiful teams.

THE CHOCOLATE SOLDIER is a musical based on the famous old Molnar play THE GUARDSMAN, filmed by the Lunts back in 1931, in which an actor (Nelson Eddy) tests the fidelity of his actress wife (Rise Stevens) by disguising himself as a Russian prince and trying to seduce her while her `husband' is out of town. He succeeds, to his chagrin. The handsome and amiable but often bland Eddy is almost unrecognizable as the fiery and passionate Russian, and his performance is a comic revelation, accent and all (favorite lines: `My fillings are runnink avay vith me' and `Like sheeps that pass out in the night'). Unfortunately, a good deal of the original naughtiness is missing: the Production Code of 1941 required that the wife be aware of her husband's masquerade from the beginning. In the original play she claims she knew it was him all along---but did she? We're not sure!

Dreadful choreography in the musical numbers, but beautiful Oscar Strauss music performed masterfully by Eddy and Rise Stevens, plus `Evening Star' from TANNHAUSER sung gorgeously by Eddy and `My Heart at Thy Sweet Voice' from SAMSON AND DELILAH by Stevens. Even though Stevens has the superior voice, one can't help wishing that Jeanette MacDonald, with her considerable comic gifts, had been available for the part!

Nelson Eddy and Rise Stevens star in an amusing film about a jealous husband, and his suspicions of his wife's infidelity. Nelson plays a dual role as the insecure husband and the Russian singer he impersonates to test his wife's loyalty. Rise is delicious as the teasing wife who exploits his doubts unmercifully. Nelson plays the Russian in a broad and sardonic manner which seems to prove again that he is more at ease and sure of himself in films without his usual costar and RL love interest. Nelson and Rise are in excellent voice. A couple of dances without the two leads could easily be cut. Neither approaches the humor of Nelson, nervously biting his nails, as he contemplates his insecurities.

"Men like him don't grow on trees", operetta performer Rise Stevens insists upon meeting a dashing Russian singer. "No", her companion Nigel Bruce retorts. "They swing on them." I'm not sure if Rasputin grew up on a tree or not, but that's who Nelson Eddy resembles in his over-the-top disguise, playing a jealous husband testing his wife's fidelity. They are the Lunt and Fontanne of European operetta, starring in a production of "The Chocolate Soldier", but they might as well be Howard Keel and Kathryn Grayson of "Kiss Me Kate", two lovers who obviously need a break from each other but ultimately can't be apart.

The delightful Florence Bates is Stevens' portly dresser whom Eddy comments, "I never argue with women larger than myself". This film contains many such witty lines in spite of being rather high-brow and shrill in its musical sequences, which includes the popular "My Hero" (later sung by Vivian Vance on a memorable "I Love Lucy" episode). The operetta sequences take place on a stage the size of Yankee Stadium, stuffing every open space with dancer, flowers and unnecessary props. As a replacement for Jeanette MacDonald, Stevens is O.K. but considering the history of the play this is based upon ("The Guardsman"), a regular team seems more appropriate with Stevens and Eddy holding off for another pairing.

As for the plot, It doesn't take much to see through Eddy's disguise (especially since it appears that he is wearing a rubber mask) and it seems that Stevens would instantly recognize all the costumes he wears to disguise himself. Eddy does seem to take on a second personality (particularly in a knife-throwing dance number) as his character really gets into his alter-ego, taking away the sometimes wooden performance that frequented in most of his films. Perhaps a break from Jeanette was just what he needed...

Nelson Eddy was always considered a dull non-actor with a nice voice, no histrionic match for his usual co-star Jeanette MacDonald (who became increasingly coy and diva-ish with every passing movie). Here, opposite Rise Stevens in a musical updating of Molnar's "The Guardsman," he gets to exercise some hitherto unknown comic energy, and he's quite good-- not up to Alfred Lunt, perhaps, who played the role in MGM's 1931 non-musical version, but pleasingly hammy and with genuine comic timing. Stevens has a nice personality and, of course, a lovely Met soprano, but she's unflatteringly photographed, and she's playing a not very likable character. With minor roles given to Nigel Bruce and Florence Bates, Eddy and Stevens are pretty much the whole show, and they navigate the Oscar Straus melodies (and a few others) and worn marital-discord plot expertly. Made during the Hays Code years, it's less spicy than the original -- we're never in doubt as to whether the wife realizes her husband's exploits or not -- and takes place in a mittel-European never-never-land that never, never intrudes on reality. Once you get used to all the artifice and MGM overproduction, it's quite enjoyable. And it suggests Eddy may have had a productive career in comedy.