History Is Made at Night (1937) User Reviews

Obsessive Jealousy

[bkoganbing · 8/10 · 24 January 2007]

Colin Clive is one obsessed man. Insanely jealous of wife Jean Arthur's imaginary lovers, he still won't let her go in divorce. Before Arthur's got a real one in head waiter Charles Boyer.

History Is Made At Night is another one of Frank Borzage's romantic films with tender lovers and lots of soft focus cinematography. A common thread that seems to run in Borzage's films is forces that threaten to keep intended folks apart. This is true in Three Comrades and The Mortal Storm where it is the political situation in Germany of the twenties and thirties respectively. In History Is Made At Night, what keeps them apart is Boyer's conscience.

Colin Clive as the husband is a multimillion dollar owner of transoceanic ship line who sets a trap trying to catch Arthur in a compromising position. When total stranger Boyer walks in and breaks up the trap and hits Clive's chauffeur a few times, Clive being the obsessed fellow he is, kills the chauffeur and says a burglar did it.

Of course Boyer thinks he did it and when he finds out the Paris police are looking for him, he and Arthur go back to Paris from New York where they have run away to. They have the bad luck to be on one of Clive's ships where from a distance he controls the fate of all.

Boyer and Arthur make a beautiful couple in love. However a biography of Jean Arthur assures us there was nothing to anything about that.

This was also Colin Clive's farewell film. Sadly he died a few months after this film was out. Known primarily for being Baron Frankenstein, creator of the undead, he was so much more than that as this film aptly demonstrates.

We also can't forget Leo Carrillo who plays chef Caesar who aids and abets Boyer and Arthur's romance. Carrillo was a guy who always added something to any film he was in.

If tender romance and ship board excitement are your thing than History Is Made At Night is your film indeed.

Grand 1930s Romance

[marilynhenry · 8/10 · 16 June 2014]

This is one of my all-time favorite films, partly because it stars Jean Arthur, one of my all- time favorite actresses, has Boyer's charm, and is beautifully directed and produced. An artistic achievement of its day.

Poor Jean Arthur, trying to get loose from a really ruthless, jealous soon-to-be ex, is set up in her Paris hotel room by husband who has hired a gigolo to sneak in. Boyer, on the balcony, gets wind of it and spoils it and steals her away. They wind up at his place of work, a elegant Paris restaurant, and they dance, dine, laugh, and begin to fall in love. But when she returns to the hotel, it seems the hired gigolo is dead, and her husband coerces her back, threatening scandal, making her give up the divorce final.

Broken-hearted, Boyer and his chef friend go to America to try to find the lady, but cannot, so decide to go to work at an upscale café where Boyer hopes she may patronize. She does and they reunite and the cruel almost-ex-husband, who is a very wealthy shipower and builder, fixes it so Boyer is about to get arrested for the Paris murder. Jean and Boyer try to return to Paris on board a new ship of her husband's and he orders the captain to go full speed into a dense fog...and, well, it is suspenseful and frightening and wonderful. It plays up the speed competitions of the great Ocean Liners, the luxuries and yet dangers of this mode of travel. I learned all I know of Ocean Liners of the time thru movies like this, Love Affair, and Now Voyager, etc, because I would never have the opportunity to sail on one myself. Movies were always a great source of learning to me! But this film is especially entertaining, even though Jean Arthur is playing a straight romantic drama this time. Boyer never disappoints. I count this as another of the late 1930's golden crop of finest all-time films...

Obsession, Jealousy and Love

[claudio_carvalho · 8/10 · 7 December 2007]

The obsessive and jealous shipowner Bruce Vail (Colin Clive) does not accept the divorce his wife Irene Vail (Jean Arthur) achieved in London, and he hires his driver Michael Browsky (Ivan Lebedeff) to forge adultery with Irene in Paris to make the decree null. However, she is rescued by the headwaiter Paul Dumond (Charles Boyer), who punches Michael and locks Bruce and his private eyes in a locker, and they spend a wonderful night together in the restaurant Château Bleu, where Paul and his best friend Chef Cesare (Leo Carrillo) work, and they fall in love for each other. Meanwhile, Bruce kills Michael and blackmails Irene, blaming Paul and forcing her to return with him to New York. But Paul does not give up on Irene, and moves to New York with Cesare trying to find her love. They meet each other, but things get complicated when an innocent is arrested accused of murdering the driver.

"History is Made at Night" is a dated melodrama, but extremely romantic. Jean Arthur and Charles Boyer show an amazing chemistry in this delightful romance. The friendship of Cesare and Paul is quite unbelievable in the present days, but gives the funniest moments in this film. Colin Clive performs an obsessive and totally insane villain, with his sick jealousy. But in the end, love wins for the pleasure of the romantic viewers. My vote is eight.

Title (Brazil): "A História Começou A Noite" ("The History Has Begun at Night")

Note: On 05 March 2012 I saw this film again.

Seamless blend of romantic drama, comedy, and even tragedy with breathtaking finale.

[[e-mail] · 26 November 2002]

Film critic Andrew Sarris once said that HISTORY IS MADE A NIGHT is the most romantic title in all of film history, and I'm happy to report that this movie lives up to its reputation. An independent production made by former MGM producer Walter Wanger, the film reputedly cost nearly a million dollars - a huge sum in 1937 - and the money really shows on the screen. Leads Charles Boyar and Jean Arthur have such a wonderful screen chemistry between them that it's surprising that they never made another film together. Director Frank Borzage was a specialist in romantic films and here he adroitly blends romantic drama, comedy and even tragedy into a seemless garment.

The plot is surprisingly complex but unfolds in a logical manner. A theme running throughout the story is mistaken identity and characters relying on mistaken information. Boyar thinks he's killed a man, but we know he didn't. Jean Arthur thinks he's thief, but we know he isn't. Arthur's husband thinks she's cheating on him, but we know she isn't. If you wonder how these and other plot points make any sense, you just have to see this film.

Composer Alfred Newman provided a charming theme for the film and I am surprised that it has never been issued in a modern recording of movie mood music. Leo Carrillo supplied hilarious support as Boyar's friend and the ill-fated Colin Clive gave a haunted, tormented performance as the villain. Clive is remembered today as the first Dr. Frankenstein in the first two of Universal's series, FRANKENSTEIN (1931) and BRIDE OF FRANKENSTEIN (1935). By the time he made this film, a frail-looking Clive was only months away from his own death in June 1937 caused by alcoholism. His performance is all the more poignant as a result.

The film is climaxed by a Titanic-like shipwreck (huge ocean liner on its maiden voyage collides with an iceberg) leading to a final misunderstanding that results in an ironic but satisfying conclusion. The special effects work by James Basevi, while primitive by today's computer graphics standards, is nonetheless impressive. My only complaint is the relatively poor quality of the film print that is available on video today. Considering the fine restoration work that has been done on other films such as HIS GIRL FRIDAY, a restored HISTORY IS MADE AT NIGHT should be on some company's priority list.

Maddeningly romantic

[moonspinner55 · 7/10 · 13 October 2002]

Fairly sharp mixture of comedy, romance and melodrama has an American woman in Paris falling for the charming head-waiter in a posh French restaurant; later, after returning to the States (and to her abusive husband), she chances to meet the dashing Frenchman again. Sparkling first-half is either enhanced or destroyed by heavy drama in the second-act, depending on your viewpoint. However the film affects you, the finale aboard a sinking cruise ship certainly boasts showmanship! I caught this in a romantic mood, so I enjoyed it; any other day of the week, I might've taken a glimpse and passed.

*** from ****

This film has been buried because it was not made by a major studio

[mb_cine_films · 9/10 · 10 August 2010]

I saw this on a VHS release here in the 1980's and was one of those films years later I could not forget. How could one forget this memorable title with a equally interesting and unusual combination of love, comedy, drama and disaster that in many other circumstances would simply not work! Boyer and Arthur's romantic moments...pure magic as is Boyer and Leo Carillo's comedic turns. Produced to the tune of over a million dollars (a very generous budget for 1937) independently by Walter Wagner the look of this "A" production certainly reflects this. The deft hand of Borzage could only keep the goings on fluent with the seemingly challenging narrative in a film that easily keeps the viewers attention. To my mind one of the highlights of 30's cinema. I urge anyone interested in this era - see this film!! Available on DVD (mine is a South American copy and OK print quality).

An Enchanting Romantic-Comedy

[Uriah43 · 7/10 · 14 May 2016]

"Bruce Vail" (Colin Clive) is a shipping magnate who has one major flaw-an obsessive suspicion that his wife "Irene Vail" (Jean Arthur) is cheating on him. This insane jealousy gets so bad that one day she decides to file for a divorce while in Paris. However, because his obsession concerning her is so strong and twisted, he quickly comes up with an evil scheme to nullify the divorce--which only serves to send her into the arms of another man-a headwaiter named "Paul Dumond" (Charles Boyer). What nobody counts on is just how far Bruce will go to stop the divorce. Now rather than reveal any more I will just say that this was an enchanting romantic-comedy which still manages to remain fresh and entertaining almost 80 years later after it was produced. Admittedly, I thought the ending was a bit corny but even so the performance by Jean Arthur more than makes up for it. Again, it's an old film but those who enjoy movies of this type will certainly be pleased with this picture. I rate it as above average.

High romance, rivaling Casablanca in intensity.

[d-letta · 10/10 · 3 January 2005]

I can't understand why this film isn't more recognized as a superior example of romantic movie-making. The cast is perfect, the cinematography (with one small exception of back projection that was jarring) is excellent, and the direction superb. Throw in a wonderful evocation of Paris (as good as Midnight), a great score and an incredibly moving final ten minutes and you have perfection. Everything comes together in perfect balance, much like Casablanca, and sadly so few other romantic films. I once asked a new acquaintance what his favorite film (he was eighteen at the time). When he responded History is Made at Night, I threw my arms around him and told him he'd won a place in my heart. Three cheers for History is Made at Night, a film that deserves rediscovery.

History is made on boats

[guswhovian · 7/10 · 28 August 2020]

The "best headwaiter in Europe", Paul Dumond (Charles Boyer), falls in love with American Irene Vail (Jean Arthur), who is in the process of getting a divorce from her husband, ship builder Bruce Vail (Colin Clive). However, Bruce's jealousy threatens to destroy all their lives.

I'm a sucker for romantic films, but History is Made at Night just comes across as silly. The plot drags on for too long, and the finale involving a ship sinking à la the Titanic seems shoehorned in.

Charles Boyer and Jean Arthur are wonderful as the leads, while Leo Carillo gives an excellent supporting performance. Colin Clive, in his penultimate film, is quite good as the possessive husband. Overall, it's entertaining enough.

so romantic

[groovlife · 10/10 · 4 October 2005]

I'm not a romantic at heart-but this movies pulls the romance from every scene so beautifully that I found myself really feeling romantic while watching it!!! Boyer and Arthur are well cast as star crossed lovers. She has an abusive and controlling husband who'll do anything to keep her from getting a divorce,including setting up a fake tryst with the chauffeur to keep her from getting it. This starts the interesting plot that sweeps you right along as we find Arthur being rescued from the nefarious plot by the handsome and romantic Boyer. In the process of rescuing her he puts himself in a position where he and Arthur's character can be thwarted in their attempts to be together. Arthurs' characters' husband uses the rescue which involves Boyer's character hitting the chauffeur to commit a heinous act whereby he can bribe Irene his wife (Arthur) into staying with him and cause Paul (Boyer) to be put in a situation where he's in danger of being charged with a horrible crime he didn't commit. Don't want to give too much away but suffice it to say that the two lovers manage to get together in America after running away from Paris where Paul lives. But Paul wants to confront his this unjust accusation set up by Irene's husband (effectively played by Colin Clive) so they set off to return to Paris. They board a ship that hits an iceberg as it races back to Paris (Clive maneuvers this too). This leads to one of the most thrilling scenes in the movie, where we find a Titanic like sinking that is well translated to the screen. This movie has humor, romance, suspense and beautiful people (Boyer and Arthur) What more could a romantic at heart want???

A Wife On The Ocean Waves

[Lejink · 6/10 · 6 April 2021]

Frank Borzage seems to me to be one of the more idiosyncratic directors who worked in Golden Age Hollywood. This is about the third film of his I've seen in recent months and it strikes me that his individualistic mixture of excitement, romance and comedy combined with big epic occurrences will draw me back to sample more of his work.

For this film, to which someone could surely have dreamed up a punchier title, he mixes elements of romantic melodrama, gritty toughness, comedy and disaster movie in a very eclectic way.

Jean Arthur is the posh-frocked New York socialite driven to seek a divorce from her filthy-rich husband, Colin Clive's all-consuming possessiveness and jealousy. He won't allow it of course, taking it as an affront to his masculinity as much as his social standing, so that he engineers a devious ploy while they are staying in a swanky Paris hotel, to blackmail her into dropping her suit by paying his chauffeur to enter her room along with a photographer to catch her in a compromising and divorcable position. The plan goes west however when the suave, handsome hotel head-waiter, played by Charles Boyer, intervenes, rescuing Arthur and laying out the offending chauffeur. When he discovers the failure of his plan, Clive then goes to a hastily improvised Plan B which will see Boyer sought for murder.

From this violent episode, Borzage then changes pace entirely, as Boyer and Arthur fall madly in love, do the town together and introduces an element of humour in the person of Boyer's best mate, the hotel's celebrated chef, Leo Carrillo, who certainly plays up his temperamental Gallic part.

Clive then persuades Arthur to go back to New York with him in return for not involving Boyer in the ensuing murder case but the smitten waiter, with his gastronomic chum in tow, follows them to America. There are more twists and turns but the major development is the return of the loving couple, plus one, to Paris, to help clear the innocent man who is now being set up for the homicide. To do this they board Clive's new ocean liner (I told you he was filthy rich!) giving Clive one last chance to recklessly disrupt Boyer and Arthur's plans, which action leads to a heightened finish evoking memories of the Titanic disaster of 25 years before, as well as resulting in a violent conclusion to Clive's grudge.

The cinematography is let down by some ugly model-work for the climactic scenes involving the ship and there's even one lazy set-up with Boyer and Arthur supposedly walking down a New York street in front of a garishly obvious back projection of fellow-pedestrians. The story is fantastical and the mood-swings of the film are certainly noticeable. Still, if you park your credibility meter, the final outcome is a film which despite its unusual narrative drive, is just about held together by Borzage's overarcing direction and fine star-acting by Boyer and Arthur.

It's just a pity mind you, that that the real Titanic wasn't designed the same way as Clive's "Princess Irene"...

One of the great romance films.

[directorscut · 9/10 · 7 April 2011]

Frank Borzage was Hollywood's great romantic and History is Made at Midnight is one of his very best films. The luminous chemistry between Charles Boyer and the incomparable Jean Arthur (in one of her very best roles) lights up the screen. Borzage's direction is always delicate, elegant and brings the film a mystical quality from luminous nighttime Paris to the fog swept decks of the SS Princess Irene. The plot is excellent and takes a truly unexpected turn in the final third but it's the character moments like Boyer and Arthur's first night in Paris or their reunion in New York that entrance and linger the most. This was Frankenstein's actor Colin Clive's penultimate film before his untimely death to alcoholism at the mere age of thirty-seven. Made only seven years after his screams of "It's alive!" sent shivers down the halls of cinema history, his role here is far cry from that energetic performance and he is perfect as the lonely, desperate and bitter husband of Jean Arthur as sad as that seems. A true masterpiece that has been criminally neglected and forgotten by the populous and by critics who really should know better.

This dishwater? Bouillabaisse?

[dbdumonteil · 6/10 · 8 February 2007]

Frank Borzage couldn't decide what he wanted to make: a light comedy,a thriller,a romance,even an epic!It's an entertaining work ,but it is not in the same league as his masterpieces:"mortal storm" "three comrades" "strange cargo" "little man what now?" "moonrise" " a farewell to arms" "the river" "no greater glory" etc .

Borzage's interest in Europa -which made him one of the first directors to feel the rise of Nazism- shows in the first part which takes place in France.One should notice that his France (French's honor!) is not devoid of the usual clichés: Boyer portrays a Latin lover type, part time waiter ,part time gentleman Cambrioleur ,in the Arsene Lupin tradition,and he treats Irene (Arthur) to a delicious gourmet meal (everyone is a gourmet in France) complete with vintage Champagne,Salade Chiffonnade (sic) and Lobster Cesare ....Boyer's ventriloquist act is quite successful,although that talent of his is of no use in the rest of the film.

Bruce's character verges on madness ,his jealousy knows no bounds .When he appears the light comedy turns into thriller.

But it's the last part of the film which perplexes the viewer.It's so unexpected it seems we are in another movie.When the luxury liner crashes into an iceberg (you read well) ,Borzage makes "History...." a "Titanic" in miniature complete with "women and children first!" "nearer to thee my God" and harrowing separations.And I will not mention the happy end which comes at the most awkward moment.

"History..." lacks unity,cohesion;by no means boring ,it cannot hold a candle to Frank Borzage 's great works which I mention above.

A very strange romantic comedy/drama/?

[richard-1787 · 5/10 · 20 July 2013]

I liked parts of this movie a lot.

But when the ship hits an iceberg near the end and suddenly we are redoing one of the many Titanic movies, I found myself saying: "Did someone change the channel on me without telling me?" I don't expect movies to fit into neat little genre boxes, and I don't want to know what's going to happen an hour before it happens, but when the genre is changed, radically, with no preparation, there is a problem, at least for me. I very much felt that I was being played with by a director who couldn't figure out what to do with what becomes an ever more cumbersome situation. The ship hitting the iceberg was NOT a seamless, convincing way to handle that, despite what some others on here have said.

And Colin Clive seems to be in a different movie from the beginning. His acting style just does not integrate with that of the other actors. We keep going back and forth between a 1930s romantic comedy with Arthur and Boyer and a 1920s melodrama with Arthur and Clive.

Yes, the scenes between Jean Arthur and Charles Boyer are very romantic in a general sense. There is a lot of good chemistry between the two of them.

But the script is so weak, and could have been so much better.

For example: early on in the movie, when Boyer, pretending to be a burglar, kidnaps Arthur to save her from a compromising situation set up by her husband, Arthur's character shows little or no surprise, much less fear, fear that would have been normal in such a situation. If she had expressed such fear, the subsequent scene in the cab, when Boyer explains he is not really a burglar but just wanted to save her from a compromising set up, could have been much more interesting. Arthur's character could have been a lot more interesting if the script writers had just given her something decent to work with.

I really can't recommend this movie. There are nice scenes, but the framework just doesn't hold up.

A sublime, transcendent romance by the great Borzage

[Kalaman · 23 November 2002]

Frank Borzage's "History Is Made at Night" is one of the most spiritually romantic of all films and a model of how to portray a sublime, gorgeous romance on screen. Jean Arthur and Charles Boyer have never been more sublime and magical; they give some of their most luminous and warmest performances. In many ways, this is Borzage's testament: full of warmth, humanity, and tenderness.

History is Made at Night review

[JoeytheBrit · 6/10 · 21 April 2020]

Although it might sound like some lightweight Lubitsch musical comedy, History is Made at Night is actually a drama in which elegant head waiter Charles Boyer is framed on a murder charge after extricating love interest Jean Arthur from a blackmail plot engineered by her wealthy and extremely jealous estranged husband. It's a good movie until the final act, but is undone by weaknesses in the far-fetched plot. Also, the two stars never really click, even though the suave and charming Bowyer is excellent; and that weird bromance between him and top chef Leo Carrillo just feels wrong. On a more positive note, the ill-fated Colin Clive is arrestingly intense in his penultimate film role.

Frank Borzage, Charles Boyer and Jean Arthur celebrating passionate triumphs

[clanciai · 10/10 · 26 July 2017]

This is one of Frank Borzage's greatest films, in its amazing mixture of comedy and drama, tragedy and passion and, like in all his films, the redemption by destiny.

Charles Boyer is, as always, the perfect lover and both supreme and totally convincing as such, while Jean Arthur with her husky voice, trying to get away from the jealous clutches of her cruel husband, is the right girl to fall in his arms, and it happens in such a way (by destiny), that she can but laugh out her husband, who by his intrigues planned the opposite and accidentally opened her real love life.

There are many aspects to this film, and the art of cooking plays an important part with Leo Carrillo more important as the chef than the multimillionaire Colin Clive, the mortally jealous husband, who will stop at nothing to get his wife back and thereby only causes derailments.

At the same time it's a great catastrophe film, both Hindenburg and Titanic are reminded of, but you'll never guess what really happens.

Charles Boyer was definitely one of the greatest lovers in film history, if not the greatest, more convincing as such than even Rudolf Valentino, and you can always rely on his acting. He made some of the greatest of all love films, like "Love Affair" with Irene Dunne (remade many times) and "All This and Heaven Too" with Bette Davis, and this one of Frank Borzage's should not be overlooked in the context, Jean Arthur once more being the right girl in the right place. Their scene at Victor's is one of the great moments of truth in the annals of romantic films.

Clever story with a real twist

[vincentlynch-moonoi · 7/10 · 20 November 2012]

This is a very watchable film, but it does feel very dated, which not all films made in this time frame (1937) do. It isn't just that it depicts action in 1937, it's just the way the film was made. But, again, that doesn't make it not-watchable...it's quite entertaining.

The romantic drama -- despite what some reviews say -- does not have elements of "comedy", although like most of life, does have some humor in it. It's about a love triangle among an obsessive and abusive businessman (Colin Clive), his wife (Jean Arthur), and a French headwaiter (Charles Boyer). Clive murders to save his pathetic marriage, and is more than willing to pin the crime on Boyer, who travels to American to pursue the woman he has fallen in love with. Leo Carrillo portrays Boyer's friend -- miscast as a French chef -- although he does rather nicely.

Colin Clive shows himself to be a not very appealing actor here, and it has nothing to do with his evil character. He just seems rather limited, and perhaps he would be more at home in silent films. He hadn't improved much since playing Dr. Frankenstein in the horror classic six years earlier. He died later the year this was made from alcoholism and TB.

Jean Arthur is interesting here in that she is a very far different actress from the comedies we often associate her with...and she is so good. This film was made near the beginning of her most successful period of acting.

Boyer is remarkably good here, and I say that as someone who has never been overly impressed with him...though he is always "good". He seems the least dated of all the actors in the film. Very appealing.

But the highlight of the film is the sudden twist the story takes late in the action. The special effects are a bit primitive (could I have ice cubes with that sinking?), but the way the story comes to a conclusion is really quite clever and ties into the plot surprisingly well.

This is a wonderful film! Savor it!

While I wasn't fond of the ending, it still is a dandy film.

[planktonrules · 8/10 · 31 December 2012]

Jean Arthur plays a woman married to an insanely jealous rich man (Colin Clive). He is very controlling and dangerous--and, not surprisingly, she leaves him and obtains a divorce. But Clive is not about to let her go and has her stalked by private detectives and plots to get her back. During this time, Arthur meets a very suave man (Charles Boyer) and they fall almost instantly in love. But, Clive isn't about to let her remarry and he murders a man and makes it appear as if his ex-wife's new love is responsible! To keep Boyer from going to jail, she agrees to return to Clive--even though she's miserable and he is just plain nuts...and rather evil. Is there any hope for the lovers? Will the truth ever come out? Now all this sounds like a murder mystery, and this is PART of the film but mostly it's a very stylish romance. The romantic portions of the film are its best--and despite the odd casting of the two as lovers, it does work very well. What doesn't work quite as well is the ending--which is almost like a replication of the Titanic disaster. But, despite the shortcomings, the overall picture is quite charming and well worth your time. Boyer was great in films like this and "Love Affair" and it didn't hurt that Clive played a wonderful slime-ball and Leo Carillo provided some good support. Well worth seeing.

I'll take romance

[blanche-2 · 7/10 · 13 January 2015]

Jean Arthur, Charles Boyer, Colin Clive, and Leo Carrillo star in the big-budget "History is Made at Night," directed by Frank Borzage and released in 1937.

Arthur plays Irene Vail, who has divorced her wealthy husband Bruce (Colin Clive), but he won't accept it. He hires his driver to fake an adultery situation with Irene while she is in Paris, which voids the divorce.

Before that can happen, a headwaiter, Paul Dumond (Boyer) rescues her by pretending to be a thief and stealing her jewelry. Bruce has arrived to "catch" Irene, but he winds up in the closet, while the chauffeur is knocked out. Paul rushes out with her and returns her jewelry while they drive around Paris.

Paul takes her to a restaurant, Château Bleu, where he works with his good friend Cesar (Carrillo). Paul and Irene fall in love. Unbeknownst to them, Bruce has murdered the chauffeur. He blames Paul and forces Irene to return to New York with him.

Paul travels to New York to try to find her. He and Cesar obtain work in a fancy restaurant. He reserves a table for Irene, knowing she will eventually come there.

This lovely film, beautifully acted by Boyer and Arthur, takes a surprising turn -- well, it was a surprise to me -- that makes for an exciting finale. Of interest, Irene and her husband are set to travel on the Hindenburg, which actually caught on fire and fell from the sky a few months later.

This was Colin Clive's last film, sadly, as he was stricken with pneumonia and died at the age of 37 a few months later. The wonderful Boyer, so suave and with his to-die-for accent, actually didn't seem to have much vanity. He wore a toupee for movies, but all other times, including those when he was out in pubic, he did not. He and Arthur make a sweet couple. Arthur could do drama and comedy equally well.

Romantic and atmospheric - it's so hard to believe that some of these films were made on sets.

Bizarre romance that somehow works

[MissSimonetta · 8/10 · 21 August 2013]

It is hard to pinpoint this film's genre: it is at once a romance, a melodrama, a screwball comedy, and at the end a disaster movie. On paper it looks like an unholy mess, but in reality this is one of the most charming love stories of 1930s cinema.

Irene (Jean Arthur) seeks to divorce her possessive husband (Colin Clive). He's extremely sore about it, so he tries to pin an adultery charge on his wife by having the chauffeur sexually assault her in her hotel room while he and some witnesses conveniently burst in to "expose" them. While the plan is in motion, a waiter named Paul (Charles Boyer) hears Irene's cries from the room next door. He climbs into her window and masquerades as a jewel thief. He proceeds to "kidnap" Irene and things get INSANE from there on out.

Though the screwball nature of the plot could have turned the movie into a farce, the relationship between Arthur and Boyer is genuinely tender and sweet. Though the term "soul mates" is overused when people discuss romantic films, these two truly seem to fit the criteria! Clive gorges upon the scenery as Arthur's villainous spouse. A shame his life and career were to be cut short the year this film was released.

All in all, History is Made at Night (1937) is like an ice cream sundae with all the trimmings. It's too delicious to resist!

Semi-Titanic with a Happy Ending! Frank Borzage's drama is high on deliberate and unhealthy twists, but presents a strong & passionate romance.

[SAMTHEBESTEST · 6/10 · 13 March 2022]

History Is Made At Night (1937) : Brief Review -

Semi-Titanic with a Happy Ending! Frank Borzage's drama is high on deliberate and unhealthy twists, but presents a strong & passionate romance. What if I tell you that James Cameron's iconic Titanic (1997), not that propaganda film Titanic (1943), took a lot of references from Frank Borzage's History Is Made At Night? Wait, don't be shocked. I am not saying it's a complete copy paste or adaptation, but somewhere the idea remains the same with different conflicts and places. A wealthy divorcée falls for a charming Parisian, but her insanely jealous ex-husband will do anything to get her back. In Cameron's grand scale spectacle, we had Rose's fiancee and the entire film takes place on the ship, whereas in Borzage's drama, we have a jealous, separated husband and only the climax part happens on the ship. They even mention it is the biggest sea disaster since the Titanic (1912), and here we have a happy ending instead of a tragic one. Comparisons aside, I think this deserves a special token of honour because it was made much before both the Titanic films. The problematic part is in the middle, where the loss of many logical stats occurs. That murder scene in the beginning was a big disaster already. How can I accept what happens after in the film if the real reason behind the conflicts is not acceptable? Anyway, excluding a couple of big loopholes, I think Borzage has made a fine drama about passionate romance. I liked Charles Boyer in Love Affair (1939) and some films of the 40s for his charming personality, and this film has got exactly that. Jean Arthur had just begun doing good by 1937, so this film was nothing but the honest efforts of a new, emerging talent. Leo Carrillo is funny, while Colin Clive makes you hate him for presenting a jealous and possessive husband in the right manner. Another good film to remember in Frank Borzage's long but inconsistent filmography.

RATING - 6.5/10*

By - #samthebestet.

Night Music

[writers_reign · 8/10 · 27 April 2020]

Despite a European-sounding name Frank Borsaze actually hailed from Salt Lake City and was one of the best-kept secrets in the Directors Guild, having his own 'touch' enabling buffs to identify his work within two frames. Among my own favourites from his output are two standout titles, Three Comrades, and The Mortal Storm but if your taste is more The Spanish Main don't let me stop you. With History Is Made At Night he goes to the mat with both Ernst Lubitsch and Billy Wilder deftly blending the soufflé' of light romance with the kreplach of melodrama and bringing it off to a fare-thee-well with the assistance of Charles Boyer, Jean Arthur, and Colin - 'IT'S ALIVE' - Clive in his final film. 1937 was still the era of the screwball comedy albeit this example has a screw loose. Recommended.

all but the last act

[SnoopyStyle · 7/10 · 13 January 2024]

Irene Vail (Jean Arthur) would like to divorce her jealous rich husband Bruce Vail (Colin Clive). She insists that there isn't another man, but he intends to trap her. By law, she could get her divorce if she remains blameless for six months. He recruits his chauffeur Michael Browsky to fake adultery, but she is rescued by Paul Dumond (Charles Boyer) who pretends to be a jewel thief to maintain her innocence.

This is an intriguing premise with this weird old law. The romance is interesting although it's not the most compelling relationship of the movie. Her suffering under her husband's control is the best element. There is real tension with them together. I would have preferred a sad ending at the surprise restaurant encounter. That should be the climax and ending all rolled into one. It may be too much to ask for a Hollywood movie. The last section is a bit too complicated and some unlikely turns. I don't like the Titanic move.

Jean OVERACTS, Charles saves her

[rringis · 5/10 · 22 January 2014]

I have been a fan of both leading players, but this film doesn't do either one any favor. The screen play is a conglomerate of three story lines, none of which get full treatment. It seems the writers couldn't decide if they were producing a comedy, a romance or a deep dark drama. Leo Carrillo exceeds any previous attempts at being a first class HAM with his elastic facial expressions; watching him is comedic reason enough to stay to the end. Speaking of the end, when the ship miraculously stays afloat one is reminded of Deus ex machina serves these writers well. One wonders why Titanic couldn't have such brilliant good fortune and stay stuck against the ice berg. Has there ever been a real example of such occurrence?