hyped garbage

Watch something else. There are very few redeeming qualities to this film.

Story: It's very simple but honestly that is fine.

Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable

Copyright 12 May 1939 by 20th Century-Fox Film Corp. New York opening at the Roxy: 5 May 1939. U.S. release: 5 May 1939. U.K. release: July 1939. Australian release: 10 August 1939. 7,766 feet. 86 minutes. (Available on an excellent Fox DVD).SYNOPSIS: Singer falls for a no-good gambler. NOTES: Originally Faye sang "I'll See You In My Dreams" in a New York supper club sequence. Other deleted songs were "Avalon" and "I'm Always Chasing Rainbows". Fanny Brice sued the studio for damages. The matter was settled out of court. Remade in 1968 as Funny Girl.VIEWER'S GUIDE: Difficult. Based on the career of Fanny Brice (and also partly on that of Al Jolson himself), so I would say suitable for all.COMMENT: If Love Me Tonight is one of my favorite musical comedies, Rose of Washington Square is certainly one of my top choices for musical drama. Not that there is no comedy in this movie. Far from it. In fact Hobart Cavanaugh contributes the portrayal of his career as the unwitting if ultimately very willing stooge. And Jolson plays the scenes with Cavanaugh with such panache, it's hard to realize his screen career was virtually over. Of course he also has some of his trademark songs and these he puts over with such style, Jolie is worth the price of admission alone. But despite his huge contribution to the movie's overall appeal, Jolson is only the support. It's Alice Faye's movie. And what a great performance she gives! And boy, does she knock over those songs! Power is magnetic too, giving a far more accurate and far more arresting interpretation of Nicky Arnstein than the bland and disappointingly colorless Omar Sharif. Power is a confidence man with persuasively shallow charm. Ideally cast. This and Nightmare Alley are Power at his absolute best.Every other player in Rose is as forcefully cast from William Frawley's fix-it agent through Ben Welden's sarcastically menacing Toby and Charles Wilson's nemesis of a flatfoot to Harry Hayden's frightened victim ("I've got a gun!"). Armed with Nunnally Johnson's scintillating dialogue and taking every advantage of their dramatic opportunities, many of these character people likewise hand out some of the most memorable cameos of their lives. Welden, for example, must have been cast in hundreds of movies, but this is his finest hour ("I've got to hand it to you, Clinton...")Johnson's script is a model of fine screen writing. Not only has he told the Fanny Brice-Nicky Arnstein story in a powerfully fast-paced 86 minutes (Funny Girl took a ponderous 155 to cover the same ground), but he has fleshed it out with an extraordinarily large gallery of fascinating subsidiary characters as well (aside from the swamped Streisand and soggy Sharif, I don't remember any other people in Funny Girl at all). And in addition to these miracles of arresting narrative construction, Johnson has still allowed plenty of time for some terrific standards from both Jolson and Faye, both of whom are in tip-top voice.Director Gregory Ratoff has risen nobly to the occasion. I've remarked before in Hollywood Classics that Ratoff's directorial abilities seemed to swing violently yet unaccountably from the extremely banal to the inventively brilliant from one film to another. Fortunately, Rose finds him at his most stylishly accomplished. Not only has he drawn winning performances from his players, but he reinforces the drama and comedy in Johnson's script by inspired camera placements and deft cutting. Or maybe it's ace cinematographer Karl Freund's inspired camera placements and Louis Leoffler's smooth, forceful cutting. In any case, Freund's masterful lighting of course is a major asset. And I loved the sets and costumes. Production values are lavish — and there's that wonderful 20th Century-Fox sound!

'Rose of Washington Square' is notable for being the third, and last, film with Tyrone Power and Alice Faye starring together. The previous two being 'In Old Chicago' and 'Alexander's Ragtime Band'.Comparing the three, 'Rose of Washington Square' is better than 'In Old Chicago', which had a number of impressive elements but generally left me lukewarm, but is not as good as 'Alexander's Ragtime Band', which is not perfect but a must watch for particularly Irving Berlin's glorious songs.Oddly enough, 'Rose of Washington Square' is just as notable for being a loose and thinly disguised biopic of Fanny Brice and for being a vehicle for Faye and Al Jolson. Generally, while it is never going to be one of my favourites, it's good fun.The story is very flimsy, and sometimes with Jolson's involvement it does disconcertingly at times feel like two different films. The characterisations are often undercooked, Power's character in particular is so severely underwritten that it was amazing that he was even able to get anything out of it. Power does have a roguish charm and has good chemistry with Faye, but due to his character and how he's written he's also a little bland compared to everything else. The direction by Gregory Ratoff does sometimes lack the necessary zip and is a bit too staid in places.However, 'Rose of Washington Square' is an attractive-looking film, with lavish set and costume design and beautifully shot in black and white. The music is similarly terrific, Faye and Jolson getting the lion's share. Faye sings beautifully and with heartfelt emotion and enthusiasm in her numbers, of which "My Man" is the most memorable, but Jolson's songs (some of which are among his biggest hits) make even more impact.The script is sweet and humorous, and there is a great vaudeville atmosphere throughout and scenes do have a nice energy especially Jolson's. Although there are reservations about Power, the rest of the cast do very well. Faye is luminous and sings a dream, singing every song like she knows what she's singing about and means it. Jolson is electrifying, with the film coming to life in his musical numbers. Entertaining support from William Frawley and Hobart Cavanaugh, Ben Weldan and Louis Prima are also fun to spot.In summary, good fun if not great. 7/10 Bethany Cox

The history of the cinema is filled with great movies; but more than that, there are special `moments,' from the great and even the not-so-great films that thanks to the magic of the movies have been preserved for all time, and now thanks to video and DVD are readily accessible for the viewing pleasure of audiences in living rooms everywhere. These movies are treasures to be cherished and savored, because they're not simply entertainment, but time capsules in which history has in some cases been inadvertently gathered and stored for posterity. And one of the jewels in this vast treasure chest that is the cinema is `Rose of Washington Square,' a 1939 picture from 20th Century Fox, filmed in glorious B&W, directed by Gregory Ratoff and starring Tyrone Power, Alice Faye and Al Jolson.Power is Bart Clinton, a charismatic petty thief and con man whose charm and good looks keeps him one step ahead of the law as he moves from one scam to another. He's not such a bad guy, but more like a salesman without a product who utilizes his natural abilities to put a buck in his pocket. Faye is Rose Sargent, a struggling vaudeville singer, teamed up with Ted Cotter (Jolson), who together have hopes and dreams of making it to the big time. But worlds collide when Bart and Rose meet and fall in love. Ted sees Bart for what he is, but his advice to Rose falls on deaf ears, blinded as she is by her unconditional love for a man who stands in the way of not only her success as an artist, but her happiness, as well. And in the grandest tradition of Hollywood, their story plays out amid the excitement of that most famous of all avenues of aspirations, Broadway, and that town of towns, New York.It's a good story, but with a plot that's far from unique, which in the grand scheme of things doesn't make any difference. This is solid and involving entertainment that affords the viewer the opportunity of seeing three bona fide stars together, and all doing what they do best. And just seeing them together on the screen is a moment all it's own; Power, Faye and Jolson, captured forever and immortalized through the magic of the motion picture. And at the time, who knew? To Darryl F. Zanuck this was no doubt just another picture that hopefully would produce a profitable bottom line for the studio. Did any of them have any idea what this would mean to audiences sixty years later, or what kind of legacy they were creating for future generations?One of the best looking actors ever to grace the silver screen, Tyrone Power had a dominating presence and commanded attention in any role he played, from light, romantic fare like `Thin Ice,' to bringing the anti-hero, `Jesse James,' to life or the swashbuckling title character in `The Mark of Zorro.' He could play a heel like Bart Clinton and make him believable, or a guy soul searching for something better, as he did in `The Razor's Edge.' And if there's any doubt as to how good an actor Power was, one only has to look as far as his performance in `Nightmare Alley' to realize that he was so much more than just another pretty face. He was the man women wanted and the one other men envied because he seemed to have it all. He did; and it showed in every character he ever created for the screen.Power, however, did not corner the market on talent and charisma in this film, but was matched every step of the way by his absolutely beguiling co-star, Alice Faye. Beautiful and gifted, Faye could sing and interpret a song in a way that was nothing less than transporting. Her vocal expressions and the emotion that dances in her eyes and plays across her face while she sings created a number of those special moments in a number of films. In this one, when she sings the heart-felt `My Man' while an incognito Power (Bart's on the lam at this point) sits huddled in the audience at the back of the auditorium, it'll grab you by the throat and send chills down your spine. And that is truly one of those memorable `Moments' that have made movies such an everlasting part of our lives and culture. When Faye turns those eyes of hers, fraught with emotion, to the camera as she sings, it's mesmerizing-- a moment that will hold you transfixed and sweep you away to another time and another place.Which is exactly what happens when Al Jolson takes the spotlight as Ted Cotter. Jolson was perhaps the entertainer of his time, a man who entertained millions from the footlights of the most famous stages around the world. And what a treasure it is to have even part of his act preserved here on film. Some of the songs he made famous, like `Rock-a-bye-Your-Baby With A Dixie Melody,' and the one that became his trademark, `Mammy,' are seamlessly integrated into this story. Although this kind of entertainment may not be readily embraced by younger viewers-- those raised on hard rock and grunge, for example-- there is a magic in Jolson and his songs that defines an era, and with his unique voice and magnetic personality, it is riveting to watch him now in this film.The supporting cast includes William Frawley (Harry), Joyce Compton (Peggy), Hobart Cavanaugh (Whitey), Louis Prima (Bandleader), Horace McMahon (Irving) and Moroni Olsen (Buck). It may not be the greatest musical-- or movie-- ever made, but nevertheless, `Rose of Washington Square' is a treasure, for all the reasons discussed here and more. It's a film that will be enjoyed and appreciated on any number of different levels by anyone who watches it; pure entertainment, with a particular magic all it's own. This one's a keeper. It's the magic of the movies. I rate this one 9/10.

Very entertaining- a thinly disguised bio-pic of Fanny Brice. Power and Faye- at their acting peaks- are great as the leads. Faye is in great voice. However, Jolson steals the movie. At the age of 54, he was in the best voice of his career. His Rock- a Bye and California Here I Come are thrilling. I own the video, which also contains clips of several Jolson and Faye songs which were edited out of the final movie. a must for fans of the three stars.