Nonureva Really Surprised!

VeteranLight I don't have all the words right now but this film is a work of art.

CommentsXp Best movie ever!

Aubrey Hackett While it is a pity that the story wasn't told with more visual finesse, this is trivial compared to our real-world problems. It takes a good movie to put that into perspective.

bkoganbing In Love Is A Ball Glenn Ford is a down on his luck charter boat captain who is asked to join an unusual enterprise by Charles Boyer. Ford has his charter boat business on the French Riviera which is a great place to be if you're down on your luck. This project involves training Ricardo Montalban in the fine arts of royal behavior. Montalban is royalty all right, but the exiled and impoverished kind. Still he does have a somewhat tarnished title the kind that rich folks might marry for the prestige.This is a plot situation that goes back to authors like Henry James and Mark Twain, the rich Americans getting together nobility down on its luck. You can still find a flock of them today on the Riviera. The problem is that Montalban as Prince Gaspard lacks a lot of polish, in fact he's from the Inspector Clousseau school of unpolished. Hence Boyer as his manager has assembled his team to give him that. Ford's job on the team is to teach him race car driving and horseback riding, he's done both in the past.The object of all this prince preparation is heiress Hope Lange who is visiting the Riviera with grandmother Ruth McDevitt and uncle Telly Savalas. Ford also is hired on as a chauffeur for wild child Lange to watch the investment for the team.The most interesting performance in the film is Montalban's who shows a nice comic touch with some tender moments of self reflection with Boyer's secretary Ulla Jacobbson. He realizes more than anyone else what an essentially useless life he leads. Though Clousseau was not yet on the scene, Montalban had the rich comic genius of Jerry Lewis to get some of his moves down for this film.Ford and Hope Lange were an item at the time and the film was made around the tail end of Ford's career height as a box office star. It's got some nice cinematography of the French Riviera, a place like Hawaii it's impossible to get bad pictures of and a cast that delivers the goods for the viewer.What's not to like?

Michael Obrofta What surprise(s)? Plenty. How about Telly Savalas playing an effeminate guardian? How about Ricardo Montalban playing a klutz! This movie has all that and then some. Hope Lange is perfect as the rebellious young girl who doesn't want to be stereotyped (this was pretty racy for the 50s mind you), and Glenn Ford totally disarmed by his circumstance and his company.Great chemistry between the players especially between Charles Boyer and Montalban, who just doesn't seem like he's ever going to play up to his title...this is really funny.A movie I can watch again and again.

dalan-1 I watch this movie regularly and it never fails to bring pleasure and a smile. It is a comedy, not a Shakespearean drama, yet it seems I find fresh significance in some expression or phrase each time I watch.Often, when watching a movie, I think how much better it would be with small script changes or a different cast - not so with this gem.Hope Lange - beautiful and spoiled, but intelligent and innately wholesome. Glenn Ford - a ruggedly attractive foil for her, having already experienced life in the 'fast lane' he is not tempted by her riches, only her. Charles Boyer - the perfect cultured bon vivant who is still believable as a man of principles rather than just an 'opportunist'.Telly Savalas and Ricardo Montalban probably have the two most challenging roles because they portray men that we could easily come to dislike and/or disrespect; yet each manages to fulfill the comedic requirements and complete the movie with our positive affection.Even the lesser character roles are delightful. Ruth McDevitt the grandmother - just enough fussiness to be lovable, but a few glimpses of the strong, determined woman of her youth to make it acceptable that she be the instrument of successful resolution. Ulla Jacobsen as the private secretary to Charles Boyer - fiercely loyal, efficient, articulate, and most important, able to be desirably attractive without competing with Miss Lange. Laurence Hardy - Priory(chauffeur), Andre Luguet - Zoltan(chef), and John Wood - Soames(musician) all seem to provide exactly the right seasoning for their roles. I believe it would be a lesser production without any of them.The music and cinematography are more than adequate with enough truly wonderful 'bits' to satisfy the most discriminating critic of comedy.A thoroughly wonderful movie for the whole family, made in an age when coarse language, explicit sex, and violence were not 'de rigeur'. I only hope that this will be brought out in DVD format, since my VHS copy has almost expired!

Bob-45 Having never seen LOVE IS A BALL (really insipid title), but reading IMDB reader's glowing comments of the film, I watched it in letterbox on TCM. The first thing that struck me was, why was a movie that had so many MGM contract players released by United Artists. The movie certainly immediately displayed handsome production values (though, a lousy score). Also, David Swift (POLLYANNA, THE PARENT TRAP, GOOD NEIGHBOR SAM) has always been a favorite. After a few minutes watching, I understand if MGM really did pass on this one. I'm willing to cut a comedy (particularly a funny one) a GREAT deal of slack. HOWEVER, the idea of an eccentric millionaire running a clandestine matchmaking service to get together "poor" nobility and "rich" commoners is a bit munch. How long could such an operation stay secret, the first successful match or (more likely) the first disasterous failure. Rich people STAY rich by carefully checking out ANYONE whom approaches them. Couple that with the idea that a champion race car driver (Glenn Ford) would go along with this nonsense rather than going back into racing to get his boat out of hock. And that the "madcap" heiress (a surprisingly charmless Hope Lange), herself a racing car enthusiast, would not recognize either Ford's face or his name. Is one really expected to believe titled nobility (Ricardo Montleban, very good) would have to be taught virtually ALL the social graces? Or that Lange,rebelling against the setup, would offer to marry the repellent count?Even with its problems, the movie improves a great deal in the second half. Hope Lange gets better as her wardrobe improves (its goshawful in the first half). By films end, she does generate chemistry with Ford. However, this is WAY too late to save the movie.Perhaps the best reason to see this movie is to see Telly Savalas when he still had a little hair.Love IS a Ball; Too bad this movie isn't...