Lightdeossk Captivating movie !

Gutsycurene Fanciful, disturbing, and wildly original, it announces the arrival of a fresh, bold voice in American cinema.

InformationRap This is one of the few movies I've ever seen where the whole audience broke into spontaneous, loud applause a third of the way in.

Allison Davies The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

JohnHowardReid Francis Lederer (Karel Novak), Ginger Rogers (Sylvia Dennis), Arthur Hohl (Pander), Jimmy Butler (Frank Dennis), J. Farrell MacDonald (Murph), Lillian Harmer (Mrs Schultz, the landlady), Helen Ware (Miss Anthrop), Eily Malyon (Miss Evans), Donald Meek (minister), Sidney Toler (police sergeant), Oscar Apfel (judge), Reginald Barlow, Wade Boteler, Frank Sheridan (customs inspectors), Spencer Charters (license clerk), Andy Clyde (liquor store owner), James Donlan (cab manager), Paul Hurst (Joe, a policeman), Harold Goodwin (doctor at police station), Jack Pennick (cab driver), Edward Le Saint (customs official), Irving Bacon (counterman), Dick Curtis, Max Wagner, Richard Alexander, Billy Dooley (men at East River), Christian Rub (joyful immigrant on ship).Director: STEPHEN ROBERTS. Screenplay: Jane Murfin, Edward Kaufman. Story: Don Hartman, Norman Krasna. Photography: Nicholas Musuraca. Film editor: Jack Hively. Art directors: Van Nest Polglase and Charles M. Kirk. Make-up: Mel Berns. Special effects: Vernon L. Walker. Miniatures: Don Jahraus. Music director: Al Colombo. Research: Elizabeth McGaffey. Stills: John Miehle. Assistant director: Dewey Starkey. Sound recording: John E. Tribby. Producer: Pandro S. Berman.Copyright 11 January 1935 by RKO Radio Pictures. New York opening at the Radio City Music Hall: 17 January 1935 (ran only one week). U.S. release: 18 January 1935. Australian release: 27 March 1935. 78 minutes.SYNOPSIS: A fairy tale about an illegal immigrant (Lederer), a kind- heart-ed chorus girl (Rogers) and her orphaned kid brother (Butler).COMMENT: A flag-waving romance that strains credulity to breaking point and then finally snaps altogether in a slapstick-style climax that fades out not on the principals, but on minor character player Donald Meek who has just entered the picture at this point! Francis Lederer makes a somewhat weak hero, but Ginger Rogers looks great (despite some unattractive costumes and odd eyebrow make-up). A goodly supply of our favorite support actors also help out. And, breaking the Hollywood mold, Jimmy Butler presents as quite a personable kid.

Jimmy L. ROMANCE IN MANHATTAN (1935) is an immigrant story. Karel Novak (Francis Lederer) comes to America -- "The Land of Opportunity" -- with dreams of becoming a millionaire. He intends to work hard and has already learned to speak English. Right off the boat, he seems an ideal candidate for entry into the country. But the money he's saved is no longer enough to satisfy the immigration fee, which has risen from fifty to two hundred dollars. And so Karel must be sent back to Czechoslovakia, where he may never save enough money for a return trip to the States. Desperate, Karel escapes his deportation and tries to live the American Dream as an illegal alien in New York City.Francis Lederer is supremely likable as Karel Novak, charming and optimistic, though naïve. Karel sees America as the land of his dreams, a place that could well be Heaven. He gets giddy with excitement just seeing the Manhattan skyline lit up at night. Unfortunately Karel enters an America that is mired in a Depression, and millionaires -- and jobs, for that matter -- are hard to come by.Ginger Rogers plays Sylvia, a chorus girl who lives with her little brother, a paper boy when he's not in school (or vice versa). The two earn what they can and take care of each other in these tough times. Sylvia comes to Karel's aid when he's penniless and homeless and soon he's like a member of the family. Sylvia's brother gets Karel a job selling newspapers and Sylvia lets him sleep on the roof of their apartment building. After a while Karel gets a job driving a taxi and starts saving up money to square things with the immigration office. But when Sylvia loses her job, Karel dips into his savings to help out and soon he's back where he started.In the meantime Karel and Sylvia fall in love. And really who can blame them? But Karel's status as an illegal immigrant is going to come back to haunt him and he knows it. And while Karel's struggling with that, Sylvia's trying to keep her brother from being taken away from her and placed in an orphan asylum.ROMANCE IN MANHATTAN is a winner and I don't know how it's slipped under the radar. Francis Lederer and Ginger Rogers are a lovable pair and the film's got Depression-era drama around every corner. Our poor heroes are handed tough break after tough break, just trying to make a go of the "American Dream", but they take each blow on the chin, determined to get by somehow. Karel, the eternal optimist, faces adversity with a smile. It's a cute love story wrapped inside a social drama, and a pleasant watch the whole way through.The question posed at the climax of the film is whether Karel Novak, being a hard-working and respectable young man, deserves any breaks from the immigration office. Sure, he's in the country illegally, but can something be worked out for the poor guy? It's an ethical problem that can be seen as black and white or as shades of gray. The film makes its decision on the matter and I won't spoil it.

blanche-2 Ginger Rogers and Francis Lederer have "Romance in Manhattan" in this 1935 film directed by Stephen Roberts. The movie also features Jimmy Butler, Sidney Toler, and Donald Meek.The handsome Lederer plays Karel Novak, an immigrant to the U.S. who is sent back as soon as he arrives because he doesn't have the required $200. He thought he only needed $50. On the return ship to his native Czechoslovakia, he jumps ship, but loses his wallet in the process. Fortunately he meets a chorus girl, Sylvia, when he's trying to steal food. He winds up sleeping on the roof of the apartment building where Sylvia lives with her brother Frankie (Butler). Frankie helps Karel get a job delivering newspapers. Later on, Karel becomes a cab driver, all with the goal of earning the necessary $200 so he can stay in America.What a wonderful movie, very heartwarming, with fine performances, especially by Lederer. Irving Thalberg intended to make Lederer a huge star in the U.S., but he died, and it didn't happen. Nevertheless, the European star made some fine films both in Europe and here, moved into television, started an acting school, and taught acting until he died at age 100. When he worked with Louise Brooks in Die Büchse der Pandora in 1929, he knew no English, and Brooks knew no German. Here he gives a witty, charming and sincere performance as Karel.Ginger Rogers looks beautiful as Sylvia - she was 24 - and gives an excellent performance, sharing good chemistry with both Lederer and Butler.Very sweet film, well directed, not cloying or overly sentimental. Loved it.

MartinHafer This is an interesting film in that the leading man, Francis Lederer, actually plays a Czech--and he was, indeed, from this country. For Hollywood, this is very unusual! The film begins with Lederer arriving in America. However, because he doesn't have enough money (they required a minimum per person at the time to ensure that they'd have enough to get started), they deport him back to his homeland. But, as the boat left the harbor, he jumps overboard--much like the plot from "The Glass Wall" and it's an interesting coincidence that I'd see the two films only a short time apart. He assumes he'll just be able to get a job--but it is the middle of the Depression.Like "The Glass Wall", the illegal immigrant soon meets a nice lady who feels sorry for him--in this case, Ginger Rogers. She helps him get a job selling newspapers as well as a temporary place to sleep. Will the love that's blossoming between the two come to anything? Can Lederer legally stay in America? Tune in and see.Overall, it's a decent little film, though the chemistry between Lederer and Rogers seems less than convincing. However, despite this, the ending is pretty cute to watch--even if it's a tiny bit silly. Worth seeing, but not a must-see film.