Excellent, smart action film.

The tone of this movie is interesting -- the stakes are both dramatic and high, but it's balanced with a lot of fun, tongue and cheek dialogue.

Not sure how, but this is easily one of the best movies all summer. Multiple levels of funny, never takes itself seriously, super colorful, and creative.

I didn’t really have many expectations going into the movie (good or bad), but I actually really enjoyed it. I really liked the characters and the banter between them.

The plot of this light romantic comedy is quite absurd. Yet, if you are willing to suspend disbelief at times, it can be rather fun, especially with pretty boy Tyrone Power and gorgeous Loretta Young as the developing lovers. Victor(Adolphe Menjou), the manager of the Parisian Café Metropole, has a big problem, despite Adolphe being perfect for this role. His friend Maxi had loaned him 900,000 francs, but Adolphe hasn't a franc left, and Maxi is demanding full repayment soon. Adolphe hatches a crafty plan. He will convert the handsome American playboy, Alexander Brown, into an imposter rich Russian nobleman: Alexis Paneiev. The combination of his looks and personality, along with pseudowealth and title will hopefully be too much for single future heiress Loretta(Laura Ridgeway) to resist(Yet another single heiress, so popular in 1930s films). She immediately falls for Ty and he for her. But she doesn't fall for his imposter act. When they first met, he had no foreign accent to his American English. But, later he did, when he met her father(Charles Winninger)and mother (Helen Westley). Loretta comments on this inconsistency, and Ty admits that his accent waxes and wanes, like love. Although she pretends otherwise, from this moment, she assumes he is an American trying to impress her as a European nobleman. She doesn't disclose her suspicion until near the end of the film. Nonetheless, her father relates his experience with noblemen. "If they're charming, they're fake. If genuine, they're stupid". In either case, they're probably wrong for Loretta.Adolphe has a hold over Ty, who gave him a worthless check to pay his gambling debt. Adolphe threatens to go to the police if Ty doesn't cooperate in his scheme to weasel 1 million francs from Loretta's father. Complications arise when the real Alexis Paneiev surfaces as one of Adolphe's waiters, using a pseudonym. Adolphe offers him 50,000 francs to keep quite about the situation. Also, artist Kinskey relates that all Russians he has known smell bad, but not Ty.Loretta wants Ty to ask her to marry him. But, he says he loves her too much to marry her, presumably because then his sham would be exposed. Later, she calls him up and asks him to marry her. At first reluctant, eventually he agrees....Now, Adolphe's lawyer, Monnet, draws up a contract, in which Loretta's father pays 500,000 francs before the wedding and another 500,000 francs after the wedding, plus so much for each subsequent child(Why should he do this?). Ty walks out in disgust. But, soon after, Adolphe maneuvers Loretta's father into handing him a check for 1,000,000.francs(I don't understand why he should agree?). Father then demands that Ty be put in jail for fraud, so that he can't marry Loretta. Father then demands that Loretta leave with her parents for the US. She refuses and has a tantrum, screaming and throwing things, then crying. Rather reminds me of Carol Lombard, in "My Man Godfrey"Under father's insistence, the real Alexis is mistakenly jailed instead of Ty(How could this happen? He has a genuine passport.) But Ty isn't off the hook yet. He is also charged with being an imposter, but wiggles out of it. Strangely, Loretta's father is then charged as an imposter, despite his passport(Is this Loretta's trick?).Back at the café, Ty and Loretta enter the Café to fanfare, followed by her parents. They sit at a table with the real Alexis, who is now out of jail, and friendly with them. It's suggested that Adolphe owes Ty something for his act. Adolphe goes and gets the worthless check Ty handed him for his gambling debt. Ty happily tears it up.Loretta and Ty part from the others to talk, dance and romance. Loretta says, with a sexy French accent, "I was thinking maybe you give me beeg kiss now". Then, "My accent, it comes and goes, comes and goes", parroting Ty's statement in the flower shop.I've noted some incongruous or mysterious things in my summary. Maybe you have better insight. See it at You Tube, where there's a good print.

One can see why the studio couldn't help pairing Tyrone Power and Loretta Young - very attractively matched. They were quite taken with their new acquisition of Mr. Power, their answer to Clark Gable, et al, and gave him preferential handling over some of their proved ones, like Ms. Young, who had been a faithful producer for them for some time prior to this. Not only did Mr. Power quickly out-bill her, he also out-earned her, naturally something of an angst to her. He was rather spectacular looking as a young man, but to my mind, did not age as well as some of his counterparts. This is a delightful tale with a lot of fun from several quarters. Helen Westley was my all-around favorite, being, to me, an absolutely diverting woman always in whatever way. Coupled with papa, their segments were among my favorites. Adophe Menjou was faithfully fulfilling with his impish charm here. Very fun film.

Having embezzled money from the night club he manages, Adolph Menjou must now replace the money before the auditors arrive or face prison. He sees the opportunity with handsome Tyrone Power, a broke American whom he makes pose as a Russian prince in order to bilk American millionaires Charles Winninger, Loretta Young, and Helen Westley. However, the real Russian prince he has Power impersonating is there, under the guise of one of his own waiters (Gregory Ratoff). Related to the czars of Russia 25 times (5 times illegitimately), Ratoff is indignant over the use of Power with his identity. When asked by Winninger if Ratoff is a real Russian, Menjou says he is. Winninger's feisty sister, Westley, retorts, "Then how come he isn't driving a cab?" That's the type of humor to expect from this very enjoyable non-sensical screwball comedy the year of "The Awful Truth", "Topper" and "Nothing Sacred" (all-time classics), as well as duds like "True Confession" and "Double Wedding". "Cafe Metropole" falls closer to the classic mark. Looking at Tyrone Power and Loretta Young (here before she became Attila the Nun), it's impossible not to see why they were a popular screen couple. William Powell and Myrna Loy were sophisticated and witty, but Power and Young are downright beautiful to look at together. You can't help but wonder what their children would look like. Young is great when she's sinning a little; A few years down the road, she'd be a lot more difficult to watch. Power always remained easy on the eye, even if by the mid 40's he looked like a man-boy that resented his own prettiness and yet unable to face the on-coming middle age.There's also some rather humorous gay moments, particularly with an obviously gay hat seller who sells Power his own hat, and is then told by Power to throw the other one out. Adolph Menjou makes a wonderful scoundrel. You want to see him get his come-uppance, even if it's just the leads conning him on his own con. Winninger and Westley, as usual, are great scene-stealers. Westley gets the last word, and is so amusing. What would we do without those salty character people like Jessie Ralph, May Robson, Marie Dressler, Alison Skipworth and Ms. Westley? They are like the grandmothers we'd love to have---filled with both love and discipline, yet bubbling with an earthiness that makes us want to see them a bit under the influence to reveal what they are really like. Predictable, but lots of fun!

It must be 35 years or so since I saw this film in an "Art House" Theatre. But it still has left one, strong, lingering impression.There is one scene on the dance floor that took my breath away. Power is wearing a tailcoat and white tie. Young is in a satin floor length gown that clung to even inch of her elegant form. They were dancing like a young god and goddess.I remember thinking, "At that moment in time, they had to be the two most beautiful people on the face of the earth." I recall nothing else about the film save this moment. But it's quite sufficient.Sometimes, all it takes is just one scene to leave an impression that makes the memory of a film vivid for decades. In an era when class and style are neither appreciated, celebrated or understood, a film like this is a reminder of these words mean -- or at least meant.