My Song for You (film)

My Song for You
My Song for You
	Gina Malo as Fifi
Directed by	Maurice Elvey
Produced by	Michael Balcon; Arnold Pressburger;
Starring	Jan Kiepura; Sonnie Hale; Emlyn Williams;
Cinematography	Charles Van Enger (as C. Van Enger)
Edited by	Charles Frend
Music by	Mischa Spoliansky
Production; companies	Ciné-Alliance; Gaumont British;
Distributed by	Gaumont British Distributors (UK)
Release dates	30 July 1934 (London, UK);
Running time	85 minutes
Country	United Kingdom
Language	English

My Song for You is a 1934 film directed by Maurice Elvey and starring Jan Kiepura.^[1]^[2] Kiepura sang the title song "My Song for You" written by Mischa Spoliansky and Frank Eyton. The song was released on an EP "Tell Me Tonight" (also a song by Spoliansky and Eyton) in 1957.^[3]^[4]

Plot

Arriving in Venice for a production of "Aida", young tenor Ricardo Gatti meets the attractive Mary, who has sneaked into the opera house in an attempt to get her fiancé hired as a pianist. Ricardo invites Mary to tea and she tells her story, describing her fiancé as her "brother". Captivated by her, the tenor uses his influence to obtain the job with the orchestra. However, filled with guilt at her deception, Mary breaks off her engagement and consents instead to marry her parents' choice, a wealthy society man. But just before the wedding, she changes her mind and marries Ricardo instead.

Cast

Jan Kiepura as Ricardo Gatti
Sonnie Hale as Charlie
Emlyn Williams as Theodore Bruckner
Aileen Marson as Mary Newberg
Gina Malo as Fifi
Muriel George as Mrs Newberg
George Merritt as Mr Newberg
Reginald Smith as Baron Johann Felix Kleeberg

Critical reception

The New York Times wrote, "the film is at its best, of course, while its star is attuning his magnificent tenor to a variety of classic arias. The musical high spots of the show are the "Ave Maria" of Gounod, which M. Kiepura sings impressively during a church wedding, and the "Celeste Aïda," which he rehearses during an amusing backstage sequence at the opera house while "Aïda" is being trundled through its paces";^[5] and TV Guide called the film "charming in parts, this is a nicely done musical with some good detailed direction."^[6]

References

^ Opera News - Volume 61, Issues 9-17 - Page 18 1997 -My Song for You Kiepura. Aida (several excerpts), Trovatore (he sings both verses of "Di quel la pira") + songs. (1934). English. 89m. #667 $29.95 A silly, wacky film gleefully overacted and magnificently sung by Kiepura. Fun. Fun. Fun.
^ International Opera Collector: IOC. - Volume 3 - Page 105 1998 "Films made in English in a 1935 and b 1936. My song for you Jan Kiepura (ten) with various artists. ... The problem with films starring great singers is that, with few exceptions, they tend to be undistinguished as contributions to the cinematic art."
^ "45cat - Jan Kiepura - Tell Me Tonight - The Glorious Voice Of Jan Kiepura - Parlophone - UK". 45cat.com.
^ "My Song for You (1934)". BFI. Archived from the original on 12 July 2012.
^ "Movie Reviews". The New York Times. 5 November 2021.
^ "My Song For You". TVGuide.com.