Director: Elliott Nugent
After its release in 1935, the New York Times did an excellent job summarizing the type of picture that Love in Bloom falls into the category of: “Relying upon one of the oldest plots known to Hollywood and unadorned with any semblance of newness, the picture falls into the vast, undistinguished classification which is summed up in the one word: fair.” Indeed, much of the 75 minute run time follows a blossoming romance between Dixie Lee and Joe Morrison, who both have their charms but have about as much personality as the young couples that bring the fun to a halt in a typical Marx Brothers picture. Morrison’s repetitive crooning of “My Heart Is an Open Book” reeks of a desperation to produce a hit, and co-stars George Burns and Gracie Allen are woefully underused. There are a few nice moments here and there–Lee and Morrison have an excellent scene during a stormy night that has the feel of a decent Frank Borage imitation (including a memorably racy line: “Are you as wet underneath as you feel on top?”), and Lee’s self-pity leads to a genuinely affecting moment late in the picture–but Love in Bloom is so perfectly average that it leaves little impression at all.
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