THE YOUNG IN HEART: Blu-ray (Selznick International 1938) Kino Lorber

David O. Selznick never gave up on a dream. Nor was he willing to allow great stars to similarly molder with the past, even when the pedigree of their stature and reputation with the public had already fallen on hard times. Hollywood’s one-time golden girl, Janet Gaynor is just such an example. While some may argue the actress still had cache with movie audiences, steadily throughout the 1930’s her wholesome fresh-faced appeal was being eclipsed at the box office by the public’s insatiable desire for more exotic stars. She may not have been a has-been in 1938, but her second trip to the altar, this time with MGM’s leading couturier, Gilbert Adrian (known simply as ‘Adrian’) was, in hindsight a convenience; dubbed a ‘lavender marriage’ since Adrian was openly gay and Gaynor was rumored to be either gay or bisexual.  Hence, Richard Wallace’s The Young in Heart (1938) is really Gaynor’s farewell to the movies.
Though she would resurface to forgettable effect in the as unworthy 1957 Fox musical, Bernadine, by 1938, Janet Gaynor had witnessed the end of a rather formidable run in the picture biz, begun all the way back in 1924, having won fans and two curious Oscars in the process. She was most memorably on display as the winsome and moon-faced ingenue in 1927’s 7th Heaven, the bucolic and starry-eyed charmer opposite Will Rogers of 1932’s State Fair, and perhaps, most indelibly etched into the public consciousness as up-and-comer, Esther Blodgett transformed into superstar, Vicki Lester in the original version of A Star Is Born (1937). That Gaynor should have followed up this iconic Hollywood story with The Young in Heart, a rather silly, and at times somewhat grating performance as the eldest no-nonsense daughter of a family of cons about to be tricked into their own happiness and prosperity, was decidedly something of a letdown, perhaps not just to her fans. The role of George-Anne Carleton is a part most any second-rate starlet could sleep-walk her way through. Gaynor nearly does as much herein, apparently in a befuddled trance for most of the picture and occasionally so forthright in her critical contempt for the rest of her wayward family, one comes to suspect her motives more priggish than prudent and less honest than arrogant.
The Young in Heart is a ridiculous and overly wrought piece of sentimentality run amuck; Selznick, quite unable to invest it with the screwball corn it so desperately requires, yet eager to unearth moments of ribald comedy to counterbalance the affected tenderness. In the final analysis, this rings more tinny than true. At times awkward, and decidedly maudlin, the screenplay by Paul Osborn was adapted by Charles Bennett from the serialized novel, The Gay Banditti by I. A. R. Wylie, as it originally appeared in The Saturday Evening Post. Never having read the serialized version, I sincerely suspect something has been lost in Osborn’s translation. At times, The Young in Heart lumbers along on the deadly decay of misdirection and clumsily strewn gags; the heartfelt earnestness of the piece browbeaten into submission by flights into dipsy-doodle one-liners and idiotically strung together vignettes.
Broadway legends, Maude Adams and Laurette Taylor originally screen tested for the part of Miss Ellen Fortune (eventually filled by Minnie Dupree), the only surviving record of either actress’ formidable stage careers captured on film. Despite its cast, the picture’s enduring legacy is a six-passenger/2-door sedan, nicknamed the Flying Wombat (actually a one-of-a-kind prototype, Phantom Corsair concept car, designed and built by Rust Heinz of the H. J. Heinz family and Maurice Schwartz of Bohman & Schwartz, coachbuilders in Pasadena, California). The ‘Wombat’ – which figures prominently in one of the picture’s subplots - is a hoot; sleek in its bizarre styling and far too ahead of its time to ever go beyond the blueprint phase. One has to admire the audacity in its engineering; also, Selznick’s conviction to feature it as a ‘real car’ in The Young in Heart. Perhaps the ole mogul had shares or other invested interests in Heinz, Bohman and Schwartz’s respective companies.
“Meet the Carleton family,” Selznick’s publicity department championed, “…charming to meet, expensive to know!” And so, we come to distinguish the clan; con artists, one and all, led by ‘Colonel’ Anthony ‘Sahib’ Carleton (Roland Young at his stumbling/mumbling best). In his younger days, Tony claims to have led a gallant brigade in the Far East as a dashing Bengal Lancer stationed in India. But actually, he is a retired actor, working the room with his scheming wife, Marmy (the ever-effervescent and chirpy, Billie Burke). Presently, the pair are scouring the French Riviera in search of wealthy prospects for their children; eldest daughter, George-Anne (Janet Gaynor) and dashing playboy, Richard (Douglas Fairbanks Jr.). While Richard shrugs off the prospect of being traded like a prized bull at auction, George-Anne increasingly comes to resent the idea of selling herself to the highest bidder, simply to allow the rest of her family their lazy and ill-gotten vices. But who is George-Anne fooling? She dismisses her legitimate Scottish suitor, Duncan Macrae (Richard Carlson) after she unearths the truth…he is not rich either.
Meanwhile, Richard has ingratiated himself to wealthy wallflower, Adela Jennings (Margaret Early). Alas, Tony has cheated the girl’s American senator/father (Irving S. Cobb) at poker. Informed of their whereabouts by Mr. Jennings, the local police expose the Carleton’s sordid past and, with the senator’s compliments, provide the family with train tickets to London, ordered to leave the Riviera at once…or else. It’s no use. As adept as the Carltons are at gaining access to the hoi poloi, they are equally as inept at being able to carry off the ruse of belonging to that upper-class crust in social respectability. Once again feeling the angst of being poor, George-Anne inadvertently befriends a lonely old spinster, Miss Ellen Fortune (Minnie Dupree), who inherited her money from a former fiancé with whom she quarreled in her youth. The benevolent Miss Fortune invites George-Anne and her family to her first-class compartment on the train.  Earnestly, Tony plots to lift the purse of the dowager.
Alas, fate intervenes. The train suffers a hideous derailment. Having survived, the Carleton’s extricate a slightly battered, but otherwise unharmed Miss Fortune from the wreck. As gratitude, she invites them to stay with her in London, a decision to leave her suspicious attorney, Felix Anstruther (Henry Stephenson) bristling. To throw Felix off their scent, Tony and Richard pretend they share an interest in establishing themselves, both financially and socially. Unexpectedly, Duncan resurfaces, as in love as ever with George-Anne, despite her repeated rejections. Duncan believes one of the impediments between them is George-Anne being ashamed of her family. To remove this barrier, Duncan helps Tony get a job as a car salesman for the new ‘Flying Wombat’ prototype. Applying his con artist skills to the scheme, Tony’s salesmanship proves so deliciously devious, in no time he is given a promotion as the new manager of the London branch.
Meanwhile, Richard takes a job as a mail clerk at an engineering firm. He is introduced to the bright and vivacious, Leslie Saunders (Paulette Goddard). Ah me, what the love of a good woman can do for the morale! Before long, Richard is contemplating marriage and applying to night school to advance his engineering skills. As luck would have it, both Tony and Richard develop a conscience in tandem with their newfound work ethic. Each is increasingly embarrassed for having taken advantage of Miss Fortune’s kindness. On the home front, George-Anne and Marmy come to their own estimation of goodness triumphing over greed. However, none of the family is brave enough to admit they no longer crave the old woman’s inheritance. It’s good thing too, since Anstruther quietly informs the Carletons Miss Fortune’s monies have been all but depleted. Despite her appearance of wealth, she is nearly destitute and likely to be evicted from her mansion.
Miss Fortune suffers a stroke. As proof of their newfound loyalties, the Carletons rally around the old girl who, perhaps as yet fully unaware of her status, informs the family she intends to have her Will changed so they will inherit everything. Marmy makes Ellen a solemn promise: she will never want for anything as long as she lives. Assured the Carletons have only Miss Fortune’s best interests at heart, Anstruther retires. Sometime later, a fully recovered Ellen is seen driving her one-time barrister in a Flying Wombat; the old man gripped tightly to his seat as the car careers toward the Carletons’ new home where she too now lives. We see George-Anne, happily wed to Duncan and Richard engaged to Leslie.
The Young In Heart is a decidedly curious anomaly in the Selznick canon. Previously, the producer had delighted audiences with his take on the hoi polloi and scheming pretenders to the throne in MGM's star-studded, Dinner at Eight (1933). Nearly 5 years separate between this lavishly appointed ensemble comedy and The Young in Heart. Yet, despite Selznick’s verve for the project, The Young in Heart somehow lacks the strengths of its all-star predecessor, quite unable to sell its creaky wares.  Douglas Fairbanks Jr., dashing, though forever-to-be-compared as the ‘lesser successor’ to the mantle of quality vacated by his swashbuckling father, Douglas Fairbanks Sr., could never be mistaken as a star of the first magnitude, as a Clark Gable or Gary Cooper. So too had it been a relatively ‘long’ 3 years since Paulette Goddard wowed audiences in Charlie Chaplin's Modern Times - a minor eternity in Hollywood terms. Fairbanks Jr. and Goddard do have a lithe on-screen chemistry. But they lack the ‘A-list’ stature to become the enviable couple du jour of this piece.  
Janet Gaynor's smashing success in Selznick’s A Star Is Born is likely the reason for her casting herein. Yet, her role is disappointingly small; the sulking and clear-eyed ingenue who cannot bring herself to be entirely disloyal to the man who desperately loves her. Paul Osborn, Charles Bennett and I.A.R. Wylie's screenplay extols the ‘money can’t buy you happiness' theme, at times, rather heavy-handed to the point of abject tedium. The story clings together, peppered in just the right amount of sensitivity and humor to prevail mostly with meager, if heart-warming results. After an unfavorable preview, The Young at Heart had its original downtrodden ending revamped. As initially scripted, Ellen died and the Carletons disbanded to pursue their own lives and careers. In the rewrite the essence of ‘family’ gets rewritten, not necessarily relating to blood ties, but reinstated as a ‘better than loneliness’ option for those who are indeed, very much ‘young in heart’ – if noble in their thought, word and deed. Nominated for two minor Academy Awards; Best Song/Score and Cinematography, The Young in Heart won neither.
Kino Lorber’s new to Blu incarnation is a definite step up from MGM’s tired DVD. The image sharpens, marginally. I suspect that like most every other deep catalog Selznick title to have emerged from this latest alliance between MGM and Kino, The Young in Heart’s Blu-ray transfer is derived from the same digital files created for the DVD. Mercifully, the DVD’s image was not bad and so the Blu-ray, by virtue of its greater compression, improves on all fronts while still retaining the shortcomings derived from these elements. How much better could it have looked from a new 1080p 2K scan? Hmmmm. The image is remarkably detailed, if occasionally suffering from some bizarre residual softness around the edges. Age-related artifacts are kept at bay.  But contrast is weaker than anticipated. We continue to have some extremely minor edge effects. Otherwise, an acceptable, if unprepossessing effort.  The audio is DTS 1.0 mono. Save a theatrical trailer, there are no extras.
FILM RATING (out of 5 - 5 being the best)
3.5
VIDEO/AUDIO
3.5
EXTRA
0

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