French Without Tears (1940)

The sister (Ellen Drew) of a young Englishman (Kenneth Morgan) studying at a French language "cramming" school in the South of France arrives in town and proceeds to flirt with all her brother's classmates! The only one to resist her is a cynical student (Ray Milland) who sees right through her. Based on the play by Terence Rattigan (SEPARATE TABLES) and directed by Anthony Asquith (THE VIPS). The play was a huge success in London's West End where it ran for more than 1,000 performances and established Rattigan (still in his 20s) as a major playwright and made a star out of Rex Harrison (Trevor Howard and Jessica Tandy were also in the cast). This is a British film with Milland and Drew imported from Hollywood to ensure its success outside of England. It's such a slight piece that it hardly seems there. If the movie is a reasonable facsimile of the play, I can't image what made it a success. Even though it's slightly opened up for the screen, director Asquith doesn't bother to disguise its theatrical origins. In spite of the antagonistic relationship between Milland and Drew, there's never a doubt they'll end up together. With Roland Culver (recreating his stage role), David Tree and Janine Darcey.