TheLittleSongbird It's nice to see others who are also quite fond of The Emperor Waltz. The film mayn't be a personal favourite or a masterpiece, and there has been better from all involved- for example it is one of Billy Wilder's weakest films that I've seen but that is not knocking it at all, just that his best films are some of the best ever made- but The Emperor Waltz is still a lovely and very enjoyable film. Yes the story is incredibly silly and at its worst disposable and Bing Crosby has moments where he does overact. The Emperor Waltz does look absolutely gorgeous, the clothes and scenery coupled with the colourful cinematography really do make for a visual feast. The music is both lush and characterful, and there are songs also that are really catchy and pleasant to listen to. The choreography in the ballet sequence is wonderfully nimble as well as deliciously witty, it also doesn't go on for too long or bog the film down. The script at its best is uproariously funny with Wilder's style definitely coming through, helped by the great comic delivery, and there is also room for some genuinely sweet moments without falling into schmaltz as well as some biting but often gentle cynicism with the portrayal of the Austrian court while keeping in good taste still. Wilder directs with a sure hand, if not at his best and in the performances there is little to complain about. Particularly good are the dog Buttons, who bags some of the film's funniest moments as well as its sweetest, and an unrecognisable Richard Haydn, sometimes his character is irritating but Haydn is also hilarious and thoughtful too. Joan Fontaine is subtle and touching, the rest of the supporting cast turn in good work and while Crosby does go overboard at times he takes a light-hearted and suave approach in others which is most endearing and he characteristically sings magnificently. Overall, lovely stuff with a lot to like. 8/10 Bethany Cox

charlytully THE EMPEROR WALTZ can be best viewed today as director Billy Wilder's attempt to explain why such a schnitzel-loving country as Austria could be drafted onto the losing side of not one but TWO world wars against the Allies last century.This story begins with an American salesman (Bing Crosby) going over to a backward European country which has barely heard of electricity and light bulbs, even though they'd been around more than three decades at the time this docudrama takes place. (Everyone knows that even Pitcairn's Island will get its first shipment of iPad 2's before they've been out a week.) To add insult to injury, when the salesman is savvy enough of local mores to offer his prototype iPod to the local honcho, this emperor's backward thugs throw the entertainment device into a goldfish pond, proclaiming it a weapon of mass destruction. This is clearly Wilder's allegorical riff on the tragic events kicking off WWI.The rest of the movie is about dog breeding, an obvious allusion to the Aryan eugenics mania practiced by Hitler and his Austrian cronies up to and during WWII. Is the Austrian working class (well represented in this movie by chauffeurs, maids, teamsters, hunting guides, cops, etc.) protesting in the streets over all these evil shenanigans? Heck no! Wilder shows us. They just gallivant about without a care in the world, dancing and yodeling for no reason, oblivious to the grim fate in store for them. Clearly, THE EMPEROR WALTZ was the major influence inspiring Mel Brooks to write "Springtime for Hitler" into his blockbuster, THE PRODUCERS.

Claudio Carvalho In Austria, the American traveling salesman Virgil Smith (Bing Crosby) arrives in the palace of Emperor Franz-Joseph I (Richard Haydn) with his mongrel dog Button expecting to sell one gramophone to him to promote his sales in the country. However, the guards believe he has a time-bomb and he does not succeed in his intent. When the dog Sheherazade of the widowed Countess Johanna Franziska von Stolzenberg-Stolzenberg (Joan Fontaine) bites Button, Virgil visits her and sooner he falls in love for Johanna and Button for Sheherazade that is promised to breed with the Emperor's dog. When Virgil asks permission to marry Johanna to the Emperor, the nobleman exposes to the salesman that their difference of social classes would doom their marriage and offers a business to Virgil. "The Emperor Waltz" is a delightful and naive romance of Billy Wilder, with parallel human and canine love stories like the dogs were the alter-egos of their owners. The art direction and the set decoration are amazing, and the scene of the ball is awesome. Joan Fontaine is extremely beautiful and shows a great chemistry with Bing Crosby, but the dog Button steals the movie and is responsible for the funniest moments. My vote is eight.Title (Brazil): "A Valsa do Imperador" ("The Emperor Waltz")

Mrswing After having read all the negative reviews and the complaints about Crosby wrecking Wilder's original intention with the film, I was quite amazed to discover that I liked this film a lot. Crosby's interference isn't noticeable, by which I mean that the film has a quite evenhanded tone. And near the end, Crosby is absolutely horrid to Joan Fontaine (cruel to be kind, but he still takes it to extremes) in a cynical way which just smacks of Wilder's black-heartedness. Crosby's character in this film is also somewhat different from his usual persona: not laid-back, but a pushy, brash, fast-talking salesman (Hope or Cagney might have suited the story even better). Joan Fontain is very icy and remote at first (making her unattractive), but she melts very convincingly once the love affair starts. The film is also a sort of a parody of the musical: Crosby's yodelling song is full of yodel jokes, and during THE number of the film (I kiss your hand in dreams madame), a chamber-maid, Fontaine's goofy chauffeur and the middle-aged pudgy 'receptionist' of the inn at which Mr. C is staying launch into a wonderfully silly (deliberately so) ballet routine clearly intended as a stab at the conventions of the genre. The last part of the film becomes less amusing, and the puppy finale drags a bit, though the final confrontation with Franz Joseph (a great Richard Haydn) makes up for the lull. Finally, Fontaine has one of the greatest lines in movie history when she finally surrenders to Crosby: 'My husband was dashing and suave. He was 6'2". He was the most handsome man in all of Austria. You're so different!!' And kiss. Sheer brilliance.