Craig Stevens, J. Carrol Naish, Joan Chandler

The greatness of John Garfield was that he was a tough guy who wasn't afraid to wear his sensitivity on his sleeve. What makes this such a great film is that director Jean Negulesco and his two writer...( read more  read more... )s (including Clifford Oddets) construct a complex web of ambiguity around Garfield's own torment. He's a violin virtuoso from the slums of New York who rises to the top with the assistance of socialite Joan Crawford (who was never better). There's a sexual intensity to his art that she wants to possess, and there's a vulnerability behind her lacerating façade that he wants to expose. They play each other like a couple of virtuosos, stripping each other's spirit away. What helps transcend this depression-era class struggle is its cool sophistication. It's a sublime noir about loneliness. Everyone knows his dream has hit a dead end, except Garfield. He refuses to give up, even after his soul is long gone. --Bill Desowitz

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78% liked it

1,036 ratings

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60% liked it

5 critics

Unrated, 124 min.

Directed by: Jean Negulesco

Release Date: December 25, 1946

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DVD Release Date: June 14, 2005

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Flixster Reviews (65)


  • March 24, 2008
    Joan Crawford is in top form in another gem; Humoresque. This film is about a socialite (Crawford) whom falls in love with a musician (John Carfield). Many tragedies ensure in this very dramatic and a very good film.
  • January 6, 2008
    there is one saying about joan crawford "you could love her or hate her, but you just can't ignore her!" maybe "humoresque" could be rendered as the self-clarified justification of crawford herself. once again adrain endorses crawford's resolute glamour with her vixen-alike shoul...( read more)der paddings which affirms her woman power as the iconic signature of joan crawford.

    this is a love story of two backboned individuals with disparate social levels as blocks between them as well as their homogenous egoism against each other. a more than ripe john garfield plays paul boray who is a debutante fresh young musician with enormous talent but hindered by his gutter upbringing. crawford is helen wright, an alcoholic socialite who sponsors this unknown talent wholeheartedly. helen conceals her solitude behind her derisive facade which arouses paul to unveil her outward hardshell. helen's lovestriken by paul for his raw untamed masculinity which could be a smack right upon her untouchable pride. then paul's overbearingly uptight mother interferes with this affair as bad omen, then the issue of the artist's complete involvement in his art comes across them as a fatality to catalyze helen's doom: she cannot live as a second choice next to paul's music.

    the music score is by franz waxman with all the classic violin tunes as background. at times, a few scenes at the nightclub accompanied by the piano sound and a husky female singer peg la centra are particularly enjoyable, especially when she utters the famous "embrace me", crawford even partakes in it as the theme song of a neglected woman suffering from the want of love.

    oscar levant as the paul's pianist sideman is harmonious with all his wisecrackers as footnotes from scene to scene. and only garfield who makes his fame in "postman always rings twice" could compete the lofty joan crawford without fading from the spotlight. garfield has character eminent enough to upstage crawford without being effeminated by her brittle mannerism. as a matter of fact, he even demystifies her to expose her underneath fragility as love conquest.

    before the campy period of 50s, joan crawford still maintains a glittering grace in her without the later misogynistic uglification on her personal image. she remains acceptibly pleasant to a slight degree with some unique allure of her own. "humoresque" is a piece to manifest her feminine fraility as if it's a self-dubbed confession, also like a dirge to reminiscent her withered glow of romance.
  • March 30, 2009
    The ending was a bit dramatic and the story was a little but Joan's acting was excellant.
  • June 19, 2008
    One of Joans best performances.
  • March 18, 2008
    I didn't like this film.
  • September 4, 2007
    A little overwrought, but she gives a great performance, as does John Garfield.
  • September 4, 2007
    This movie is amazing,from start to finish. and one of Joan's greatest performances. If this doesnt make you cry you have ice for blood!
  • July 19, 2007
    All CLASSICS are GOOD
  • June 3, 2007
    love Joan Crawford - this one makes you think - you can't have everything

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