Love Is a Ball

Charles Boyer steals this rather lengthy romantic comedy as "Etienne Pimm" - a gent who patrols the French Riviera trying to match the wealthy nouveau riche (usually Americans) with poverty stricken blue bloods. It's all done with the greatest of subterfuge - the wealthy folks have no idea that they are being manipulated - and true love is aways his goal! His perfectly honed system hits a snag, though, when the latest mark "Millie" (Hope Lange) decides that she prefers Glenn Ford's "Davis" to the proposed Grand Ducal target "Gaspard" (Ricardo Montalban). How can "Pimm" gets things back on track? Despite quite a good cast, this story is quite weak and it does take quite a while to build up a decent head of steam. Once it does though, the comedy is gentle and engaging with a few fun scenes between Ford and Lange as they paint a boat. One for the romantics, this - it's a pleasing enough watch.