Death Takes a Holiday (1934)

In recent weeks, I have bumped Fredric March from one of my top-10 faves to one of my "beloveds."  (I now have 8 great loves, with over a dozen more hovering just below that status.)  I have been an appreciator of Mr. March's talents since the first time I ever saw him---in The Best Years of Our Lives; however, the more I see of his works, the more impressed I am with him and the more I love him.  I have come to completely adore him!!  Thus, I've been on a quest to see as many of his films as I can, and Death Takes a Holiday was one I was dying to see (pun intended).  A romantic drama from 1934, the film also stars Evelyn Venable, with Guy Standing, Henry Travers, and Helen Westley taking on supporting roles.

Fredric March is Death, and in an endeavor to discover why mortals fear and hate him, he takes a 3-day holiday from that role, and, inhabiting the body of a prince, becomes a mortal himself. Spending his holiday at the home of Duke Lambert (Guy Standing), he finds himself falling in love with the beautiful Grazia (Evelyn Venable).  While some of the duke's house guests find him odd and even fear him, Grazia does not.  She loves him and is willing to follow him anywhere.  But does anywhere mean leaving the land of the living?

This is an interesting, well-acted film...and Fredric March is more handsome than I have ever seen him. Except for that early-1930's "lipstick look" which makes the men a bit too feminine-looking for my taste, I think he is completely gorgeous here!  Looks aside, Mr. March's acting in Death Takes a Holiday is completely over-the-top, something I happen to think is spot-on.  Given that he was playing an other-worldly character, I think the overacting goes with the territory; however, I know others who think he was actually laughable in this role.  Each viewer will need to make up his own mind.

The supporting players are all a real treat.  I would have liked to have seen their characters fleshed out a bit more, though that is hard to do in a 78-minute movie.  Had the film been longer and more developed, I might have rated it higher.  As it is, I'm calling this a solid 3-star film.

The film is out on DVD and part of the Classic Flix inventory (that's how I caught it); however, it is also available in its entirety on YouTube (HERE).

Happy viewing!!