Can't Help Singing (1944) Reviews

Deanna Durbin's first Technicolor feature is a lavish musical western, replete with a Jerome Kern-E. Y. Harburg score. Set in the mid-19th century, the story finds Caroline (Durbin), daughter of a wealthy senator, bound and determined to wed dashing cavalry officer Lawlor (Robert Paige). When the officer is transferred to California, Caroline chases after him, encountering prospectors, bandits and Indians all along the way. That's about all that happens, save for a few awkward slapstick moments wherein the pleasantly plump Ms. Durbin falls into various bodies of water. Lensed on location in Utah, Can't Help Singing is entertaining enough, but wasn't sufficient to halt the downward slide of Deanna Durbin's popularity. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi