Tito Lusiardo Movies

In 1935, Paramount pictures made a tango musical featuring the rising Argentine star Carlos Gardel. Not long after that, Gardel, who is widely credited with popularizing Argentina's national dance, the tango, died in an airplane crash, along with many other key figures in the rise of tango music. A biography of Gardel with substantially the same name as this film was made in 1986, titled Dia Que Me Quieras. This 1969 musical is a straightforward remake of the earlier film, with new recordings of the old favorites a major feature. Given that the Argentines could be reliably counted on to be critical of any lapse in production values or failure to live up to the spirit of the original, it is significant that this film was a runaway box-office success there. The story concerns a rich man's son who is disinherited by his father when he shows more interest in music and the tango than in the family business. The boy marries a tango singer, and they live together in poverty, raising a small family. After his wife dies, the boy goes on to become a major musical success, and the story is told in flashback by the much older man. One performer reprising his role from the original film is dancer/comedian Tito Lusiardo. The star of the film, singer/actor Hugo de Carril, here marks his return to acting after several unsatisfying stints as a film director. ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi

The title of this Argentine film refers to Buenos Aires' glittering, glamorous theatrical district. It's not surprisingly, then, that the plot involves a showbiz hopeful who aspires to greatness along the Calle Corrientes. In this case, the hero is a young attorney (Tito Lusiardo) who harbors a desire to become a famous tango singer. Despite his family's opposition, he gets his wish, but not without the help and moral support of gorgeous dancer Elene Lucena. Highlights include glimpses of the top comedy and variety acts from Buenos Aires' Maipo Theatre revues. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Just because the English-language title of this Argentine comedy is Ernest Must Get Married doesn't mean that it's just another entry in Jim Varney's "Ernest Worrall" series; for starters, Varney wasn't even born when the film was released! Instead, this is a modest domestic farce about a confirmed bachelor, played by Tito Lusiardo. When his friends decide that it's time Lusiardo was wed, he naturally rejects the notion -- at least until he meets the girl of his dreams. Thing of it is, she doesn't want to have anything to do with him, at least not at the outset. Episodic in structure, Hay Ques Casar a Ernesto more closely resembles a TV series installment than a feature film. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

The title Mujeres Que Trabajan translates roughly as Working Women, an accurate description of the film's collective. Spending their days laboring away at a huge department store and their nights cooling their heels in a boarding house, the girls are naturally susceptible to any and all promises of overnight wealth. Curiously, when wealthy Ana Maria (Mecha Ortiz) moves in with them and offers them a huge amount of money, they refuse, preferring to make their own way through the world. Ana Maria's inability to "connect" with the girls causes her a great deal of grief, but at long last they accept her as one of their own. Stealing the film is third-billed Nini Marshall, who wrote all of her own dialogue. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Killed in a plane crash in June of 1935, Argentine musical star Carlos Gardel was well on his way to becoming a legend when his final starring feature, Tango Bar, was released in the U.S. Though well past middle age, Gardel convincingly plays an amorous young cabaret vocalist named Ricardo, who falls in love with gorgeous dancer Laura (Rosita Moreno). To rescue the heroine from a gang of crooks, Ricardo puts his own life on the line, nearly losing same in the process. The villain, played by Enrique de Rosas, is a government official, reflecting the "outlaw" status of the tango in much of South America. Though filmed in Spanish and set in Argentina, Tango Bar was lensed in its entirety in Paramount's East Coast studios at Astoria, Long Island. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi