Une java (1939)
Directed by Claude Orval

Film Review

La Java bleu is one of the most enduring French songs of the 1930s, a sweetly melancholic love ballad that became a national hit on the eve of WWII thanks to a recording by star chansonnier Fréhel.  The song is still fondly remembered in France but the film for which it was created, Une java, is now almost completely forgotten, and not without reason.  A pedestrian crime drama, Une java only comes to life at the thirty minute mark when Fréhel appears and sings her most famous song, a tune which is then reprised (less successfully) by the lead actor Antonin Berval and repeated intermittently throughout the rest of the film.  It is as if, whilst making the film, director Claude Orval realised that the main song was all it had going for it.

Claude Orval was not one of France's most distinguished filmmakers.  Having directed a handful of mostly mediocre films, he gave up directing and pursued a far more successful career as a crime writer.  Une java is probably the best known of his films, and then only because of its association with a celebrated song, created by Vincent Scotto.  (La Java blue is actually a misnomer, as the song's music is a waltz, not a java...).  A respectable cast (including Mireille Perrey, Mila Parély and Raymond Aimos) is mostly wasted on a film that is poorly scripted and directed with next to nothing by way of flair or imagination.  Badly paced, the film staggers along and only holds the attention as a work of drama in its final reel, by which point the spectator has completely lost interest.  Fréhel is only on screen for a few minutes but this is enough to prevent this tedious plod-a-thon from earning a well-deserved place in obscurity.

Film Synopsis

For wounding a police officer, petty criminal Yann is sent to prison for five years after his former girlfriend Gaby testifies against him.  In fact, the real culprit is Yann's criminal associate, Armando.  On escaping from prison, Yann's only thought is to go after Armando and inflict on him a just chastisement.  Meanwhile, Yann's sister Rose has managed to find work as a secretary to Méry Cerval, a popular star of the music hall.  In search of inspiration for her next show, the latter pays a visit to a seedy bar which is frequented by lowlife, among them Armando and his accomplices, Frédo and Le Tordu.

Yann shows up at the bar just as Frédo and his chums make an attempt to rob the famous performer of her jewels.  Méry shows her gratitude by offering Yann a dance with her.  Humiliated, Frédo plans to take his revenge by raiding Méry's house one evening, with the help of Armando.  Having finally tracked down his enemy, Yann gets into a fierce fight with him, just as the police show up.  In the confusion, Armando is killed and Yann is arrested, but the outcome is to the latter's advantage.  When he is released from prison a short time later, Yann will find someone patiently waiting for him - Méry...