The Night Is Young on AllMovie

Based on a story by Vicki Baum, the Sigmund Romberg-Oscar Hammerstein operetta The Night is Young is set in Vienna during the Franz Josef era. To cover up an affair with the married Countess Rafay (Rosalind Russell), Archduke Gustave (Ramon Novarro), the emperor's nephew, feigns a romance with ballet dancer Lisi (Evelyn Laye). By the time Gustave realizes how much he truly cares for Lisi, the stern Franz Josef (played by Henry Stephenson) admonishes the young man to honor duty over love and to enter into a pre-arranged marriage of state. After a tearful rendition of "When I Grow Too Old to Dream," Gustave and Lisi bid one another their last farewell. This relentless parade of "Student Prince" cliches is relieved somewhat by the comic expertise of supporting players Una Merkel and Charles Butterworth.