Spotlight

Spotlight Date: 2-October-05
Spoiler Rating: Medium

Love Me or Leave Me (1955)

"Love Me or Leave Me" is based on the life of Ruth Etting, a Chicago torch singer in the 1920s whose popularity took her all the way to Hollywood. With Doris Day and James Cagney in the leads, the movie reveals Etting's beginnings as a dance hall girl and traces her long, complicated relationship with a second-tier mobster named Marty Snyder. Initially attracted only by her looks, Snyder became smitten with her determination and talent and used his power to get her gigs at prominent nightclubs. After steering her to the Ziegfeld Follies in New York, he married Etting and continued to guide her toward national fame. The union was a rocky one, however, which eventually ended in bitterness, jealousy, and attempted murder.

Sexual politics are interesting in any day and age, but "Love Me or Leave Me" is a particularly juicy example of the male-female dynamic in the early 20th century (as filtered through the 1950s). To make the setup especially fascinating, both stars do a superb job portraying people who insist on getting what they want, even if it costs themselves or others. According to the movie, Etting and Snyder's history was marked by a continuous jockeying for power. She grabbed it first by refusing to surrender to his come-ons; then he took it over by conquering her sexually; then he lost it after his social and financial status flagged and another man began competing for her favors. Neither character is a clear winner or loser, or an obvious good guy or bad guy, in the tale; in fact neither is even likable. Still, they're jointly fascinating as partners who share one thing — ambition — and resort to manipulation for whatever else they need.

Along with the personal intrigue of Etting's story, "Love Me or Leave Me" features many wonderful old standards belted out by Day at the peak of her career (distinguished by the sumptuous costumes and backdrops of the '50s musical). Even if viewers find Etting somewhat strident as a human being, they'll likely enjoy watching her talent bloom and spread from clubs to radio to the big screen. By the end, when the film tries to bring her story full circle and tie it up with a happy bow, it's clear why notoriety forms some part of her claim to fame. But it's also clear why the accomplishments of Etting (and Day) should linger at least as long as the strange relationship that brought them to the fore.

Copyright © 2005 The Jujube (M. I. Kim). All rights reserved.