Car of Dreams

Produced by the highly acclaimed Michael Balcon, the story revolves around Robert, the son of the owner of a musical instrument factory. He is in love with Vera, one of the factory workers, who is unaware of his position. So when she jokes one day that she would love a Rolls-Royce, Robert makes sure that she gets one. Then he decides to raise her salary out of all proportion to hint at who he is...

This has a certain charming serendipity to it - and coupled with some quite witty banter and a few decent numbers, is quite a pleasant little romantic comedy. When John Mills ("Robert") espies the young "Vera" (Grete Mosheim) looking into a car dealership imagining what it would be like to own a Rolls-Royce, he takes a bit of shine to her and (as his father owns the factory) contrives to have her win a mystery competition with the car as the prize! The couple begin to date and he to help her at work - much to the chagrin of her colleagues who (unlike her) know the true identity of her new benefactor. The leads to the inevitable jumping to some pretty erroneous - well, premature at any rate - conclusions. John Mills manages to hold a tune ok as their romance begins to blossom, Mosheim has a naive innocence that is pleasingly engaging and there's also a fun contribution from Robertson Hare, too. It features some lovely cars and costumes and a script that occasionally raises a smile. The production is basic, but efficient, and it passes 70 minutes easily enough.