ah, Humoresque...
"Lousy" maybe wasn't the mot just, but the film does frustrate me so MUCH (as does EVERYTHING that the screenwriter Clifford Odets EVER had a hand in.) He was the most heavyhanded screenwriter of the classic era. No one in Humoresque sounds genuine, it's all one, two, repartee; (or in the case of Oscar Levant, set-up, and: schtick!) It's also a shameless retread of plot elements from Golden Boy and I effin hate Golden Boy.
Humoresque is a gorgeous film and a well-directed film. Crawford looks amazing and- again- it really is her best performance. The suicide scene is