Week-End at the Waldorf (1945)

Overview
"Week-End at the Waldorf" is an American comedy-drama film by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer released in 1945. Directed by Robert Z. Leonard, it stars a wide variety of Hollywood's finest, consisting of Ginger Rogers, Lana Turner, Walter Pidgeon, and Van Johnson. The luxurious production, among the top box-office hits of the year, recounts the adjoining storylines of different guests remaining at New York's famous Waldorf-Astoria hotel over a weekend.

Setting and Main Characters
Set in the glamorous Waldorf-Astoria hotel, the film links five distinct narratives, focusing on 4 central characters - war correspondent Chip Collyer (Walter Pidgeon), hotel secretary Martin X. Edley (Edward Arnold), well-known starlet Irene Malvern (Ginger Rogers), and stenographer Bunny Smith (Lana Turner). The grandeur hotel offers a fittingly extravagant platform for their interconnected stories to unfold, with styles not just of comedy and love, but also deceit, ambition, and discoveries.

Plot Summary
The plot of "Week-End at the Waldorf" oscillates in between the personal and professional struggles of the book's primary characters. Chip Collyer, just recently returned from covering the World War, ends up being embroiled in a romance with Irene Malvern, a well-known starlet who is covertly lonesome but maintains a cool façade.

Stenographer Bunny Smith aims to marry a rich male to better her circumstance, uninformed that her love interest, Bob, is the anonymous child of the rich hotel secretary, Martin X. Edley, who isn't too keen on her. Concurrently, Edley reckons with his strained relationship with his estranged kid while combating an enormous company danger from a rival tycoon.

Resolution
The film concludes with numerous illuminating discoveries and resolutions. Irene Malvern discovers that Chip is simply a regular press reporter and not a millionaire she assumed previously, however that doesn't lessen her feelings for him. Bob, welcoming his true identity, effectively reconciles with his daddy, Edley, and shows his deep love for Bunny by stating that he 'd marry her no matter what his daddy thinks about it.

On the other hand, Edley browses through his expert crisis and mends his broken relationship with his child. Concurrently, an extraordinary plot twist including a wallet loaded with stolen money leads to a joint FBI intervention with a thrilling climax, wrapping the narratives neatly.

Last Thoughts
Despite the comedic undertones, "Week-End at the Waldorf" subtly highlights much deeper themes of goal, identity, and love. Its grandiose setting provides a snapshot into the glamorous post-war period, while the intertwining stories provide an entertaining and, sometimes, thought-provoking commentary on the human condition. In general, it stays a classic in the golden age of American movie theater.

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