As the late Luciano Pavarotti could've told you, "opera singer" doesn’t exactly provide a solid path to success in Hollywood. However, Mario Lanza made the leap pretty well and he scored his first cinematic lead via 1949's That Midnight Kiss.

After five years of vocal training in Europe, soprano Prudence Budell (Kathryn Grayson) returns to her native Philadelphia. Thanks to connections - and money - supplied by her wealthy grandmother Abigail Trent Budell (Ethel Barrymore), Prudence gets the chance to headline a production.

Prudence rejects famous tenor Guido Russino Betelli (Thomas Gomez) as her co-star because she finds him too unattractive to present a realistic love interest and she finds an unlikely replacement: handsome truck driver Johnny Donetti (Lanza). Will romantic sparks fly off stage as well?

What do you think? It doesn't act as a spoiler to confirm the plot point that Prudence and Johnny will fall for each other.

Bigger questions emerge, such as could Lanza act? And does this mix of romance, drama and music maintain appeal to audiences more than 75 years after its debut?

In terms of Question One, I would reply: yes, pretty much. While he doesn’t show great dramatic chops, Lanza presents a friendly and charismatic persona and that helps carry the day.

Granted, Kiss doesn’t ask much of Lanza, but he nonetheless handles the demands well. He manages to create a likable and charming lead who seems at home onscreen.

In terms of Question Two, I would reply: sort of. Like many musicals of the era, it grinds to a halt for songs, and that makes the movie drag at times.

I think more modern audiences expect musicals in which the tunes exist to advance the plot in some way. However, Kiss and plenty of others from this period present performances as entities unto themselves, and these feel awkward to me.

Still, these choices don’t doom Kiss, though they don’t help. The basic story seems fairly predictable but acceptable.

A movie like this focuses on budding romance and finds various ways to complicate matters. As usual, these feel contrived.

Still, that’s par for the course in a flick like this. Lanza and Grayson create a decent couple and both become charming enough to keep us occupied.

A good supporting cast helps. With pros like Barrymore, Marjorie Reynolds and Keenan Wynn in tow, Kiss bolsters its appeal.

Again: sort of. Nothing about Kiss manages to stand out as creative or memorable, but it becomes genial enough to keep us moderately engaged for 98 minutes.

That Midnight Kiss appears in an aspect ratio of 1.37:1 on this Blu-ray Disc. Warner Archive rarely drops the ball so don’t expect them to botch this release.

Sharpness consistently appeared positive. Only a few slightly soft shots materialized, so the majority of the movie demonstrated good clarity.

I noticed no issues with jagged edges or shimmering, and edge haloes remained absent. No issues with print flaws occurred either.

Colors felt strong. We got a nice mix of blues, reds, greens and other tones that looked lush and vivid in fine Technicolor fashion.

Blacks seemed deep and dense without too much heaviness. Shadow detail worked similarly well, as dimly-lit shots were appropriately clear and thick. I found little about which to complain here and thought the Blu-ray brought the movie to life in a positive manner.

I thought the DTS-HD MA monaural audio of Kiss felt perfectly adequate for its age. It didn’t exceed expectations for a mix of its era, but the audio was more than acceptable.

Speech wasn’t exactly natural, but they seemed distinctive and without problems. I noticed a bit of edginess at times but nothing substantial.

Effects showed only a little distortion and displayed acceptable definition. Music occasionally became a little shrill but remained pretty lively given its age, as the score and songs sounded reasonably bright and concise.

No background noise was noticeable. All together, I found the soundtrack aged pretty well.

A few extras flesh out the disc, and we get a Deleted Musical Outtake called “One Love of Mine” (2:40). It shows Prudence and Johnny as they rehearse and it seems like an appropriate omission from the final film.

In addition to the film’s trailer, we find two MGM cartoons from 1949. The disc features Señor Droopy (8:22) and Heavenly Puss (7:51).

With the former, matador Droopy battles a competitor as they attempt to woo actor Lina Romay. It seems creepy that two anthropomorphic animals plan to romance a human, but the short still musters some cleverness.

A Tom and Jerry affair, Puss shows Tom’s apparent death and attempts to enter heaven. This offers a twist on the usual cat vs. mouse antics and works pretty well.

As a light piece of romance, music and comedy, That Midnight Kiss proves entirely serviceable. Though Mario Lanza’s debut as a lead actor fares surprisingly well, the movie itself seems likable but unmemorable. The Blu-ray brings very good picture and decent audio along with minor supplements. This turns into a watchable musical but not exactly a classic.