The 1935 musical film starring Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers that features “Cheek to Cheek” is Top Hat. Astaire plays American dancer Jerry Travers, whose romantic pursuit of Dale Tremont, played by Rogers, drives the comedy from London to Venice.
Directed by Mark Sandrich, Top Hat was written as a showcase for the celebrated Astaire–Rogers partnership. Irving Berlin wrote the songs, including “Cheek to Cheek,” which became one of the pair’s signature numbers. The film also features “Isn’t This a Lovely Day?” and “The Piccolino,” combining romantic misunderstandings with elaborate dance staging.
Top Hat was the first Astaire–Rogers film built around a screenplay written specifically for them. It became RKO’s most profitable film of the 1930s and earned about $3 million on its initial release. “Cheek to Cheek” is often associated with the duo generally, but the song’s famous white-feather dance sequence belongs specifically to Top Hat.