The Perils of Pauline (1947)

User Rating:

6.7/10   

Director:

George Marshall

Writers:

P.J. Wolfson (screenplay) and
Frank Butler (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

4 July 1947 (USA)

Genre:

Biography | Comedy

Plot:

Funloving Pearl White, working in a garment sweatshop, gets her big chance when she "opens" for a delayed Shakespeare play...

Plot Keywords:

Sweatshop | Show Business | Theatrical Agents | Reporter | Theatrical Troupe

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar.

Cast

Betty Hutton	...	Pearl White
John Lund	...	Michael Farrington
Billy De Wolfe	...	Mr. Timmy Timmons
William Demarest	...	George 'Mac' McGuire
Constance Collier	...	Julia Gibbs
Frank Faylen	...	Mr. Joe Gurt
William Farnum	...	Western Saloon Set Hero
Chester Conklin	...	Comic Chef
Paul Panzer	...	Drawing Room Gent
'Snub' Pollard	...	Western Saloon Set Propman (as Snub Pollard)
James Finlayson	...	Comic Chef
Creighton Hale	...	Marcelled Leading Man
Hank Mann	...	Comic Chef
Francis McDonald	...	Western Saloon Set Heavy
Bert Roach	...	Western Saloon Set Bartender

Runtime:

96 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Certification:

Australia:G | Canada:G (Ontario) | Finland:S | USA:Approved (PCA #12134) | Sweden:15 | Spain:T

Filming Locations:

Canoga Park, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Paramount Pictures

Trivia:

The balloon in the balloon sequence was shipped from Goodyear in Akron, Ohio. It was handled by Navy balloonist Lieutennant J.J. Leonard, and was equipped with an automatic camera to avoid the weight of a cameraman.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Heart & Soul: The Life and Music of Frank Loesser (2006) (TV)

Soundtrack:

Rumble, Rumble, Rumble

Any movie with Betty Hutton in it is worth watching.

Don't expect ‘The Perils of Pauline' to cast much truth on the real Pearl White. In line with similar movies of the period, it's entertainment first and truth a distant second. What you do get is the irrepressible Betty Hutton, a kind of female Mickey Rooney. You also get Billy DeWolfe and William Demarest and those three make this movie worth the price of admission. Betty may bear a resemblance to other blondes of the period but it would take a hard hearted viewer not to like her. She's that kind of girl and rarely has an actress worked so hard in a part.

There are some good scenes; the movie factory gets my vote. This has been done both before and since but rarely so effectively. Bill Demarest overacts superbly as her manager, as does Billy DeWolfe as her best pal. The weak link is John Lund. Okay, maybe he's supposed to be that way. I just didn't think he was effective. The movie falls away in the last third but despite that, it's worth viewing. Betty belts out ‘I Wish I Didn't Love Him So' but it's not a particularly memorable song from Frank Loesser.

Five years after this movie, Betty would walk out on her Paramount contract and destroy her career. Like a number of memorable actresses of the great studio period, her star burnt brightly before going out forever. If you see her name in a cast list, on a movie long-forgotten, don't miss it.