Faint Heart (1929)

Director:

Murray Roth

Writers:

Fred Allen (story)
Edmund Joseph (story)

Release Date:

December 1929 (USA)

Genre:

Short | Comedy

Cast

  (Credited cast)

Bert Lahr
Bobbe Arnst
Harry Shannon
Malcolm Duncan

Also Known As:

Bert Lahr in Faint Heart (USA) (copyright title)

Runtime:

20 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Vitaphone

Filming Locations:

Astoria Studios, Astoria, Queens, New York City, New York, USA

Company:

Vitaphone Corporation, The

Trivia:

Bert Lahr's film debut.

A Talent Too Big for the Movies

Bert Lahr, alas, never made the transition from the stage to the screen. Oh, he's wonderful in a couple of movies; as the cowardly lion in THE WIZARD OF OZ he's great, and as the burlesque comic, in THE NIGHT THEY RAIDED MINSKY'S he was amazing. But, alas, his performances were too broad and mannered for any sort of regular employment in the movies, so back he went to the stage, where his mugging fit the proscenium arch.

Nonetheless, it is good to see his Cop Act: written by Fred Allen -- yes, THAT Fred Allen -- and adapted for the screen, we can see Bert Lahr, with his huge grimace and big movements and that fey, cowardly personality, too big for reality, just the right size for a live audience and for the fantasy of THE WIZARD OF OZ. I enjoyed it, even though it doesn't work as film.... but I'll take Bert Lahr on any terms I can get.