- Published on
Tedious and forgettable.
Screenland (March 1930)
Date of Release: Dec 21, 1929
Studio: Paramount
Director: A. Edward Sutherland
Screenplay: Florence Ryerson, John V.A. Weaver
Music: Dimitri Tiomkin, Mack Gordon, Max Rich, Leo Robin, Richard A. Whiting
Leading Actors: William Powell (Robert Courtland), Fay Wray (Lora Nixon), Helen Kane (Dot Nixon), Richard "Skeets" Gallagher (Dash Nixon), Phillips Holmes (Donald Ogden), Adrienne Dore (Kay Wilcox), Eugene Pallette (Joe Clark)
Studio: Paramount
Director: A. Edward Sutherland
Screenplay: Florence Ryerson, John V.A. Weaver
Music: Dimitri Tiomkin, Mack Gordon, Max Rich, Leo Robin, Richard A. Whiting
Leading Actors: William Powell (Robert Courtland), Fay Wray (Lora Nixon), Helen Kane (Dot Nixon), Richard "Skeets" Gallagher (Dash Nixon), Phillips Holmes (Donald Ogden), Adrienne Dore (Kay Wilcox), Eugene Pallette (Joe Clark)
Before we were married, I had my head in my clouds. Now my feet are firmly on the ground the ground. I’ve got pointed heels.”
So says Lora Nixon (Fay Wray), a mediocre actress who must stay in work whilst her musician husband Donald Ogden (Philips Holmes) struggles to write his next masterpiece. The couple’s marriage has been tested by the rich producer Robert Courtland (William Powell) who is in love with Lora and wants her for himself. The drama is off-set by the comedic Dot and Dash (Helen Kane and Richard “Skeets” Gallagher”), Lora’s sister and brother-in-law. Of course, all ends happily.
Lora is sweet and demure, but very capable in the kitchen. Donald is a passionate musician and ultimately dumb. Dot boop-boop-i-doops through her songs, and Dash wise-cracks through everything.
With its unlikeable characters, banal plot, and lackluster score, Pointed Heels is tedious and forgettable.
The one glimmer of redemption is in the wonderful backstage shots. A variety of unusual angles and dynamic composition help to create the excitement of the backstage world before, and during, a show.
Lora is sweet and demure, but very capable in the kitchen. Donald is a passionate musician and ultimately dumb. Dot boop-boop-i-doops through her songs, and Dash wise-cracks through everything.
With its unlikeable characters, banal plot, and lackluster score, Pointed Heels is tedious and forgettable.
The one glimmer of redemption is in the wonderful backstage shots. A variety of unusual angles and dynamic composition help to create the excitement of the backstage world before, and during, a show.
A tantalizing shot of a program announcing the “Versailles Ballet” performed by the Albertina Rasch Ballet gives us hope for a spectacular dance sequence. The Technicolor ballet was described by Photoplay as “swell,” and by The Film Daily as “an especially fast ballet number.” The Technicolor footage was only recently restored, and not included in the DVD copy I viewed.
Pointed Heels was Paramount’s first Technicolor film. Production had commenced in August 1929, and the film was released in December.
Pointed Heels was Paramount’s first Technicolor film. Production had commenced in August 1929, and the film was released in December.
Motion Picture News (Feb 1, 1930)
At the Paramount Theatre in Atlanta, Georgia, the film was used to help promote the theatre’s ninth birthday. As reported in Motion Picture News (Jan 18, 1930) women were employed to hang cut-out letters outside the theatre, purposefully misspelling words to great effect. Meanwhile in Kentucky, promotions included a giant glittering red shoe on the marquis and elaborate storefront display.
Popular actor Helen Kane, famous for being (the possible) inspiration for the cartoon character Betty Boop, was featured heavily in advertisements for the film.
Music from the film, penned by Paramount’s prolific music department and generally well-received by the critics, was aired on radio on the Publix-Paramount Hour.
Historian Richard Barrios describes Pointed Heels as “Paramount’s disappointing holiday attraction for 1929,” however the film played to sold-out houses around the country, even breaking attendance records. According to The Film Daily, the picture bought in $94,000 in Brooklyn - where the previous record had been $89,000.
Overall the critics lamented the weak script but found Pointed Heels enjoyable. Several reviewers praised the film’s freshness and unique charm. As film blogger Nora Fiore (The Nitrate Diva) note, for audiences in late 1929, the film was a welcome break from the “shock of the Great Depression.”
Pointed Heels was based on a short story by Charles William Brackett, who went on to become one of Hollywood’s most prolific screenwriters. In an infamous partnership with Billy Wilder, Brackett co-wrote Ninotchka (1939), The Lost Weekend (1945), A Foreign Affair (1948), and Sunset Boulevard (1950). As a producer, Brackett worked on Titantic (1953), The King and I (1956), and State Fair (1962).
The screenplay was written by Florence Ryerson, a prolific writer who worked in Hollywood for almost forty years. In addition to penning novels and several Broadway plays, Ryerson wrote or contributed to over 40 screenplays including Everybody Sing (1938) and, most famously, The Wizard of Oz (1939). A collection of Ryerson’s papers is held at the New York Public Library.
Director Edward Sutherland received good reviews, as did Fay Wray, Skeets Gallagher and Helen Kane. Born into a theatrical family, Edward Sutherland started out as an actor in silent comedies before becoming a director. His directing credits include Close Harmony (1929), The Dance of Life (1929), Paramount on Parade (1930), Poppy (1936), The Boys from Syracuse (1940), Dixie (1943) and Abie’s Irish Rose (1946).
Fay Wray was referred to as a young Gloria Swanson. Despite appearing in over 100 films in a career spanning some sixty years, Canadian-born Wray is best remembered for her appearance as Ann Darrow in the 1933 classic King Kong.
Richard "Skeets" Gallagher started out in vaudeville and performed several times on Broadway. After being signed to Paramount, Gallagher appeared in over 60 films in a career spanning nearly four decades.
Pointed Heels is mercifully only an hour long. Perhaps the Technicolor ballet will make for interesting viewing, but you’ll be dragging your heels to get to the end.
Popular actor Helen Kane, famous for being (the possible) inspiration for the cartoon character Betty Boop, was featured heavily in advertisements for the film.
Music from the film, penned by Paramount’s prolific music department and generally well-received by the critics, was aired on radio on the Publix-Paramount Hour.
Historian Richard Barrios describes Pointed Heels as “Paramount’s disappointing holiday attraction for 1929,” however the film played to sold-out houses around the country, even breaking attendance records. According to The Film Daily, the picture bought in $94,000 in Brooklyn - where the previous record had been $89,000.
Overall the critics lamented the weak script but found Pointed Heels enjoyable. Several reviewers praised the film’s freshness and unique charm. As film blogger Nora Fiore (The Nitrate Diva) note, for audiences in late 1929, the film was a welcome break from the “shock of the Great Depression.”
Pointed Heels was based on a short story by Charles William Brackett, who went on to become one of Hollywood’s most prolific screenwriters. In an infamous partnership with Billy Wilder, Brackett co-wrote Ninotchka (1939), The Lost Weekend (1945), A Foreign Affair (1948), and Sunset Boulevard (1950). As a producer, Brackett worked on Titantic (1953), The King and I (1956), and State Fair (1962).
The screenplay was written by Florence Ryerson, a prolific writer who worked in Hollywood for almost forty years. In addition to penning novels and several Broadway plays, Ryerson wrote or contributed to over 40 screenplays including Everybody Sing (1938) and, most famously, The Wizard of Oz (1939). A collection of Ryerson’s papers is held at the New York Public Library.
Director Edward Sutherland received good reviews, as did Fay Wray, Skeets Gallagher and Helen Kane. Born into a theatrical family, Edward Sutherland started out as an actor in silent comedies before becoming a director. His directing credits include Close Harmony (1929), The Dance of Life (1929), Paramount on Parade (1930), Poppy (1936), The Boys from Syracuse (1940), Dixie (1943) and Abie’s Irish Rose (1946).
Fay Wray was referred to as a young Gloria Swanson. Despite appearing in over 100 films in a career spanning some sixty years, Canadian-born Wray is best remembered for her appearance as Ann Darrow in the 1933 classic King Kong.
Richard "Skeets" Gallagher started out in vaudeville and performed several times on Broadway. After being signed to Paramount, Gallagher appeared in over 60 films in a career spanning nearly four decades.
Pointed Heels is mercifully only an hour long. Perhaps the Technicolor ballet will make for interesting viewing, but you’ll be dragging your heels to get to the end.
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