Comments on: Herbert Ross' "Pennies From Heaven"

Herbert Ross' "Pennies From Heaven"

Trurl — Wed, 07 Mar 2012 18:42:52 -0800

Pennies from Heaven is the most emotional movie musical I've ever seen. It's a stylized mythology* of the Depression which uses the popular songs of the period as expressions of people's deepest longings - for sex, for romance, for money, for a high good time...there was never a second when I wasn't fascinated* by what was happening on the screen. - Pauline Kael (* SPOILERS)

By: ovvl

ovvl — Wed, 07 Mar 2012 19:02:51 -0800

The film was based on a 1978 BBC television drama.

By: wheelieman

wheelieman — Wed, 07 Mar 2012 19:09:08 -0800

I got a promotional record they put out for this movie in my collection, its actually quite cool with clips of Steve Martins other works as well.

By: KingEdRa

KingEdRa — Wed, 07 Mar 2012 19:09:47 -0800

God, how I love this movie. The second link in the post really nails it when describing the movie as a horror film.

By: QuakerMel

QuakerMel — Wed, 07 Mar 2012 19:14:10 -0800

I haven't seen Pennies from Heaven, but its director, Dennis Potter, wrote and directed what I think is the finest bit of television I've ever seen: The Singing Detective.

By: QuakerMel

QuakerMel — Wed, 07 Mar 2012 19:17:38 -0800

oops. I see now that the Pennies from Heaven with Steve Martin isn't the Dennis Potter version.

By: George_Spiggott

George_Spiggott — Wed, 07 Mar 2012 19:18:37 -0800

I'm postponing watching the original series with Bob Hoskins until I have time to do it justice. I'm postponing watching the Steve Martin Hollywood remake until sometime after that, or never, which ever comes first. Or second. I like Steve Martin as a person and a comedic innovator, but find his films more than a bit thin; based on that and everything heard and read, I'd rather come to the material firsthand than second.

By: hot soup girl

hot soup girl — Wed, 07 Mar 2012 19:32:48 -0800

> the finest bit of television I've ever seen: The Singing Detective Seconded. Anyone who hasn't seen The Singing Detective (the original miniseries—schew the US film remake!) must do so immediately. I saw it first run in my early teens and some of its scenes and characters (and songs!) are forever etched into my brain. Michael Gambon has never been better.

By: waxbanks

waxbanks — Wed, 07 Mar 2012 19:38:21 -0800

Thirded. The Singing Detective might be the best TV drama ever made. Might be. (I go back and forth with Deadwood, myself.) But there's no question in my mind that Michael Gambon's lead performance is the best acting I've ever seen on a screen. Watching him play Marlowe, I feel humble and grateful: it's so human, so complex and vulnerable and pitiless, so clever, and -- bonus -- so unbelievably fucking rangy and technically impressive, that it almost distracts from how good everything else about the series is. I checked Pennies (the miniseries) out from the library a while back but couldn't find time to watch it -- fatherhood and all. This post has reminded me I need to rectify that mistake. Thanks! (p.s. Anyone seen Blackeyes, Karaoke, or Cold Lazarus? Should I?)

By: cmoj

cmoj — Wed, 07 Mar 2012 19:47:13 -0800

I have two things to say about this being the best movie ever. #1: Christopher Walken striptease. #2: I will forever ache for Bernadette Peters. :'(

By: CheeseDigestsAll

CheeseDigestsAll — Wed, 07 Mar 2012 19:51:52 -0800

Fourthed. I've seen Karaoke and Cold Lazarus. They played on KQED around the time that Potter died. They're interesting, but they don't have the psychological depth and emotional nuance of The Singing Detective. Potter's version of Pennies is good, but it's still a warm up for Detective.

By: mochapickle

mochapickle — Wed, 07 Mar 2012 20:01:40 -0800

Amazing. I must have seen this when I was 8 or 9 but for twenty-mumble years I've assumed I dreamed the whole thing. My soft spot for Bernadette Peters gets softer every year.

By: ph00dz

ph00dz — Wed, 07 Mar 2012 20:22:55 -0800

Gawd.... I had to watch that movie a bunch of times for a postmodernism class. I have to totally disagree -- I think that movie is terrible.

By: munchingzombie

munchingzombie — Wed, 07 Mar 2012 20:30:34 -0800

So glad this is not about Showgirls 2: Pennies from Heaven

By: dotgirl

dotgirl — Wed, 07 Mar 2012 20:54:53 -0800

I spent my childhood wanting to be Bernadette Peters, and this movie was a large reason why. (Note - I am still not Bernadette Peters, at least not according to her latest restraining order.)

By: mattoxic

mattoxic — Wed, 07 Mar 2012 21:26:54 -0800

George_Spiggott I like Steve Martin in pennies from heaven. He brings some innocent sappiness to the role. I also liked Steve Martin as Dr. Hfuhruhurr too. But that's a different movie

By: emmet

emmet — Wed, 07 Mar 2012 21:34:03 -0800

Fifth! And thanks for the reminder, time to watch it again. Yummy. What was it? "I used to live for the good will of honorable men and the love of good women. Now I live for the next cigarette." Something like that. So much that was memorable there, on so many levels. Sublime.

By: KokuRyu

KokuRyu — Wed, 07 Mar 2012 21:34:18 -0800

The Singing Detective might be the best TV drama ever made. GBH, starring Michael Palin, runs a close second.

By: Curious Artificer

Curious Artificer — Wed, 07 Mar 2012 21:38:47 -0800

I know I saw the movie when it came out, but I really don't remember anything about it other than my disappointment at the time that it wasn't "The Jerk Part 2". I'll have to watch it all again.

By: PeterMcDermott

PeterMcDermott — Wed, 07 Mar 2012 23:20:35 -0800

Anyone seen Blackeyes, Karaoke, or Cold Lazarus? Should I? Better off looking for all Potter's pre-Singing Detective work IMO. Blue Remembered Hills, Blade on the Feather and Cream in my Coffee are all far more successful works than Blackeyes. Cold Lazarus etc.. GBH, starring Michael Palin, runs a close second. Yeah, everything by Alan Bleasdale is worth checking out.

By: Wolof

Wolof — Wed, 07 Mar 2012 23:41:25 -0800

The advice of McDermott, P., is correct. Blackeyes is a huge embarrassment, Cold Lazarus is bearable. The Singing Detective is peak Potter. Don't miss it. Second place is Pennies from Heaven. If you've only seen the Hollywood version of this last, do yourself a favour.

By: MCMikeNamara

MCMikeNamara — Thu, 08 Mar 2012 00:25:24 -0800

I'm not going to say introducing me to something mentioned in this thread is THE reason I fell in love with the dude who shares my bed. But just because he already knows it's on the short list as A reason.

By: fairmettle

fairmettle — Thu, 08 Mar 2012 03:45:51 -0800

I'm postponing watching the Steve Martin Hollywood remake until sometime after that, or never, which ever comes first. My sincerest condolences. :(

By: kyrademon

kyrademon — Thu, 08 Mar 2012 04:07:10 -0800

I have to admit I've never understood the love for this movie. It's boring, and there are a lot of extremely bad acting and directing choices. On the other hand, I never understood the, "A serious movie starring an actor I consider a comedian? MY BRAIN EXPLODE!" reaction either.

By: kinnakeet

kinnakeet — Thu, 08 Mar 2012 06:00:03 -0800

I really enjoyed this film, got the soundtrack (always was a fan of depression-era popular music) and recommended both to others, and was always taken aback by the bad reviews. It underscored in a shockingly vivid way the contrast between the ultra-cheerful "keep looking up" tunes and the bleak, harsh world of the 30s. Great use of lip-dubbing (something pretty new at that time), and a wonderful cast. And that Chris Walken number is still one of my all-time favorite pieces of film ever. Thanks for posting.

By: hippybear

hippybear — Thu, 08 Mar 2012 08:45:54 -0800

I spent my childhood wanting to be Bernadette Peters, and this movie was a large reason why. (Note - I am still not Bernadette Peters, at least not according to her latest restraining order.) posted by dotgirl Suddenly your screenname makes a whole lot of sense to me. [scroll down to first color photo of Peters and read caption, for the uninitiated]

By: ovvl

ovvl — Thu, 08 Mar 2012 16:53:15 -0800

I'm postponing watching the Steve Martin Hollywood remake until sometime after that, or never, which ever comes first. Or second... Please don't do that. The Hollywood version is an excellent interpretation of Dennis Potter's miniseries, just in a different format. Herbert Ross was an inspired director, and Chris Walken's and Steve Martin's dancing talents are really quite stunning.

By: ovvl

ovvl — Thu, 08 Mar 2012 17:04:17 -0800

'The Singing Detective' was Dennis Potter's masterpiece. While not quite as fantastic, 'Lipstick on Your Collar' is mostly about "a small group of foreign affairs analysts who find their quiet existence disrupted by the Suez Crisis"... (and some other stuff).