The Perils of Pauline (1947)

Paramount, 1947
Starring Betty Hutton, John Lund, Constance Collier, and Billy DeWolfe
Directed by George Marshall
Music and Lyrics by Frank Loesser

Our second Women's History biography takes us further back into the annals of film. Serials, those blood-and-thunder action stories told in 15 to 20 minute bites that kept audiences coming back for more, were popular from the 1910's through the 50's, but hit their peak just before and during World War I. Pearl White was known as the Queen of the Serials. She starred in what's probably the most famous of them, The Perils of Pauline, and would continue to astonish audiences with her amazing stunts through the early 20's. How well does this movie from a quarter of a century later tell the story of Pearl and the hectic world of early silent films? Let's head to a sweatshop in a Midwestern town and find out...

The Story: Pearl White (Hutton) would do anything to become a major dramatic actress. She delivers a costume to grand dame actress Julia Gibbs (Collier) so she can watch her work. She eventually joins the troupe and falls for Mike (Lund), it's director and lead actor. Pearl tries, but can't reign in her natural expressiveness. Mike finally bawls her out after she's too cold to speak her lines in a south seas melodrama. She tells him off and walks out, followed by Gibbs.

Gibbs lands her an audition with her agents, but there's no work. They suggest Julia get a part in the movies...which turns out to be a role that requires her to be pelted with pies. Furious, Pearl jumps on the pie-throwers, shoving aside several movie sets and even a lion in her fury. The director George "Mac" McGuire (William Demerest) is so impressed, he puts her into a serial. That serial is The Perils of Pauline, one of the biggest hits of 1914. One serial leads to another, and soon, Pearl is one of the most popular stars in Hollywood.

Mike, meanwhile, can't find work in the legitimate theater and ends up barking at a carnival. His old friend Timmy (DeWolfe) tells him there's work for him in the movies. Pearl offers him a job, to his horror. He finally takes it for the money, but can't figure out that movies and theater are two different mediums, and silent movies require the kind of grand gestures he once told Pearl to avoid. He asks Pearl to marry him while doing a stunt in a hot-air balloon that gets away, but calls it off when the press emphasizes Pearl and not him. He joins World War I; she makes war serials. Serials go out of fashion after the war, so she goes to Paris for a nightclub show. It's a hit, but she damages her back in an accident. She won't be able to do the kind of stunts she's known for...but Mike's still there for her...

The Song and Dance: Hutton's the last person I'd associate with a big budget semi-musical about a silent movie queen, but she's having a great time whenever Pearl's called on to goof off onstage or show her athletic prowess. Paramount added even more authenticity by giving several silent stars cameos, including William Farnum as a western hero in the set Pearl storms through and comedians Chester Conklin, James Finlayson, and Hank Mann as the chefs who toss the pies at Julia. Speaking of Julia, Collier is also quite good as the aging actress who encourages Pearl's career.

Favorite Number: We start off seeing what Hutton can really do as Pearl sings about how she loves "My Sewing Machine" and hates the nasty boss who keeps her chained to a dead-end job. "I Wish I Didn't Love You So," the ballad Pearl sings for her audition, was nominated for an Oscar. The big one here is "Papa, Don't Preach To Me," the huge glamorous pink and blue chorus routine at the Casino de Paris. It's a lot more boisterous than usual for a big chorus number, with Hutton belting to the skies and dancing with abandon.

Trivia: Pearl White actually started acting at the age of 6. By 13, she rode horses in a circus. She did take jobs like one at the sweatshop to support her family, but ultimately ended up joining many different theater companies before settling in Hollywood and becoming a star. She did hurt her back, which pained her for the rest of her life, but the accident occurred on the set of Perils of Pauline. After serials fell out of favor in the early 20's, she moved to Paris, did start a nightclub act, and never came back to the US. She had short-lived marriages to two actors, neither of whom were named Mike Farrington.

"Poor Pauline" is a genuine hit song about White at the height of her fame in 1914.

What I Don't Like: Pearl's real story is far more interesting than the tripe they have here. When they focus on Hutton's clowning, telling people off, and the actual business of making serials and plays, the movie's not bad. Once again, the romantic melodrama, other than the genuinely funny and original sequence in the hot air balloon, really drags things down. Lund's too dull to suggest a driven actor and has no chemistry with Hutton.

I wish this was more of a flat-out musical...or even better, a musical version of the actual Perils of Pauline. The songs aren't bad. It would be nice if there were more of them, and sung by other people besides Hutton and the offscreen male chorus who perform "Poor Pauline" as she rises to fame.

The Big Finale: If you love Hutton or silent comedy, this is worth rescuing from the train tracks at least once.

Home Media: As a public domain film, it's easily found on DVD and online. Streaming service Tubi currently has it for free.

DVD
Tubi