The Wild Party

The first thing I had to wonder, just prior to watching "The Wild Party" was whether or not it was based on the novelette I'd ripped through, just a month or so ago: The Wild Party by Joseph Mancuso March--originally published in 1928. Discovering that this was a very different story was my only disappointment.

It often seems that no small number of people, out there, don't want to give the early days of Hollywood the credit it so richly deserves. And that's sad; as sad as, say, the somewhat dark story behind "It" Girl, Clara Bow--whose mother considered slitting the girl's throat when Clara declared her she wanted to be an actress.

(Fortunately that didn't happen. If it had, film fans of today might not have an inkling of a clue that, even way back then--in the days that would become infamously known as "The Great Depression"--girls just wanted to have fun.)

Clara Bow plays her role of mischievous college girl, Stella Ames, to-the-hilt. And a young, debonaire Frederic March as straight-laced college professor Gilmore is her perfect counterpart.

The way the two begin seeing eye-to-eye may be said to be expected, but not totally predictable--because the antics of Stella Ames and her sorority sisters provide just the right element of subplot. If there was any one flaw in this gem, it was that the sound quality was often so scratchy, I was unsure, now and again, what one actor or another had said.

Still, this in no way detracts from the film's overall quality. (One must taken into account, after all, that 1929 was the infancy of the "talkie" era). Come to think of it, I can

only imagine what a "wild party" '29 must've been for many Hollywood executives and stars alike--the huge stock market crash aside!

Actress Clara Bow, so confident and frolicking in her silent films, looked upon talkies with trepidation. With no stage experience, Bow relied on her visual spunkiness to mesmerize the public. The Brooklyn born and raised actress felt her accent and a slight stammer had the potential of slamming her film career shut when she was placed before a recording device. One of Hollywood's top female silent movie stars faced an uncertain future when she appeared in a Paramount Pictures' early talkie, April 1929 "The Wild Party."

Dorothy Arzner was given the director's assignment to handle the skittish Bow. After her successful directorial debut in March 1927's 'Women of Fashion,' Arzner directed three more silents before Paramount offered her the "The Wild Party." When Bow heard herself on playback after she was given a brief screen test talking into a microphone, the actress said, "How can I be in pictures with a voice like that?" Assured she was fine, Bow was handed an 100-page script she had to memorize within two weeks before filming. On the set, the opening days were difficult for her. Today's viewers can readily witness her lack of confidence and uneasiness in the new medium. She immediately hated talkies. "They're stiff and limiting," Bow remarked. "You lose a lot of your cuteness, because there's no chance for action, and action is the most important thing to me."

She found herself on the sound stage more conscious about where the microphone was than delivering her lines. Arzner came up with the idea of suspending the microphone on the end of a fishing rod (one of many reports crediting a number of people, including Lionel Barrymore, of innovating the first boom mic) and having it follow her. The results were better, but the actress occasionally looked up to spot the mic. "We had quite a time in the beginning," Arzner remembered, "because to be aware of the pantomime which she was accustomed to, then have words to remember, was very difficult for her."

Playing opposite Bow was actor Frederic March, in only his second credited feature film. A banker turned actor, he first appeared on the Broadway stage, then turned to Hollywood in the late 1920s. In the film, he's a professor at an all-women's college who falls for Bow, even though her behavior is opposite of his. She's equally attracted to him, but several adventures occur placing roadblocks in their relationship. March ended up as one of cinema's most respected actors, nominated by the Academy five times for Best Actor, earning two wins.

Paramount premiered "The Wild Party" with a special public appearance by Bow at the 4,200 seat Brooklyn Paramount Theatre. Ever a comic, she said in a short speech before the movie played, speaking in her heavy New York City accent, "I hope youse all prouda me." Variety didn't see anything particularly wrong with her voice, stating "it was good enough to survive the transition to sound." But another critic lambasted her, describing her voice possessing a "harsh tonal quality that is not very easy on sensitive eardrums." Her talking debut, however, was a financial success as the public continued to envelop her engaging personality.

I'm going to have to disagree with the person who said you should watch it without the sound. You can tell its a early talkie and that all of the actresses are trying very hard to make the transition. Clara Bow was a sensational actress but she had a very hard time with sound. Its a cute film if you don't over analyze it too much. And its fun to hear what Clara sounded like. You can kind of hear her Brooklyn accent if you listen really hard. It is cheesy but its 1929! You weren't allowed to do anything in 1929! Clara is great and its unfortunate that she retired by the time she was 27. The Wild Party is about girls who don't take college seriously until Clara, who's kinda like the queen bee, meets Frederic March, who is her professor. Its fun to see what life may have been like in the early years of sound. Clara was so talented and beautiful.

Paramount's first all-talking picture is nothing like you'd expect it to be. It's nothing like its title suggests either. If you've watched BABYLON, with Margot Robbie you might be expecting to see a badly acted, technically inept disaster but this actually a pretty decent movie. This massive hit of 1929 is still a hell of a lot better than a lot of films made one or two years afterwards!

The studio picked their biggest star, Clara Bow to draw in the crowds but this isn't just Miss Bow frolicking around in her underwear - well there is some of that but I was amazed to discover that this was a mature, thoughtful and thoroughly entertaining picture. Made by Hollywood's premiere (ok, only) female director, it's also got a strong feminist undercurrent which is absolutely not something you'd expect in 1929! The famous scene when Clara and her friends nearly get raped "because" they were dressed provocatively in a lot of films from the thirties (not just the thirties) would have been a misogynistic morality tale: "well look at them, they were asking for it." was the pervading attitude back then. Drunk middle-aged men groping girls was often depicted as being perfectly acceptable behaviour but in Miss Arzner's refreshingly progressive picture it's not, definitely not seen as acceptable.

Her direction is innovative and dynamic: it's as removed from being static and stage-bound as you can possibly imagine, it's even got a score (which wasn't normal until years later). The acting is still a little theatrical but as the film progresses, you can really see them, especially Clara Bow figuring out how to come across more naturally.

You watch some really old films simply out of interest, like museum curios. Some people might just want to see what Clara Bow was like (watch the superb CALL HER SAVAGE if you do...or better still, an Alice White film - the real 'it girl' of the twenties!) but this is so much more than something to tick off your list. You can watch this as a real piece of genuine entertainment. It's not quite one of those few classics of 1929 but it's still one of the best. It gives you a lovely sense of the age with an intelligent, enjoyable and surprisingly thought provoking script.

Wild party girl Clara Bow (as Stella Ames) has plenty of fun at the "Winston" college for young women. Parties and roadhouse jaunts are the college girls' preoccupation. On the train trip to "Winston", Ms. Bow recalls accidentally climbing into bed with fellow traveler Fredric March (as James "Gil" Gilmore). As it turns out, Mr. March is the school's new Professor of Anthropology. Bow and her housemates see the good-looking teacher arrive, and immediately become interested in anthropological matters. Eventually, Bow and March fall into each other's arms, which threatens their student and teacher status at the college.

Bow's first "talkie" was not unsuccessful, although it is sometimes recalled as a failure. Perhaps, detractors are recalling Bow's subsequent talking features. Strangely, she became more unnatural, hesitant, and uneven in later films. Possibly, she was rattled by negative reviews. However, by 1931, Bow's performances became more assured. By then, unfortunately, it was too late for the huge audiences attending "The Wild Party" to appreciate her efforts.

"The Wild Party" is a more than respectable talking film debut; while undeniably silly, it was a fun "college youth" film. Bow wasn't going to be young forever, obviously; but, she could still carry out the college hi-jinks. March and the supporting cast perform well. And, Paramount assigned a woman, Dorothy Arzner, to direct the film.

Watch for one notably silent word "mouthed" the film. When Bow and the women are in the back seat of the car, they see March walking in the street, and Bow exclaims, "----!"

****** The Wild Party (4/6/29) Dorothy Arzner ~ Clara Bow, Fredric March, Joyce Compton