Themes: Cinderella Stories, Rags To Riches, Mistaken Identities
Main Cast: Clara Bow, Antonio Moreno, William Austin, Jacqueline Gadsden, Julia Swayne Gordon
Release Year: 1927
Country: US
Run Time: 7rl minutes
Plot
Contrary to popular belief, Clara Bow was already Paramount's biggest box-office draw when she starred in this delightful rags-to-riches comedy. But It, from the fertile mind of bizarre best-selling author Elinor Glyn, remains perhaps the quintessential Bow picture. Not that the story of a poor shopgirl falling for her rich employer was anything new (by 1927, Bow could play that role in her sleep), but It came complete with one of the best publicity campaigns in Hollywood history. Glyn herself publicly pointed to Bow as the personification of It, "that quality possessed by some which draws all others with its magnetic force." Paramount made sure that Glyn's lofty description of the word sunk in and even convinced the author to explain It in the film to leading man Antonio Moreno (who, according to Glyn, simply oozed It as well). The lightweight comedy behind all this hoopla centered on little Betty Lou Spence, a vivacious salesgirl invited to dinner at the Ritz by foppish wastrel and self-described "old fruit" "Monty" Montgomery (William Austin in one of those roles later personified by Edward Everett Horton). Betty is not paying attention to her dinner companion, however, but is ogling department store heir Cyrus Waltham (Moreno). He notices her too, and takes the salesgirl on a whirlwind tour of Coney Island. But when Betty is mistakenly assumed to be the unmarried mother of an infant (actually her roommate Molly's), stern Cyrus no longer sees her as proper marriage material. Betty, of course, gets her man in the end and Waltham's snooty girlfriend ("other woman" specialist Jacqueline Gadsden) ends up in the drink. Delivering all the vivacious punch expected of a Bow comedy, It takes time out for a couple of rather poignant scenes. With the hindsight that Brooklyn's own Bow was never fully accepted by Hollywood society despite her stardom, it is touching to watch Betty being ostracized at the snobbish Ritz; and Bow is never more affecting than when she realizes that Moreno is offering diamonds and pearls instead of marriage. Priscilla Bonner, as Bow's drab, single-mother roommate, adds a touch of realism to her brief role, enviously observing Betty's frivolity. If It only added to Bow's brilliant success, the film did little for the intelligent Bonner. To the end of her life, Bonner maintained that accepting featured billing in It lost her any chance of true stardom. A very young Gary Cooper, has a bit as a reporter and director Josef Von Sternberg reputedly took over for Clarence Badger during a brief illness. Despite its rather trite Cinderella plot, It magnificently demonstrates why Bow's guileless flapper came to define an entire decade. It is heartbreaking to realize that her decline had already set in, and Bow's very public troubles and eventual career destruction were lurking right around the corner! ~ Hans J. Wollstein, All Movie Guide
Review
Although this romantic comedy branded Clara Bow as the "It Girl," the star certainly didn't need writer and Hollywood tastemaker Elinor Glyn to prove she had sex appeal. That was already obvious from nearly every film she made before this one -- even the early ones in which she was merely a supporting player. Bow had that magical quality that very few actors, sound or silent, possessed: a charisma that eclipsed anyone else who appeared on the screen with her. That's especially obvious here, as Bow completely dominates the proceedings and handsome co-star Antonio Moreno (who had quite a bit of "It" himself) is nearly reduced to Bow's foil. The actress forges through familiar terrain as Betty Lou Spence, a fiercely independent and wonderfully uninhibited department store clerk -- but, as always, she brings something extra to the character merely by being her delightfully spontaneous self. The moment Betty sees her new boss, Cyrus Waltham (Moreno), she's determined to get him, and she's not above using his gawky pal, Monty (William Austin), to do it. But she's so adorable and she and Waltham are so obviously meant for each other that you don't care how she orchestrates their meeting. As sexy as Betty is, however, she's not easy; after showing Waltham a fun (and déclassé) time at Coney Island, he impulsively tries to kiss her. Her response is to slap him (but once she escapes to the safety of her tenement home, she's clearly overjoyed). A wrench is thrown into the romance when Waltham mistakenly thinks that Betty is an unwed mother. The baby actually belongs to her ailing roommate, Milly (Priscilla Bonner), and Betty claimed to save it from being taken away by two prim welfare ladies (Eleanor Lawson and Rose Tapley). But the couple reconciles on his yacht, after both Betty and Waltham's wannabe sweetheart (Jacqueline Gadsden) fall overboard. Betty saves the girl herself (giving her a good punch when she begins struggling), and deposits her on a lifeboat with Monty before ending the film in a clinch with Waltham. Even with the silly slang of some of the title cards, this classic silent picture still rings true today -- mostly due to Bow's timeless vivacity. ~ Janiss Garza, All Movie Guide
For the 1990 mini-series based on Stephen King's novel see It (1990 film).
It is a 1927Cinderella themed silentromantic comedy which tells the story of a shop girl who sets her sights on the handsome and wealthy owner of the department store where she works. Because of this film, actress Clara Bow became known as the "It girl".
In 2001, It was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".
Spunky but poor shopgirl Betty Lou Spence (Clara Bow) has a crush on her handsome employer Cyrus Waltham Jr (Antonio Moreno), the manager of and heir to the "world's largest store". However they belong to different social classes, and he is already romantically linked to the blond socialite Adela Van Norman (Jacqueline Gadsdon). Cyrus' silly friend Monty (William Austin) notices Betty Lou, though, and she uses him to get closer to Waltham. When she finally gets Waltham's attention, she convinces him to take her on a date, and she takes him to Coney Island, where he is introduced to the proletarian pleasures of roller coasters and hot dogs, and has a wonderful time. At the end of the evening he loses control and pounces, trying to kiss her. Betty Lou slaps his face, and hurries out of his car and into her tenement flat. She then peeks out her window at him as he is leaving, showing her pleasure on her face.
Drama strikes, however, when Betty Lou bravely proclaims herself as an unmarried mother to protect her sickly roommate Molly (Priscilla Bonner) from having her baby taken away by a couple of meddling welfare workers. Cyrus finds out, and although he is in love with her, being the bastion of respectability that he is, offers her an 'arrangement' that includes everything but marriage. Betty Lou, shocked and humiliated, refuses, quits her job, and resolves to forget Cyrus. When she learns from Monty the presumption that led to Cyrus' proposition, she fumes, and vows to teach Cyrus a lesson.
Cyrus hosts a yachting excursion and Betty Lou gatecrashes it with the help of Monty, masquerading as 'Miss Van Cortland'. Cyrus at first wants to remove her from the ship, but he can't resist Betty Lou's it; he eventually corners her and proposes marriage, but she gets him back, by telling him that she'd 'rather marry his office boy', which accomplishes her goal but breaks her heart. He then learns the truth about the baby, and leaves Monty at the helm of the yacht to go find her. Monty crashes the yacht into a fishing boat, tossing both Betty Lou and Cyrus' soon-to-be former fiancee, Adela, into the water. Betty Lou saves Adela from drowning, punching her in the face when she struggles, and ends the film embracing Cyrus on the anchor of the yacht, with the first two letters of the Ships name, Itola, between them.
Stage actress Dorothy Tree had her first film role in a small, uncredited part. A young ex-stuntman named Gary Cooper was cast in a small role as a newspaper reporter, and his affair with Clara Bow on the set of this film became a major topic of gossip at the time.
The Concept of it
The concept of "it" was invented by Elinor Glyn for a story she wrote and published in serial form in Cosmopolitan in 1926. She defined the concept as
that quality possessed by some which draws all others with its magnetic force. With "IT" you win all men if you are a woman — all women if you are a man. "IT" can be a quality of the mind as well as a physical attraction.
In an era when the word "sex" was considered unacceptable for use in polite company, Glyn's concept was enthusiastically adopted by the public as a euphemism for "sex appeal".
Production
B.P. Schulberg, an associate producer at Paramount Pictures Corporation, read the story and thought it would be a perfect vehicle for his newest star, Clara Bow. He paid Glyn $50,000 to endorse Clara Bow as the embodiment of it, and gave her a small part in the film as herself, as well as giving her a 'story and adaptation' credit.[1]
Schulberg then had the husband-and-wife team of Hope Loring and Louis D. Lighton, as well as George Marion Jr. (who wrote the titles) come up with a screenplay for Clara Bow's screen persona that included the concept of "it". It was directed by Clarence Badger.
This is one of the first examples of a 'concept film', as well as one of the earlier examples of product placement. The concept of it is referred to throughout the film, including the scene where Glyn appears as herself and defines it for the leading man. Cosmopolitan Magazine is featured prominently in a scene where the character Monty reads Glyn's story and introduces it to the audience. [2]
Reception
It was a hit with audiences all over the United States, breaking box office records. Critics praised the film, especially its star, as 'a joy to behold'.[3]It turned Clara Bow from a movie star into a legend. The term It girl has since entered the cultural lexicon.
References
^ Stenn, David, Clara Bow: Runnin' Wild, Pg 81-82, 1988 Penguin Books, a Division of Viking Penguin, New York, New York, originially published by Doubleday, New York, New York
^ Jeanine Basinger, in the commentary track for the Milestone DVD release of It.
^ Stenn, David, Clara Bow: Runnin' Wild, Pg 86, 1988 Penguin Books, a Division of Viking Penguin, New York, New York, originially published by Doubleday, New York, New York
