PENNIES FROM HEAVEN (1981)
Label: Warner Archive
Region Code: Region-Free
Rating: R
Duration: 107 Minutes
Audio: English DTS-HD MA 2.0 Dual-Mono with Optional English Subtitles
Video: 1080p HD Widescreen (1.85:1)
Director: Herbert Ross
Cast: Steve Martin, Bernadette Peters, Christopher Walker, Jessica Harper
Pennies from Heaven (1981) is directed by Herbert Ross (T.R. Baskin), and is based on the 1978 BBC television drama of the same name. It's a musical set in Chicago during the depression-era and stars funnyman Steve Martin (The Man with Two Brains) in his first dramatic role. Martin portrays a travelling music-sheet salesman named Arthur Parker who is down on his luck with a head full of unrealistic dreams, who years to give up the travelling salesman routine and open his known record shop, but it;'s the Depression, and he is unable to secure financing for it. His hapless wife Joan (Jessica Harper, Suspiria) has the money, but she refuses to use the inheritance money left to her by her father to fund Arthur's drams, and that she is also sexually unadventurous also causes further friction in their marriage. Don't feel too bad for Arthur though, he's a bit of womanizing louse, and after encountering pretty schoolteacher Eileen (Bernadette Peters, The Jerk) at a music store he begins an affair with her, knocking her up in the process, then unceremoniously dumping her to return to his wife. Meanwhile, because she's unwed and preggers loses her job as a schoolteacher and falls on hard times, during which she meets a stylish, smooth-talking pimp Tom (Christopher Walken, The Dead Zone), who seemingly takes a shine to her, convincing her to get an abortion and start turning tricks for cash/
Arthur eventually manages to coerce his wife to pony-up the money for the record shop, but of course it fails, and Arthur once more takes off, reuniting with Bernadette to hit the road and start over somewhere else, but unexpectedly finding himself fingered for the rape and murder of a blind woman, who was actually murdered by an accordion playing hobo (Vernel Bagneris, J.D.'s Revenge), both of whom Arthur had briefly encountered previously in passing.
The film is an interesting take on the musical, it does not feature new songs, but instead features the cast dancing and lip-syncing to popular songs of the 1920s and '30s. The depression-era melodrama slips into beautifully choreographed musical productions complete with chorus lines and elaborate dance numbers that contrast the downtrodden Depression-era vibes. Apparently Martin trained for eight-months to learn the intricate dance moves, and it shows during those numbers, he does a fine job, as does the fleet-footed Christopher Walken during his memorable musical number featuring hi clutching breasts and dancing on the bar's counter.
When I saw this on cable TV as a kid I have to say I was turned off by it, I think I came to it only knowing funnyman Steve Martin from comedies like The Jerk and The Man with Two Brains, and I was expecting more of the same, but this Depression-era musical is not that, at least not the variety of comedy I was looking for at that young age. The lip-synced musical numbers of what I would have called 'ancient songs' at that young age did not exactly appeal to me either. Having rewatched it several times over the years I have a much deeper and informed impression of the film now, it's a gorgeously staged period film, the musical numbers are wonderful, and funnyman Martin manages to somehow make Arthur a somewhat sympathetic character, well, at least more sympathetic than he rightfully deserves. The film bombed when it arrived at cinemas in '81, but I think the film has rightfully grown a considerable cult following over the past forty-five years, the film has aged quite wonderfully, thanks in large part to the gorgeous cinematography of Gordon Willis (The Godfather Trilogy) which has a tea-stained patina of the Depression-era, while also coming alive with fantastic musical sequences, my favorite being the surreal scene of Vernel Bagneris' hobo character lip-syncing Arthur Tracy’s song “Pennies from Heaven” while pennies fall from the sky, it's gorgeously executed and is quite a dazzling sequence, as are all the musical numbers. The scene that stuck out to me as as a kid was the lipstick-nips of Jessica Harper's Joan, I was a sex-curious adolescent after all, but it's those lipstick-nips that sort of doomed Arthur for a murder he didn't commit, life is funny that way.
Audio/Video: Pennies from Heaven (1981) gets a region-free Blu-ray from Warner Archive, presented in 1080p HD framed in 1.85:1 widescreen, newly scanned in 4K from the original camera negative. The image is quite striking, we get a gorgeous layer of film grain with rich textures and pleasing fine detail of in the faces and period costuming. The colors look wonderful as well, we get lots of dreary depression-era scenery, the occasional glow of red neon on a dark street, and of course the striking musical numbers are whimsical and lush looking, this is just a really terrific looking transfer from WAC. Audio comes by way of English DTS-HD MA 2.0 with optional English subtitles, the track is clean without any hiss or distortion, the dialogue exchanges are perfectly dialed in and the fantastical, dreamy musical numbers really comes alive in the mix.
Extras include an archival Scene-specific commentary by critic Peter Rainer, the archival 36-min 20th Anniversary Pennies From Heaven Cast and Crew Reunion moderated by Peter Rainer, featuring Steve Martin, Jessica Harper, executive producer Rick McCallum, costumer designer Bob Mackie, editor Richard Marks, art director Bernie Cutler, and producer David Chasman together on stage, and the 3-min Original Theatrical Trailer. The single-disc release arrives in a standard keepcase with a single-sided wrap featuring the original movie poster artwork by the legendary Bob Peak (The Godfather, The Deer Hunter, Rollerball, Apocalypse Now), with the same key art featured on the Blu-ray disc.
Special Features:
- Scene-specific A Commentary by critic Peter Rainer
- 20th Anniversary Pennies From Heaven Cast and Crew Reunion (35:43)
- Original Theatrical Trailer (3:08)
Screenshots from the Warner Archive Blu-ray: 
Extras:
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