What Price Innocence?
| What Price Innocence? | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Willard Mack |
| Produced by | Bryan Foy |
| Written by | Willard Mack |
| Starring |
Jean Parker Minna Gombell Willard Mack Betty Grable Bryant Washburn Ben Alexander Louise Beavers |
| Cinematography | Joseph A. Valentine |
| Edited by | Arthur Hilton |
Production company |
Bryan Foy Productions |
| Distributed by | Columbia Pictures |
Release dates | 1933 |
Running time | 64 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
What Price Innocence? is a 1933 American Pre-Code drama film written and directed by, and co-starring, Willard Mack. Produced on a low budget for Columbia Pictures, it has been classed as an exploitation film and "sex hygiene film" because it touches on teenage pregnancy and morality in a didactic manner.[1] The film features Betty Grable in an early starring role.
Production
Mack's taking on multiple roles in the film (as lead actor, director and writer) was unusual in American filmmaking at the time, though it was not uncommon in low-budget, exploitation film production.[2]
Release and Reception
In addition to producing and releasing this film, Columbia Pictures reissued the previously banned sex-hygiene film Damaged Lives.[3] The film was also known by the title Shall We Tell Our Daughter?.[4] In at least one theater, the Strand in Lewiston, Maine, it played on a double bill with the comedy Diplomaniacs.[5] It was paired with Samarang when it played at the Edwards Theatre in Sarasota.[6] It appeared on a double bill with The Masquerader in San Jose's Liberty Theatre, along with a shorts program that featured Disney's The Pied Piper.[7]
What Price Innocence? received mixed reviews. A critic for the New York Times wrote: "Judged on general entertainment standards, it is an embarrassing film. ... The film is presented with a certain blunt skill and it is produced with a certain sincerity. But it has none of the subtlety, indirection or dramatic power needed to make the theme palatable for the public screens."[8] Other reviewers commended the film for its frank treatment of its subject, and for Willard Mack's performance. The Baltimore Afro-American: "Whether you accept (Dr. Davidge's) views of not, you will find the story an interesting and skillfully treated one."[9] The Sarasota Herald-Tribune lauded the performances of Parker, Mack and Gombell in this "moving, human photodrama."[10]
In Canada, 'What Price Innocence? was given a good review when it played in Montreal on a double bill with Saturday's Millions.[11] The film was well reviewed in Australia, when it played at the Capitol Theatre in Sydney. "Willard Mack's impersonation as Dr. Dan Davidge," wrote the author of the Sydney Morning Herald review, "is the best thing in the play."[12]
References
- ↑ Schaefer, Eric. Bold! Daring! Shocking! True!: A History of Exploitation Films, 1919-1959. Durham & London: Duke University Press. 384 ISBN 0-8223-2374-5
- ↑ Schaefer, 46
- ↑ Schaefer, 151
- ↑ Schaefer, 384
- ↑ Lewiston Daily Sun. August 16. 1933. p 10. Web. January 4. 2015]]
- ↑ At The Edwards. Sarasota Herald-Tribune. 7 September 1933. p 9. Web. 4 January 2015
- ↑ Love in "What Price Innocence". San Jose News. 11 January 1934. p 4. Web 4 January 2015
- ↑ Review from NYT, 26 June 1933
- ↑ "What Price Innocence?" is Problem Story at Regent. Baltimore Afro-American. 9 September 1933. p 6. Web. 4 January 2015
- ↑ At The Edwards. Sarasota Herald-Tribune. 7 September 1933. p 9. Web. 4 January 2015
- ↑ Morality Film is Princess Feature. Montreal Gazette. 20 November 1933. p 10. Web. 4 January 2015
- ↑ Film Reviews: What Price Innocence?. Sydney Morning Herald. p 2. Web. 28 July 2014