By 1929 the fabled marriage of Douglas Fairbanks and Mary Pickford was foundering on the rocks, but a last ditch effort to save it was to do a joint project, the only one of their career. It would be released by United Artists the company that they and Charlie Chaplin and D.W. Griffith had founded.
I noted that Mary Pickford was the producer of the film and as such she awarded herself first billing. Why Fairbanks did not do something more along his line is a mystery. But in choosing The Taming Of The Shrew, the subtleties of the Bard eluded them both.
As the tamer Petruchio, Fairbanks is way beyond his depth, but I will say that he does bellow through the part with some conviction. He also handles a whip with the skill of Lash LaRue.
But poor Mary is absolutely lost. Her appeal was always innocence personified on the screen. She could be rebellious when called upon like in The Hoodlum, but that's a far cry from Kate the shrew. When rebelling Mary still looks like she's hoping Daddy will rescue her.
The film did make money, a lot of people paid to see Fairbanks talk on screen, Mary had actually won an Oscar for her sound film debut in Coquette. But this version of Shakespeare, edited down considerably by director/writer Sam Taylor, has not worn well through the ages. I'd really recommend seeing that other fabled couple of Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor do their's.
I noted that Mary Pickford was the producer of the film and as such she awarded herself first billing. Why Fairbanks did not do something more along his line is a mystery. But in choosing The Taming Of The Shrew, the subtleties of the Bard eluded them both.
As the tamer Petruchio, Fairbanks is way beyond his depth, but I will say that he does bellow through the part with some conviction. He also handles a whip with the skill of Lash LaRue.
But poor Mary is absolutely lost. Her appeal was always innocence personified on the screen. She could be rebellious when called upon like in The Hoodlum, but that's a far cry from Kate the shrew. When rebelling Mary still looks like she's hoping Daddy will rescue her.
The film did make money, a lot of people paid to see Fairbanks talk on screen, Mary had actually won an Oscar for her sound film debut in Coquette. But this version of Shakespeare, edited down considerably by director/writer Sam Taylor, has not worn well through the ages. I'd really recommend seeing that other fabled couple of Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor do their's.