Reaching for the Moon

Starring: Douglas Fairbanks & Bebe Daniels Director: Edmund Goulding

DVD Features:

Audio:

• Dolby Digital Mono - English

Additional Release Material:

• Trailer - Rare Original 1930 Theatrical Trailer "REACHING FOR THE MOON"

Description by OLDIES.com:

A movieland curiosity! Irving Berlin's first Hollywood musical - or it would have been, except United Artists deleted all but one of Berlin's musical numbers! That might've consigned this film to the realm of the forgettable, except for the exceptional cast: silent swashbuckler Douglas Fairbanks Sr., lovely Bebe Daniels, dependable Edward Everett Horton and, stealing the show in his film debut, Bing Crosby. Add to that mix Berlin's original story, laced with William Cameron Menzies' fantastic Art Deco sets, spiced with liberal doses of pre-Code innuendo, and stirred by director Edmund Goulding's liberated camera movement compared to the stagy talkies of the period, and what pours out is a bubbly comedy cocktail with one show-stopping musical number as the cherry.

Financial tycoon Larry Day (Fairbanks) is a Wall Street wiz, but a dud at the art of love. Falling head over heels for glamorous aviatrix Vivian Benton (Daniels), he follows her onto an ocean liner, even though she is going overseas to marry someone else. Struggling to woo her, Larry is coached by his valet (Horton). But Larry is wiped out by the market crash and devastated by Vivian's rejection of him. Will he regain his fortune and win his lady love? Find out in this delightful early sound treasure.

Product Description:

The crash of the stock market and an irate fiancée are just two of the romantic hurdles that handsome, hard-drinking business mogul Larry Day (Douglas Fairbanks) must overcome in his stop-at-nothing wooing of aviatrix Vivian Benton (Bebe Daniels). There's also the fact that he's utterly incompetent around women. Luckily his valet (Edward Everett Horton) happens to be a worldly expert in such matters and advises him on the proper way to catch his heart's desire. Larry follows Vivian aboard a luxurious ocean liner and the two ensnare each other in all sorts of romantic tangles, to the tune of some great Irving Berlin songs. One of them, "When the Folks High Up Do the Mean Low Down" is performed by Bing Crosby in an early film appearance. Designer William Cameron Menzies did the amazing art-deco sets, and created the fantastic miniature city for the tracking shot that opens the film. This elaborate, big budget musical is from director Edmund Goulding, who would go on to direct GRAND HOTEL the following year.

Plot Synopsis:

REACHING FOR THE MOON is one of the very best of the early musical comedies. Edward Everett Horton is hilarious. A light romance between Fairbanks as a financier who has weathered the stock market crash and aviatrix Bebe Daniels has plenty of twists and turns. The opening shot is notable as the camera swoops over an intricate art deco miniature of a fantastic city designed by William Cameron Menzies.

Plot Keywords:

Comedy | Musical | Vintage

Production Notes:

• Theatrical release: December 29, 1930.
• Ginger Rogers was originally cast in the role of Kitty.

Cast and Crew: