{"id":696,"date":"2016-07-08T18:11:46","date_gmt":"2016-07-08T18:11:46","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/mgs.performerstuff.com\/?p=696"},"modified":"2018-08-07T02:50:13","modified_gmt":"2018-08-07T02:50:13","slug":"theatre-in-film-the-good-companions-1957","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/performerstuff.com\/mgs\/theatre-in-film-the-good-companions-1957\/","title":{"rendered":"Theatre in Film Series: The Good Companions (1957)"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"fusion-one-full fusion-layout-column fusion-column-last fusion-spacing-yes section-header-post\" style=\"margin-top:;margin-bottom:;\"><div class=\"fusion-column-wrapper\"><h3>Theatre in Film Series: <em>The Good Companions<\/em> (1957)<\/h3>\n<font size=\"2\" color=\"grey\"><span style=\"border:1px solid ;-webkit-border-radius:50%;-moz-border-radius:50%;border-radius:50%;-moz-box-shadow: 0 0 3px rgba(0,0,0,.3);-webkit-box-shadow: 0 0 3px rgba(0,0,0,.3);box-shadow: 0 0 3px rgba(0,0,0,.3);margin-right:25px;float:left;\" class=\"fusion-imageframe imageframe-glow imageframe-1 hover-type-none author-image\"><a class=\"fusion-no-lightbox\" href=\"http:\/\/performerstuff.com\" target=\"_self\"> <img src=\"http:\/\/performerstuff.com\/mgs\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/authorimage.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"img-responsive\" style=\"-webkit-border-radius:50%;-moz-border-radius:50%;border-radius:50%;\"\/><\/a><\/span><p>Written by Ashleigh Gardner<\/p>\n<p>July 7, 2016<\/p>\n<\/font><div class=\"fusion-clearfix\"><\/div><\/div><\/div><div class=\"fusion-clearfix\"><\/div><div class=\"fusion-one-full fusion-layout-column fusion-column-last fusion-spacing-yes section-body-post\" style=\"margin-top:;margin-bottom:;\"><div class=\"fusion-column-wrapper\"><p style=\"text-align: left;\">Though theatre was my first love, film has stolen my heart in recent years. In Part II of our ongoing Theatre in Film series, we explore the latter years of Classical Hollywood Cinema (and British film) when Technicolor was new and movie musicals, filled with rich color and vibrant acting, lifted off the screen. For the second\u00a0film in Part II, we celebrate <em>The Good Companions\u00a0<\/em>from 1957.<\/p>\n<h4><em>The Good Companions<\/em>\u00a0(1957)<\/h4>\n<br><div align=\"center\"><div class=\"fusion-video fusion-youtube\" style=\"max-width:600px;max-height:350px;\"><div class=\"video-shortcode\"><iframe title=\"YouTube video player\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/WBBVCI2rf5A?wmode=transparent&autoplay=0\" width=\"600\" height=\"350\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/div><\/div><\/div><br><p style=\"text-align: left;\"><b>Director:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> J. Lee Thompson<br \/>\n<\/span><b>Starring:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Janette Scott, John Fraser, Eric Portman, and Celia Johnson<\/span><\/p>\n<h4>What happens:<\/h4>\n<br><p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Three unacquainted individuals band together to save a failing touring theatre troupe called the &#8220;Dinky Doos&#8221;. Inigo Jollifant (John Fraser) is a school teacher who has a knack for playing piano; Miss Trant (Celia Johnson) is a wealthy spinster, who has recently inherited her father\u2019s estate; and Jess Oakroyd (Eric Portman) is a recently laid-off gentleman with a penchant for theatrics. All three happen upon the troupe, led by starlett Susie Dean (Janette Scott). Jollifant and Oakroyd convince Trant to fund the \u201cDinky Doos\u201d under the name \u201cThe Good Companions,\u201d thinking the new name will bring success. After a mostly <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">unsuccessful<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> initial run of the show across England, the troupe\u2019s lead dancer, <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Jerry Jerningham (Paddy Stone),<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> marries Lady Parlitt (Joyce Grenfell), whose family manages a chain of theatres. This secures the troupe\u2019s place on the stage and results in Susie achieving stardom in a magnificent London revue.<\/span><\/p>\n<h4>Why it matters:<\/h4>\n<br><p style=\"text-align: left;\"><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Good Companions <\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">is a remake of the 1933 film, <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Good Companions<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, based on J.B. Priestley\u2019s 1929 novel of the same name. It was written during a time when touring shows were popular between WWI and WWII, and large sets weren\u2019t as portable and capable of being transported easily (within the world of the film) like they are in the 1957 film. The \u201857 version takes advantage of its time period, when large scenery was expected, and uses colorful, lavishly decorated sets that enhance the grandiosity of theatrical musical numbers, but it doesn\u2019t carry the realism of the 1933 film. What this film <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">does <\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">achieve is the same togetherness of community that the 1933 version possesses. Oakroyd defends the honor of Miss Trant after a belligerent theatre owner tries to intimidate her. The troupe has dinner together almost every night with toasts, arguments, and laughter. And in the final moments of the film, the troupe looks on from the audience as Susie performs for a crowd of hundreds on the West End.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Good Companions <\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">upholds two of the oldest and richest aspects of theatre: community and family. The troupe, a family of performers, finds itself in dire trouble, and when three outsiders join their ranks, they\u2019re taken in as family themselves. This parallels our experiences in high school, college, and professional theatre when, as performers in a show, our family and friends become part of our own theatre family. With their support and, sometimes, with skills of their own, they help the production persevere toward a common goal.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">For this feature, I viewed both the original 1933 film and the 1957 remake. Though the \u201857 features high-energy musical numbers, troupe camaraderie, and gorgeous sets, its representation of the truth of theatre is, at most, surface. The 1933 film is a more honest look at how relationships in theatre develop over a period of time in the face of hardship. Jessie Matthews portrays Susie Dean in the original film, and her electric effervescence is a model of truthful, in-the-moment acting. At the end of the film, after a brawl and fire have broken out in the theatre, Matthews\u2019s Susie must perform amidst the ruins of the set and burnt curtains. She does so while in tears and, like the theatre troupe, recovers after a hard won battle against adversity.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Below is a photo from the 1933 version, depicting Oakroyd, Miss Trant, Jollifant, and Dr. McFarlane\u00a0comforting Susie after planted hecklers have driven her offstage.<\/span><\/p>\n<span class=\"fusion-imageframe imageframe-none imageframe-2 hover-type-none\"> <img src=\"http:\/\/performerstuff.com\/mgs\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/07\/content_goodcompanions33.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"img-responsive\"\/><\/span><br><br><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This film is the second\u00a0featured in Part II of \u201cTheatre in Film\u201d. See below for the others in Part II.<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><a href=\"http:\/\/performerstuff.com\/mgs\/?p=641\"><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong><em>The Band Wagon<\/em>\u00a0(1953)<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><a href=\"http:\/\/performerstuff.com\/mgs\/theatre-in-film-series-the-producers-1968\/\"><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong><em>The Producers<\/em> (1967)<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong><em>The Boy Friend<\/em> (1971)<\/strong> <em>(Coming soon.)<\/em><\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong><em>Opening Night<\/em> (1977)<\/strong> <em>(Coming soon.)<\/em><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Want to start with Part I? Check out\u00a0<strong><em><a href=\"http:\/\/performerstuff.com\/mgs\/?p=133\"><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">42nd Street\u00a0<\/span><\/a><\/em><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">(1933)<\/span><\/strong>.<\/p>\n<div class=\"fusion-clearfix\"><\/div><\/div><\/div><div class=\"fusion-clearfix\"><\/div><hr \/>\n<h5 style=\"text-align: left;\"><em><strong>Ashleigh Gardner<\/strong>\u00a0received her AA in Theatre\/Drama\/Dramatic Arts\u00a0from Valencia College and\u00a0her Bachelors Degree in English Literature and\u00a0Masters Degree in Literary, Cultural, and Textual Studies from\u00a0the University of Central Florida. She is a playwright, an actor, and PerformerStuff.com\u2019s Editor.\u00a0<\/em><\/h5>\n<h5 style=\"text-align: left;\">Thumbnail image from <em>The Good Companions<\/em>. Copyright \u00a9 1957 <span class=\"itemprop\">A<\/span><span class=\"itemprop\">ssociated British Picture Corporation<\/span>. Content image from <em>The Good Companions. <\/em>Copyright \u00a9 1933\u00a0Gaumont British Picture Corporation.<\/h5>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" [...]","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":701,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[259,265],"tags":[6,106,352,319,107,82,80,361,14,105],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/performerstuff.com\/mgs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/696"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/performerstuff.com\/mgs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/performerstuff.com\/mgs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/performerstuff.com\/mgs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/performerstuff.com\/mgs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=696"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/performerstuff.com\/mgs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/696\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/performerstuff.com\/mgs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/701"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/performerstuff.com\/mgs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=696"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/performerstuff.com\/mgs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=696"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/performerstuff.com\/mgs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=696"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}