IT (1927)
Reviewed by Jerry Saravia
A few close-ups of silent siren of the screen Clara Bow in stunning black-and-white should be enough to make any movie lover swoon. Only Clara Bow was not just a pretty actress who could make any man quake in his boots - she had a miraculous, captivating sense of beauty that held various emotions. In the film "It," a film that made her an iconic Hollywood star, she is a rhapsodic presence of resplendent beauty, a woman of some heft who can laugh, cry, be wickedly funny and be instantly amused. And yet she has virtues such as honesty and empathy, always looking to be noticed and yet noticing others. In my mind, those are the real reasons Clara Bow became a star.
The "It" Girl is shopgirl Betty Lou Spence (Clara Bow), working for Waltham's Department Store. Prior to her introduction, the rich heir to Waltham's, Cyrus Waltham, Jr. (Antonio Moreno), is having a brief discussion with playboy Monty (William Austin, a hysterical cartoon of a man with startling eyes) on the much ballyhooed article by Elinor Glyn that brings up the topic of who can have "It" - that instant attraction to someone who has charisma beyond words and doesn't know it or doesn't care (We know that now as sex appeal). Monty looks deeply at Cyrus and knows he does not have "it" though all the shopgirls beg to differ. In a hysterically funny moment, Monty looks at himself in the mirror and proclaims, "Old fruit, you've got It." However, when Monty notices Betty, the "It" factor is clear as day as he asks her on a dinner date to the Ritz. There is a slight dilemma - Betty is fixated on Cyrus who is already engaged to be married. Betty also lives with and supports a sick mother who has a baby out of wedlock (that was the rage of the times) and when suitor Monty comes knocking, he is tricked into believing it is Betty's baby. Cyrus eventually has his eyes set on Betty but can't commit to a woman living in shame. So what we have here is the "It" factor on both sides of the gender fence.
The wisp of a plot is not unlike anything seen back in the 1920's, carried over with more sophisticated storytelling by the time 1934's "It Happened One Night" came around (the latter being possibly the most winning romantic comedy ever made). It is not likely that the plot of "It" will be remembered as much as for the presence of the iridescent Clara Bow. She sparkles the screen, illuminates it and it is hers all the way. She is an all-around happy gal, one easily consumed by love and wanting to love and help others. Not a mean bone in her body. That is what informs "It" and her "It" factor and what makes this sly, funny and at times heartrending romantic comedy one of the best of its kind ever made.
