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Theodora: Theodora Goes Wild
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THEODORA GOES WILD was an extremely important film in the career of star Irene Dunne. Her first screwball comedy, the film helped cement her status as one of the principal leading ladies of the genre, along with such stars as Claudette Colbert, Carole Lombard, and Katherine Hepburn. Prior to this film, Dunne was known primarily for her musical talents from films such as SHOWBOAT (1935), and for her dramatic roles in melodramas such as BACK STEET (1932) and MAGNIFICENT OBSESSION (1935). As such, her performance in THEODORA came as a pleasant surprise to 1936 audiences; her image as a reserved and compliant lady is turned on end in the film’s second half as she inverts her persona to become provocateur extraordinaire. She so impressed audiences with her newfound comedic range in THEODORA that she received a 1936 Academy Award nomination for Best Actress.
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After six years' worth of tragic and noble roles, Irene Dunne began a new phase in her career as a top comedienne in Theodora Goes Wild. She plays a prim small-town schoolteacher, raised in an oppressive environment by two maiden aunts. Seeking surreptitious adventure, Dunne writes a steamy romance novel in her spare time--which becomes a scandalous best-seller. Heading to the big city to meet her publisher, Irene has a fling with the artist (Melvyn Douglas) who has designed the dust jacket for her book. Though on surface a Manhattan sophisticate, Douglas is just as trapped as Dunne had been in her small town; he's saddled with a nasty wife and insufferable parents. Both Douglas and Dunne free themselves of those who'd hold them down, and find happiness together.
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THEODORA received stellar reviews upon release. Variety described it as “A film masterpiece from every viewpoint.†Motion Picture Herald: “Always it’s bubbling amusement that backs up a clever story idea with performance in both acting and directing.†Time Magazine: “For cinema patrons who like rollicking farce, TGW amounts to a feast.†Hollywood Reporter called it “An uproarious romantic farce that will stand with the very best in a sensational comedy year.†1936 was indeed a sensational comedy year; in April Columbia ... released MR. DEEDS GOES TO TOWN. The two films share similarities in that they both involve the exploits of small town characters in the big city, leading some reviewers to unfavorably compare THEODORA to MR. DEEDS. Frank S. Nugent wrote for the New York Times, “Columbia obviously was dreaming of a distaff edition of ‘Mr. Deeds Goes to Town’ when it produced ‘Theodora Goes Wild…’ scowling horrendously and twirling our long dark mustache, we must puncture the toy balloon by proclaiming that Theodora is no match for Mr. Deeds in sound, honest, homespun humor… farce does not set too well upon the lovely shoulders of Irene Dunne.†The New York Herald Tribune’s Frank Barnes wrote, “[THEODORA] has the same sharp contrast of rural and metropolitan ways, but nothing like the vitality that made that memorable show [MR. DEEDS] so hilarious.†However, despite sharing some qualities, MR. DEEDS and THEODORA are really two different kinds of movies, the former a populist dramatic comedy with an undercurrent of gravitas, while the latter is a completely screwball affair where nothing is taken seriously.
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Theodora Goes Wild