Search - Pennies From Heaven

Adapted from Dennis Potter's landmark British TV miniseries and relocated to the United States during the Depression, Pennies from Heaven dramatizes how popular songs both shaped and reflected the thoughts of people living through economic (and emotional) hardship. Arthur Parker (Steve Martin) is a sheet music salesman who believes that he can spot a hit a mile away and wants to open his own store. But he can't get a bank loan and his wife Joan (Jessica Harper), who has savings left to her by her father, refuses to give him the money. Also, while Arthur has a fierce sexual appetite, Joan generally refuses his advances. While on the road, Arthur meets Eileen (Bernadette Peters), a shy schoolteacher as desperate for affection as Arthur is hungry for sex. They begin an affair, which leads to tragedy for both. Punctuating the drama of Pennies from Heaven are elaborate musical numbers in which the characters lip-synch to popular songs of the day, which at once lift their hopes and reflect their fears. Arthur's buoyant tap number to "My Baby Said Yes" and Eileen's saucy rendition of "Love is Good for Anything That Ails You" are reflections of their needs for money and love, and their pas de deux on "Let's Face the Music and Dance" is at once an escape and an acknowledgement of their hopelessness. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Steve Martin - Arthur
Bernadette Peters - Eileen
Christopher Walken - Tom
Jessica Harper - Joan

1981	Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture - Musical or Com (nominee)	Golden Globe	Steve Martin
1981	Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture - Musical or C (winner)	Golden Globe	Bernadette Peters
1981	Best Adapted Screenplay (nominee)	Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Scie	Dennis Potter
1981	Best Costume Design (nominee)	Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Scie	Bob Mackie
1981	Best Sound (nominee)	Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Scie	Michael J. Kohut
1981	Best Sound (nominee)	Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Scie	Jay M. Harding
1981	Best Sound (nominee)	Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Scie	Richard Tyler
1981	Best Sound (nominee)	Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Scie	Al Overton

These movies have the touch and feel of Pennies From Heaven...
5	Truth or Dare (R)
2	Modern Romance (R)
2	The Adjuster (R)
4	Foxes (R)
S	Sweet Bird of Youth (NR)
1	Strapless (R)
3	A Christmas Without Snow
1	A Nos Amours
2	Mala Noche
S	Perfect People (NR)
1	Henry Jaglom's Someone to Love (R)
These movies have the subject or theme of Pennies From Heaven...
17	My Own Private Idaho [Criterion Collection] (R)
2	Sweet Charity (G)
3	Jo Jo Dancer, Your Life Is Calling (R)
S	Mayflower Madam (NR)
1	Accattone: The Scrounger (NR)
S	Queen Kelly [Deluxe Collector's Edition] (NR)
1	Damnation
1	The Courtesans of Bombay
13	Boiling Point (R)
These movies share cast/crew with Pennies From Heaven...
88	Footloose (PG)
2	The Turning Point (PG)
7	Max Dugan Returns (PG)
18	The Secret of My Success (PG-13)
66	Steel Magnolias (PG)
5	Kiss Me Kate (NR)
2	Sweet Charity (G)
5	Play it Again, Sam (PG)
5	Funny Lady (PG)
S	Goodbye, Mr. Chips (G)
45	My Blue Heaven (PG-13)
4	The Sunshine Boys (PG)
8	The Owl and the Pussycat (PG)
14	The Goodbye Girl (PG)
1	Good-bye Love
7	The Seven Percent Solution (PG)
7	Impromptu (PG-13)
52	The Jerk (R)
These movies cover the same subjects as Pennies From Heaven...
2	Pennies From Heaven
These movies are similar to Pennies From Heaven...
18	All That Jazz (R)
11	Everyone Says I Love You (R)
3	Love's Labour's Lost (PG)
7	Dancer in the Dark (R)
121	Moulin Rouge [Special Edition] (PG-13)
4	The Singing Detective (R)
127	Chicago [Widescreen] (PG-13)
4	The Purple Rose of Cairo (PG)
1	Ruby's Dream (PG)
9	Idlewild [Widescreen] (R)
18	Cabaret (PG)
These movies are original versions of Pennies From Heaven...
S	Pennies From Heaven (NR)