Back when "Follow Thru" debuted, it must have been an incredibly prestigious film. After all, very, very few films were all-color productions and only a few others had color sequences buried within the picture. Yet, somehow, the studio scraped up the money to make this one color...albeit the old Two-Color Technicolor system...which looks pretty grotesque today. Part of it is that you never got true colors with the system...and everything tended to look orangy or greenish. But it's made worse because of nitrate stock degradation...and the print I saw on YouTube could use restoration.Another shortcoming of the film is the sound. While the speaking sequences are just fine, the singing, at times, sound rather tinny...and it was obviously recorded using primitive sound technology. This is no one's fault...it's just that sound movies were a relatively new thing and compared to films from just a year or two later, "Follow Thru" has sound that could be better. This, by the way, is probably why the movie was made on a sound stage instead of outdoors (which you'd expect in a film set on a golf course)....getting good sound was not easier...and would have been MUCH harder to do outdoors.The story finds Lora (Nancy Carroll) working hard to be a top golfer. She gets help from nice-guy, Jerry (Buddy Rogers) and the two fall in love. However, somehow Jerry is like catnip to the ladies and other women seem to want him as well...including Lora's nemesis! While all this is going on, Jerry's friend, Jack (Jack Haley) is there for comic relief and spends most of his time AVOIDING Angie...as he apparently doesn't like women.Throughout the film are a variety of songs and a few song and dance numbers. Most of them are very pleasant and enjoyable. The ones I noticed most were the devil and angel dance numbers....you just have to see them to believe 'em!Overall, this is a stagy old film...but an enjoyable one as well. Worth seeing...particularly if you love early talkies and don't mind that they lack the polish films Hollywood brought us just a year or two later.

All reviewers seem to love this picture and I, too, tried to love it. The early Technicolor looked great and the whole production showed a lot of energy from all parties. True, several of them were in the Broadway musical and recreated their roles, chief among them were Jack Haley and Zelma O'Neal. I thought Haley hammed it up outrageously and was a grating presence much of the time. Zelma O'Neal, on the other hand, was terrific. She was energetic and showed a great deal of talent and overall ability; "Button Up Your Overcoat" belonged to her and Haley was just along for the ride.Buddy Rogers was the nominal star and looked heavily made up for some reason and didn't give one of his better performances. Nancy Carroll, on the other hand, was in her element and didn't disappoint. But the story was over the top and grew tiresome despite the short running time of 92 minutes. I appreciate comic zaniness but I felt this one ladled it on with a trowel. Tragic comedienne Thelma Todd was on hand but was largely wasted and Eugene Palette was too old for his part. To top it all off, the music was ordinary, except for the "Button Up Your Overcoat" number.As I said, I tried. Judging from the reception it got at Capitolfest in Rome,N.Y., I must have been the only wet blanket. "Follow Thru" is a Paramount picture, which could explain its absence from the public forum, as all early Paramount films are owned by Universal and are kept under lock and key.

I have had an long term obsession with this two strip Technicolor musical classic. I first saw a clip from it back in 1989 on Entertainment tonight when they were talking about the preservation film festival at u. c. l. a. Then in the first annual AMC preservation film festival, way before the movie channel went down hill , I had assumed the next festival they would show it. They never did. Back in the mid nineties , I had written MCA home video if they can take consideration of possibly releasing that picture or the vagabond king , 1930 version, on VHS home video and that there was an audience for either of these preserved two color classics. But I met with deaf ears. Mca is greedy and only serve the casual fans of classic films than us serious fans cause we are a minority although big. They only want to put out their so called best classics only for the fast buck. Thus they have neglect film history. Then all of a sudden I found on the internet that they had finally put it on DVD. I was surprised. It is the fully restored version a above board print. It figures MCA copy rights had ran out and did not bother to relicense cause they just don't think it would make quick fast buck. This gave opportunity for other small companies to distribute it . Since they focus on profit in the long run.It is presented non enhanced two color Technicolor. Now the problem is the pacing it shifts from being fast in some moments to slow. Actress Zelma Oneal, who was married to actor Warren Williams, playing Angie Howard, carries the whole picture unintentionally . She's fast pace and natural with her acting and she can sing. The rest of the actors. like Buddy rogers and Nancy Carol over acts a bit and can't sing. Thelma Todd over acts too and Jack Haley. But this was 1930 and the talkies were just here since 1929. It's still fun to watch. The problem is the director Lloyd Corrigan. He was a character actor and good at that . But as a director he was only fair. If they could have used Ernest Lubitsch , it could have been as fast paced as the Broadway version of it , which originally starred Elenor Powell and was her first Broadway success. Ever since she was a baby her father Matt more, played by Claude king, has been teaching his daughter Lorna, played by Nancy Carol, to be a champion golfer.In the mean time new golfing instructor, Jerry ,played by Charles Buddy Rodgers , and Friend and boss, Martin, played by Jack Haley, Who's father runs a department store chain. To start his work , Jerry, as a golf instructor. They come up at the time of a golf championship. Lorna , champion is battling against snotty wealthy widow and slutty Mrs van Horn, played by very funny but overacting Thelma Todd. Lorna's Brother Dinte Moore, played by possible actor who was in Broadway version, Don Tompkins, who's plays a caddy. He is in love with the Daughter of the head of the country club Martin Bascomb, played by Albert Gran, and who's mother is a social director,played by Kathryn Givney. Their daughter Babs,played by Margaret Lee.It seems that Jack. played by Jack Haley , lost his pinky ring. It seems at a party he had proposed to a girl, who was Angie, at a party, while he was drunk. An heir loom.As they observe the golf Lorna notices Jerry and jerry her,As Jack gets to know Angie and she gets to know him,He notices that she has the ring and that she was the girl he proposed to her . He tries to get the ring back by telling him he a friend of the guy he proposed to her. she resist. With the help of new golf club member J.C Efingham played by Eugene Pallete, who produces Girdles , Angie tries to get her man. In the mean time Jerry is hired to improve Lorna's swing and follow thru. They become romantic to each other. While Mrs van horn chases both Jerry and jack suggesting that they both are invited to her place on the weekend at pebbles beach. All the golf members are invited to Mrs Van horns costume party in Mexico at her new house. Jerry and Lorna meet near the radio again. Later on Mrs van horn undermines the love between Jerry and Lorna by telling her that he agrees to an invitation to her house. Lorna gets mad and gets drunk. The next day she tries to undermined them again and Lorna challenges her to another game. In the mean time Jacks father finds out that he was lying about taking the heir loom to the jewelers , to get it clean,and threatens him to cut him off unless he gets the ring back.So with the Help of J.C. they pretend to be plumber to go into the girls locker room and sneak that ring back when Angie taking a shower. They managed to get it with the girls thinking that the plumber gone. Angie gets suspicious but she is called for the tee. The boys end up leaving the locker room in drag when a bunch of women are coming back. Angie gets Jack to try to get Jerry back to help her since they are both mad at each other. Well he immediately helps Lorna and she wins the championship Jack and Angie decides to get married. Lorna and Jerry get back together . big music hits of the twenties like,Take good care of yourself ,"I want to be bad,"are a part of the movie. The DVDs are available at www.ecrater.com ebay www.loving theclassic.com DVD and VHS and www.ioffer.com

This film has no great meaning and no real point, but is one of them most charming films I have ever seen. Written in the mid 20's, made in 1929 and released in 30 it still has the flavor of the Roaring 20's. From a stage play, it contains musical numbers and crazy dance sequences that could be from no other era. The girls are pretty, and the guys are handsome. The comics are foolish and endearing. The whole cast is full of the kind of youthful daring and exuberance that can't be acted. It has a delightfully naughty 20's feel about it, especially in numbers like "Turn up the heat" that features chorus girls dressed (if you can call it that) as devils, and the 2 strip Technicolor gives the film an almost fairy tale quality.Sadly it is unavailable (I saw it years ago at the UCLA restoration festival, but they show it again every once in a while). If you every get a chance to see, bring your girl/boyfriend; especially if you are young, in love and a little nuts.