Pennies From Heaven (Full Frame)

VHS, R, 107 minutes, MGM Home Entertainment

For an unforgettable journey into the realm of musical fantasy, the currency of choice is "Pennies from Heaven." With drive and dexterity, Steve Martin triumphs as Arthur Parker, a Depression-era sheet-music salesman doomed forever to believe in the lyrics of the songs he sells. Though life steadily worsens for him and his schoolteacher mistress (Bernadette Peters), he goes on believing it's still just a bowl of cherries-even when he's got nothing but the pits. Giving top-notch support are Jessica Harper, Vernel Bagneris, John Martin and, in an electrifying dance solo, Christopher Walken. Herbert Ross ("Steel Magnolias," "The Turning Point") directed this visually dazzling film based on Dennis Porter's phenomenal TV series that put the words and voices of '20s/30s pop tunes into the mouths of desperate folk torn between cruel reality and their lavish, upbeat dreams. With over a dozen spectacular production numbers and superb precision dancing, "Pennies from Heaven" "breaks new ground in movie musicals" (Jack Kroll, Newsweek).