Protraph
Lack of good storyline.
PiraBit
if their story seems completely bonkers, almost like a feverish work of fiction, you ain't heard nothing yet.
Isbel
A terrific literary drama and character piece that shows how the process of creating art can be seen differently by those doing it and those looking at it from the outside.
Rama Rao
Veteran actor Edward Everett Horton plays the role of timid employee, Simon Haldane who has ideas for improving his boss's business but lacks courage to tell him about it. However the boss's daughter Doris (Patsy Ruth Miller) who is bold and little boisterous knows exactly how to go about it. Doris gives Simon confidence in his ideas and the company benefits and promotes him to the general manager In the meantime problems arise for Simon since Agatha, the stenographer of the office is interested in him and so is a stranger who finds his address and comes to his house with her mother demanding that he marry the strange girl. Finally the problems are resolved and Simon and Doris head to the altar. The movie is directed by Archie Mayo and screenplay written by James Starr and Arthur Caesar. This is very funny movie and I am sure you will enjoy watching it.
MartinHafer
"Wide Open" is an unusual film in that Edward Everett Horton, a supporting actor, is in the lead--and it's a very pleasant little comedy. Simon is a VERY mousy guy who hates women (Horton). He also is mistreated by those around him because he's so meek. However, one day, out of the blue, 'Miss Jones' (Patsy Ruth Miller) shows up at his house and just won't get lost--no matter how much Simon hates and is afraid of women. When some folks at work find out that a woman is at Simon's house, they think that Simon has gotten married and throw them a party. What's next? Well see it for yourself. Just be prepared--it's a very sweet and funny conclusion to the story.In addition to these two actors, look for the Mack Sennett star, Louise Fazenda--the wife of producer Hal Wallis. And, note the many double-entendres which would NOT have been allowed after the Production Code would be enacted in mid-1934! Overall, a cute story--and ample proof that Horton was a very likable actor.
dougdoepke
Mild little comedy and early talky. Perhaps the main attraction is the fey Edward Everett Horton as a leading man. His addled attitude toward sex with the aggressive Julia (Miller) is often a hoot and makes for a different kind of farcical comedy. Just who is she and why has she moved into his house in a seductive manner. He's just too confused to send her away. So she stays, setting up one amusing seduction scene after another. Remember, this is pre-Code 1930, so bedroom set-ups are much more explicit. No real belly laughs here, but Horton does manage a different kind of role and the sort of mugging he made a career of. (Note-- one cutting edge of consumer technology in 1930 is a phonograph needle!)
boblipton
This is one of half a dozen early talkie comedies that Edward Everett Horton and Patsy Ruth Miller made. Although their comedy skills are very much in evidence -- I've enjoyed Mr. Horton in every role I've seen him in -- the screenplay is so obviously and mechanically written to hit all the keynotes of a one-set bed room farce that even Horton's mugging palled by the halfway mark. The usually delightful Louise Fazenda appears as an applicant for Mr. Horton's heart and Vera Lewis as a harpy of a mother is more hideous than funny.The movie does pick up when a rowdy bunch of well wishers break into Mr. Horton's house and musical interludes ensue. Still, this movie, while it has its moments, is more interesting as a study of the problems that Hollywood had in transitions from silent to sound comedies. Patsy Ruth Miller would be out of the business in a year and Edward Horton would work until his death, delighting everyone with his fussy manner and patented triple takes -- but in supporting roles.
