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The Story of Seabiscuit Don't bother with this one. Maybe the only good thing I can say about it is that it is nicely coloured, but then some of it is in black and white...Shirley plays with an unconvincing and inconsistent accent as Margaret O'Hara, niece of Shawn O'Hara (Barry Fitzgerald --why do they need to dress him in green all the time, just because he's meant to be Irish?), a bloke who picks horses with the help of 'little people'--i.e.pixies(!). She falls for a jockey, Ted Knowles (Lon McCallister), but the death of her jockey brother makes her wary of getting to know another one. I have no idea who exactly who or what is meant to be the main character of this film, the script is hopeless and the plot moves slower than a broken-down Kombi van in an uphill traffic jam. Oh yeah, there is also a horse in the background. I might have said I would recommend this to horse lovers, but really there isn't as much horse screentime as you would think. Maybe to Shirley fans, but then it's a bit to horrible for that either. |
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Baby, Take a Bow No, it isn't Citizen Kane, but its a sweet little film, perhaps one of Shirley's best. The plot zips along, and the acting performances of everyone (Shirley Temple, James Dunn, Claire Trevor) are entertaining. A string of stolen pearls brings Shirley's father under suspicion, although he is really innocent. Amazingly, the song "Baby, Take a Bow" is not sung in this film. Temple and Dunn perform "On Accounta I Love You" instead, which is good, but not great. Generally the song-and-dance scenes are the highlight of a Shirley film, but not here --it's ok, but compared to some of her others, it's not the best. Her acting here is sweet without being embarrassingly syrupy. Liz has sent in this great review --thankyou! Reader reviews are always appreciated! Contrary to what some reviews say , I think that Baby Take a Bow is quite entertaining. I showed it to one of my friends and she just fell in love with this film , she's not even very crazy about this particular child star. This movie has plenty of laughs and jokes , this Temple movie is my mom's fave and God knows shes heard " The Good Ship Lollipop" about 5 times and all the other Shirley Songs at least once. I recommend this movie. If I were a critic I'd give this movie 5 stars. This movie is my all time favorite Shirley film. |
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The Little Princess Appropriately, this is often commended as Shirley's best film. It was her first in colour, and combined with the luxurious production design this results in a picturesque film to look at. The story takes liberties from the book by Frances Hodgson Burnett but it still is nicely plotted as a period film with Shirley, formerly "a little princess" from India, who must work as a slave after her father leaves her penniless when he dies in the Boer War. The songs are just gorgeous and memorable (even if Shirley's ballet isn't really up to scratch). The film has often been noted as the one that proved Shirley could act; many people get teary-eyed at the end! Shirley was 11 in this film so her cuteness was waning. This is really a good thing as she is relying on her real talents here, which are perfectly exhibited. |
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The Little Colonel This is one of Shirley's best-known films, and it has been commented that even non-fans should like it. Personally, I don't really think it's one of her best. The plot tends to sag in places. It does, though, contain what is deservedly one of the most famous Shirley scenes, namely her staircase dance with Bojangles. This scene is just so loveable it makes you glad censors did not cut it as planned (for the racial sensitivities of showing a white girl and a black man dancing together! Thank goodness the times have changed!). It really shows of Shirley's amazing tap-dance skills at such a young age (six when she made the picture), and it goes without saying that Bojangles shows what a great talent he was as well. Shirley also sings "Love's Young Dream", not too bad, but it is like a lesser version of "Believe me, if all those endearing young charms". This is probably one of the funniest of Shirley's movies --it isn't a hilarious comedy, but some of the lines will make you chuckle. |
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The Littlest Rebel I find this to be very similar to The Little Colonel: The setting is similar, the cast is similar, the characters are similar, heck, even the titles are similar. It also has a Bojangles-Shirley dance with some stairs (but unfortunately, they do not dance up and down them) and another Thomas "Love's Young Dream" Moore song, "Believe me, if all those Endearing Young Charms" (which is actually better than "Love's Young Dream", it's an Irish folk song with poetic lyrics). Also a cute little "Polly Wolly Doodle". The story of this film is actually a little more serious. It has been called one of the most dramatically interesting of Shirley's movies, all I'm saying is if you think there are no on-screen deaths in Shirley Temple movies, think again. The costumes are better in this one, come to think of it, it is just generally more lavish in ways other than costume such as music (features a waltz by....Bach? I think its Brahms. Haven't played it in years : ), sets, camera, etc. Shirley again plays a stubborn little miss in the Old South with Bojangles playing a servant alongside her. Again the plot sags in places, although not quite as much as in The Little Colonel. Of course, all of Shirley's movies were meant to be 'fantasy' movies to escape from the real world, but the ending of this is really quite beyond belief, a little too saccharine. Generally, an OK movie that does feel a little like Fox thought, "Oh well, Colonel worked well, let's do another one". If you want a good Shirley movie, watch The Little Princess. |
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Heidi Again, not the best, not the worst. Undoubtly, the best scene is seeing Shirley be headbutted by a goat. Laugh factor very high (try it frame by frame and in slow motion). In other areas, the drama is OK, acting OK, costumes sweet. Shirley is beginning to look very pudgy in this film. This was going to be, after Wee Willie Winkie Shirley's second film as a 'serious drama actress', with no singing/dancing/etc. However, the number "In our little wooden shoes" was added in at the last minute, and it shows. Don't get me wrong, it is a catchy song, the dancing is elaborate and entrancing, however it looks out of place and the film ends up being a drama that suddenly, inexplicably, turns into a musical for five minutes. Another inexplicable thing is why the action is transported to Holland, away from Switzerland. It is a bit odd, even for a dream sequence. It has been remarked that the role of Heidi (written in 1880) seems tailor-made for Shirley. But let's not forget that the book was 'changed' a bit to make it suitable for this vehicle. All the same, the essense of the book remains and Heidi , though not her best film, is a sweet little dose of Shirleyness to pass time with. |