Motion Picture Review Digest (Jan-Dec 1937)

48 MOTION PICTURE REVIEW DIGEST 45 FATHERS— Continued Audience Suitability Ratings "The usual, slightly dense adult is helped out of the time-worn romantic entanglement by the inevitably precocious child in this moderately amusing picture. . . The picture is unobjectionable for all." T. J. Fitzmorris 1 America p216 D 4 '37 "Action and mirth characterize this story. Family." Am Legion Auxiliary "Family." Calif Cong of Par & Teachers "The hoydenish little star, Jane Withers, fares better in this picture than in any of her previous ones — production values are higher, the story has been given more careful consideration and members of the supporting cast are given an opportunity to contribute to the fun. Family." Calif Fed of Business & Professional Women's Clubs "Good. Appealing to children because of animals and ventriloquism; to adults for the ingenuity of a child. Family." DAR "A hilarious, if exaggerated, comedy which will amuse family audiences." Nat Soc of New England Women "Light, refreshing entertainment. Wholesome family picture." S Calif Council of Fed Church Women Fox W Coast Bui O 30 '37 "[It will] provide great fun and much hilarity for [Jane's] audience. . . Jane Withers, an excellent little actress, does very good work and is ably assisted by a most competent supporting cast. Family." + Gen Fed of Women's Clubs (W Coast) O 20 '37 "Undoubtedly the best of the Jane Withers comedies to date, this is an absurdly funny story. . . Adolescents, 12-16: good; children, 8-12: good." + Motion Pict R p5~N '37 "General patronage." Nat Legion of Decency D 9 '37 "Family." Sel Motion Pict p6 N 1 '37 "A typical Jane Withers picture, full of noise and rough-house. Family." Wkly Guide N 27 '37 Neivspaper and Magazine Reviews "Sprinkled generously with laughs, gags, and topped off by one of the funniest courtroom scenes yet, Jane Withers' latest picture comes to the Roxy as a welcome relief from the long series of apologetically hokumed films that generally constitute child stars' vehicles. . . All in all, it's good fun this week at the Roxy, and a special treat for the youngsters." Jesse Zunser + Cue p44 D 11 '37 " '45 Fathers' presents the 20th-century juvenile in a happy mixture of fun and pathos, comedy and serious drama, and the Withers charge does nobly for all concerned. . . A full measure of credit goes to the writers who adapted the story. They have given '45 Fathers' the benefit of clever writing and have charged it with colorful situations and good, snappy dialogue." Robert Joseph + Hollywood Spec p9 O 23 '37 "Whether you like the show or not will depend on your age and your willingness to subscribe to the thesis that a ten-year-old is far smarter than her elders. . . As far as I am able to judge these juvenileracting field days, I should say that Miss Withers tries a bit too hard. . . In any case '45 Fathers' is a natural for the family trade and the Jane Withers fans." Howard Barnes N Y Herald Tribune p8 D 11 '37 "Jane Withers's pictures, which seldom get to Broadway, are evidently designed for the juvenile trade. The newest, '45 Fathers,' has the Hartmans in roles almost as conspicuous and certainly twice as effective as the youngstar's, and the Hartmans have something to offer adult audiences as well as children. Their comedy, scattered though it is, contributes the bright spots of the picture, one much in need of brightness." Eileen Creelman -\ NY Sun p20 D 11 '37 "[It] is an inoffensive comedy, earmarked for the family trade and notable chiefly for its introduction of Paul and Grace Hartman, a comic adagio team heretofore restricted to the night club milieu. No one, of course, can steal a picture from a child star; but the Hartmans come satisfactorily close." F. S. Nugent H NY Times p22 D 11 '37 "Little Miss Withers does well enough with her role and good work is done by the supporting cast. But the narrative is too stereotyped for them to do much with it. The result is considerably less than satisfactory." William Boehnel 1 N Y World-Telegram p9 D 11 '37 "This time Broadway's dancing Hartmans and good cast enliven the familiar juvenilia with an unexpected number of laughs." Newsweek p31 D 20 '37 "Redeeming feature: the dancing Hartmans, disguised as The Marvelous McCoys, adding ventriloquism to their repertory." Time p50 D 6 '37 Trade Paper Reviews "Versatile Jane Withers rowdies her way through an amusing comedy which will entertain adults and send the [children] into convulsions. Family." -f Boxoffice p25 O 23 '37 " '45 Fathers' is better than average entertainment for a child-starring vehicle. . . [It] is a welcome piece of entertainment for any bill, and should especially attract the family trade." + Film Daily p9 O 20 '37 + Motion Pict Daily p8 O 18 '37 "A top-notch comedy, this was produced as a B picture but it tops a lot of the so-called A product. Primarily a top dual offering, it can go single, with shorts, in lots of locations. Estimate: very good comedy." + Phila Exhibitor p36 N 1 '37 "Jane Withers is getting a bit chubbier but this picture will help her regardless. . . The Hartmans are the standouts. While the box office potentialities are not brilliant, for a 'B' feature its chances are fairly good. . . '45 Fathers' is better entertainment for children than adults but far from a bore for the + — Variety pl7 D 15 '37 "This Jane Withers starrer will string right along with the moppet's previous productions from 20th-Fox and is set as a money-maker." + Variety (Hollywood) p3 O 14 '37 FORTY NAUGHTY GIRLS. RKO 62y2min S 24 '37 Cast: James Gleason. ZaSu Pitts. Mar jorie Lord Director: Edward F. Cline Screen writer: John Grey Based on the novel The Riddle of the Forty Naughty Girls by Stuart Palmer. A mystery story with a backstage atmosphere. See issue of September 27, 1937 for other reviews of this film + + Exceptionally Good; + Good; ^ Fair; — -f Mediocre; — Poor; Exceptionally Poor