A Kiss for Corliss

Plot-- A suburban teen causes a community uproar when she fakes a diary entry suggesting she spent a night with a much older man.

I didn't find the movie as bad as many other reviewers. Maybe it's because I don't hold comedy shtick to the same standard of plausibility as, say, crime drama. To me, the main standard of comedy is whether it's funny or not. This one's only mildly so, certainly not enough to fill out and hour and a half. Still, the madcap has its moments—Bobby Ellis as the officious teen newshound, Temple as a winsome 40's youngster, and Tully when he's blowing only half a gasket. And is Corliss's mom (Holden) really Dracula's Daughter (1936) who scared the pants off me many years ago!

Actually, the movie's a pretty good look at teen mores, circa 1949. I hadn't heard the phrase 'breech of promise' for decades, til this film, (deflowering a maiden on the promise of marriage and then reneging). There's also quite a bit of innuendo swirling around the misspent night—more than I would expect. But then that's half the draw, seeing the virginal Temple flirt with adult themes.

All things considered, it was probably wise for Shirley to exit the business since her movie image was so confining and not likely to change, as this 90-minutes shows. (For example, note how her "memory loss" personality mimics her moppet cuteness.) No, the movie's only memorable for being her last. But then, despite the general mediocrity, it does have its moments.

While parts of this picture are mildly amusing, all in all it is a failure. The storyline is convoluted and occasionally plain weird and the characters (including Corliss Archer, played by Shirley Temple) are off-putting. By 1949, Temple had lost all her pre-adolescent charm and had failed to develop any redeeming qualities that she was able to bring to bear in this film. Everyone, including David Niven in his role as Kenneth Marquis, is horribly overacting (the sole exception is the dog that does a decent job as the family pet). I really cannot imagine what Richard Wallace as director and Howard Dimsdale and F. Hugh Herbert as writers were thinking when they concocted this mess.

With the failure Bonnie Prince Charlie to reestablish David Niven as a box office star, that began a period for several years where Niven was scrambling for work. It's why he appears essentially as a guest star in a big screen version of the Meet Corliss Archer radio series, A Kiss For Corliss.

Shirley Temple is the star and this is the second time she appears as the eternally innocent Brooklyn bobbysoxer, she did Kiss And Tell four years earlier. Fans of the radio show probably were disappointed.

Temple's father is Tom Tully who is a lawyer and representing the third wife of playboy David Niven in a divorce suit. His daughter is having her usual troubles with her boy next door boyfriend Darryl Hickman. In a Lucy Ricardo type scheme she fakes a diary where says she's involved with Niven. The 'diary' falls into the wrong hands and Niven almost winds up marry Temple. I suppose that was better than That Hagen Girl where Ronald Reagan actually does marry Shirley Temple.

This is a most unfunny comedy. Niven looks embarrassed to be appearing in this. But he was a recent widower with two small sons and declining box office. He appeared in a few films like this in secondary roles to support his family.

Shirley Temple would also quit the movies after A Kiss For Corliss. No one in this film comes out with any career enhancement.

Musta been some awful idiots who didn't have a funny bone. Totally silly film. Start to finish. Big problem I have is it was a follow up to a movie thats technically not on a legit dvd. o_O Oh it's out there just not officially. Still the movie is up there in funniest videos of that era. I mainly know Shirley for the obvious and Heidi. (I'm Sarah!!!) Been watching Westerns but might swing a little for a humor few. This one was a treat.. David was hilarious. I know him from 2 movies at least My Man Godfrey and um this Pink Panther movie. The way he does his eyes... They is pure classic fun. I'm not bothering to give the plot away.

Quality: A Nose and 9/10 Entertainment: 10/10 Re-Playable: 8/10

Shirley Temple tries to make her boyfriend angry by writing in her diary about her imaginary affair with David Niven. Later, when she's pretending to have amnesia, her father and David Niven find out and proceed to torture everyone.

It's a sequel to Miss Temple's 1945 vehicle, KISS AND TELL, in which she plays Corliss Archer, a fifteen-year-old girl created in a short story by F. Hugh Herbert. Miss Archer's sixteenth year of life lasted from 1943 through 1956 on the radio, and 1951, 1952, 1954 and 1955 on syndicated television. At least five actresses performed the role, plus however many did so in the stage play in 1943.

This was Miss Temple's last motion picture feature, and her most poorly received. It's episodic nature and idiotic plotting explain why. This was the period of time when America began to look upon teen-agers as a separate demographic, and all the old, stupid chestnuts were pulled out of the ashes for this one.