Grande dame d'un jour

Glenn Ford and Betty Davis in color fall short competing with the BW original version with lesser known but more convincing actors. Lets face facts. Glenn Ford never played a convincing bad guy/bad boy. On the other hand little known Warren William had to convince the viewers that he wasn't a bad guy all the time. Dave the Dude is basically a bad guy with a touch of good. Even his act of kindness to Annie is self serving. This movie is a perfect example that technical advances don't make a better story, lesser known actors can play the role better, and age can define whether any work of art can stand up to the ultimate critic - Time. Different audiences, tastes, standards and means of portraying the play, are the ultimate judge regarding the worth of the production.

It's not often (especially these days) that a character actor or actress pulls a leading role. This movie rates my 8/10 vote mostly on the strength of the marvelous character performance of May Robson in the central role as Apple Annie, an elderly down-and-out who must somehow preserve the imaginary persona she has built for herself to her daughter, soon to arrive from Paris with a prospective husband in tow. Robson was nominated for an Oscar, as lead, and richly deserved it for her tragicomic characterization.

Frank Capra's excellent direction (also nominated for an Oscar) keeps the plot unfolding with the speed and apparently effortless fluidity so characteristic of the comedies of this period. Capra did not win the Oscar that year, but this film launched his series of feel-good dramas and sparkling comedies that netted him three subsequent Oscars.

But this is far more than a feel-good comedy/drama. It's an excellent movie that stands on its merits outside the genre, with a solid supporting cast. Capra's own remake (Pocketful of Miracles), doesn't meet the standard he himself set here. And although I have tremendous respect for Bette Davis, who played the lead in the remake, it is the difference between a good performance and an exceptional portrayal. Now that I've seen this version, May Robson simply IS Apple Annie.

This is the first step by Capra to celebrity. It's a warm and charming comedy, a kind of fairy tale set in the early 1930's, with all the tips that made gangster movies of that time so precious. There are the nicknames (Happy McGuire, who don't smile), the words (a kisser is a woman's lips) and even the music (Hear Ned Sparks whistle The Prisonner's Song when there are cops around The Dude night club.) All the actors are great, but May Robson gives a great emotional performance. Even if this movie is very representative of the 1930's, it stills

sounds very fresh today. Please, don't look at the version that Capra will made in the early 1960's, with Bette Davis. This is the real thing!

This sublime, charming fairy tale, about an old apple seller (the lovely May Robson) who is helped by a gangster named Dave the Dude (Warren William) and his buddies in order to make her rich and respectable for her returning daughter and in-law from Spain, is conceivably Capra's freshest, most underrated classic, perhaps with the exception of "The Bitter Tea of General Yen", which was also released in 1933. While "Bitter Tea" was a commercial flop, "Lady For a Day" proved to be Capra's first big success with the Depression-era audiences and a sign of things to come. A must-see!

Others have said it all! However, check out the beautiful love scene photographed through a glass fountain. Absolutely GORGEOUS! Solid performances from the stars right down to the supporting actors. I think we hardly ever see great supporting actors like these any more.

Frank Capra wrote about this movie in his autobiography, apparently one of his first hits, using the recipe of lesser-known actors, a great scriptwriter, and a low budget. He relies heavily on the great supporting actors available to him and gave them all a Runyon-esquire quality which never fails to please. They are all just great! Check this movie out! It gets better every time I see it!