Impétueuse jeunesse

Eugene O'Neill's gentle comedy about an American family living in a small town in 1906 shows us that our problems haven't changed, only the way we deal with them.

The story centers on Richard (Eric Linden) as he's about to graduate from high school. His summer is spent courting Muriel (Cecelia Parker) and planning to go to Yale in the fall. But he's restless without knowing why. His older brother (Frank Albertson) treats him like a kid, and his father (Lionel Barrymore) is having business troubles. And then there's drunken Uncle Sid (Wallace Beery) who breezes in and out of the house.

The mother (Spring Byington) is busy with the younger children (Mickey Rooney, Bonita Granville) and the spinster aunt (Aline MacMahon). Feeling alienated and alone, Richard goes to town with a friend (Edward Nugent) and gets mixed up with a woman from another city (Helen Flint) who's passing through town. Richard has his rite of passage and learns something important about himself.

Linden is excellent as the callow youth caught between adolescence and adulthood. His bravado shows itself in spouting poetry and speeches from plays. He's all talk. Beery gets top billing because of his box-office pull but plays a supporting role here. He's quite good as the boozy uncle who's sort of courting MacMahon (always good). Barrymore, Byington, Granville, Rooney, and Parker are solid.

But it's Helen Flint as Belle who nearly steals the film as the fast-talking city woman. She's excellent.

I love period movies and this one captures the time and place as well as it is possible. The humor is gentle and very touching. The scene of the 4th of July morning, when all the young boys come out with their firecrackers never fails to put me on the floor laughing.

Wallace Berry's delivery of the one word line "soup?" is almost worth the price of admission by itself.

I heartily recommend this movie to anyone who has a heart. It will be touched

This film is a veritable treasure for those who appreciate small-town Americana at the turn of the century. Set in New England in 1906, we see the plethora of events typical of the era: the high school graduation with individual seniors singing, reciting poetry and the valedictorian speech; the Fourth of July celebration with fireworks and picnics; the careful relationships between the young boys and girls; the close-knit family life with a sister and brother of the parents living with them. I thoroughly enjoyed Clarence Brown's depiction of this lost innocent era, which produced a warm glow within me as I watched. There are very few belly laughs - one I remember was when the protagonist Eric Linden says to his not-so-clever girl (Cecilia Parker) "I was born 100 years before my time" and she responds "I was born 10 days before mine." But I found myself smiling often at the goings on. Eric Linden carries the film beautifully.

The rest of the cast is superb: Lionel Barrymore and Spring Byington as Linden's parents; Mickey Rooney and Bonita Granville as his younger siblings; Aline MacMahon as Byinton's spinster sister and Wallace Beery as Barrymore's alcoholic brother. But I was particularly impressed with Helen Flint playing the vamp who Linden gets involved with when he was drowning his sorrows. The title, by the way, is a line from the poem "The Rubáiyát of Omar Khayyám."

In a small American town, a young man from a good family faces some of the realities of maturity.

Clarence Brown's fond recreation of Eugene O'Neill's popular stage play AH, WILDERNESS! makes a wonderful celebration of basic American virtues. Attention to detail, coupled with excellent performances & MGM's best production values, results in a film full of quiet joys & sorrows.

The story follows young Eric Linden (in his best film role) during the one month period from his 1906 high school graduation until the Fourth of July, as he deals with the pangs & confusions of puppy love. His yearnings for his pretty neighbor and his experimentation with an older, much rougher sort of female, perfectly underscore the angst so often found in young adults regardless of the era. This is brilliantly displayed in the film's most hilarious sequence, the graduation ceremony which Linden hopes to sabotage, which reveals the honest insecurities and mawkishness of the senior class.

Wallace Beery, playing Linden's dyspeptic bachelor uncle receives top billing, and he is a scene stealer with much experience, but he acts alongside an equally good Lionel Barrymore, as Linden's father, who quietly underplays his role as head of the family. Each actor had a powerful screen persona, however neither attempt to dominate what is in effect a prime example of ensemble acting from the entire cast.

As Barrymore's spinster sister, Aline MacMahon is especially fine, her romantic feelings for Beery barely canceled beneath her prim exterior. Spring Byington, as Barrymore's wife, shows a touching sensitivity in her sometimes flustered, nervous concern for her brood.

Playing Linden's collegiate brother, Frank Albertson is good-natured and sturdy, and in a poignant moment gives a gentle parody of his own considerable musical talent by crooning ‘When Other Lips' from The Bohemian Girl. Bonita Granville & Mickey Rooney portray the youngest siblings in the family, with Rooney in particular having some very funny moments.

In smaller roles, Cecilia Parker is all innocence as Linden's sweetheart, while crusty old Charley Grapewin almost spits vinegar as her cantankerous father. Helen Flint gives a forceful performance, considering Production Code restrictions, of the wanton woman who attempts seducing the much younger Linden.

Movie mavens will recognize an uncredited Eily Malyon as the family's Irish maid.

The title is an ironic reference to a line from The Rubáiyát of Omar Khayyám. Will Rogers was originally pegged to play the role which ultimately went to Barrymore, but he backed out in order to make his tragic plane flight to Alaska.

MGM apparently had very high hopes for "Ah Wilderness!" when it came to the Oscars and according to IMDB the studio put on a concerted campaign to get it nominated. But, apparently, the Academy voters were just not that impressed by the film and it didn't receive a single nomination. After seeing it, I think I can understand why.

While the basic story is engaging, as you see a family in early 20th century America during a summer, there is a problem with the main focus of the show. It focuses on the second child, Richard. Richard is about 17-18 and is very opinionated and full of himself...much like MANY 17-18 year-olds (trust me...I taught high school!). But Richard goes above and beyond...to the point of being irritating. Yes, he was full of himself...but also came off as an annoying jerk...at least to me. I loved the other characters...but considering most of the focus was on Richard, I just finished the film feeling a bit let down. I frankly expected much more...especially from MGM.