My Best Girl

Mary Pickford is as charming and funny as ever in this one. Her role gives her a chance to do what she did best, and it's a lot of fun to watch. 'Buddy' Rogers also makes his character likable and sympathetic, and the combination works very well. While the story is nothing really new - a poor girl working in a store falls in love with the rich owner's son - it's filmed with thoughtfulness, creativity, and plenty of humor.

Even if you don't like romantic comedies, it would be hard not to enjoy the scenes with Pickford and Rogers together. They are winsome, but usually avoid becoming overly cute. The scenario gives them just enough material to work with, and the settings and props are made to fit right in with the engaging characters. Their respective families - sources of difficulty and complications for them both, although ultimately they too are mostly sympathetic - are also nicely worked into the picture.

Pickford certainly had more challenging roles, but "My Best Girl" is one of her most enjoyable films to watch. It is (seemingly) effortlessly entertaining while also letting you into the lives of its characters, with a perfect balance of romance and comedy. Highly recommended.

There is a bittersweet quality to "My Best Girl" which has nothing to do with the on-screen action. This was Pickford's last silent film, and as such heralds the end of an era. Though she would continue with her career until 1933, sound and its early limitations really knocked her off her exalted pedestal.

It is also the film in which she co-starred with Buddy Rogers who became her husband for over forty years. (In the process she had to divorce Douglas Fairbanks, and anyone who cares even vaguely about silent film will have certain pangs of regret about that.)

In itself it is a beautifully constructed, engaging romance. Unusual for a Pickford feature, it tends to outstay its welcome towards the end, where Mary's histrionics are laid on a little thick. Buddy I find irritatingly enthusiastic - can't the man just laugh without slapping his knees?

But let's not nit pick. "My Best Girl" is a totally engaging piece of fluff; not up to the standards that Mary set in "Sparrows" and "Stella Maris", but still amongst her most accessible features today. See it if you can with the Gaylord Carter organ track.

My Best Girl is Mary Pickford's last silent film...the last big go around for America's Sweetheart. In this film, she goes back to her roots...she plays someone her own age. Unlike the gothic Sparrows, or the poor low class lady in Suds, Mary comes off as striking and fills the screen with her beauty and charm. She plays a stock girl in a large department store, who falls in love with the owner's son, which at first she doesn't realize. She has to deal with her strange family, where they all look to her for leadership. The owner's son (Buddy Rogers, whom Mary later really marries) must deal with his parents and other girlfriend when he too returns her love. What's charming about this picture, is when I watched it late at night recently, is to notice how much the world has really changed since 1927. Remember when a family actually owned a department store instead of faceless boards of directors and changing CEOs? And how the cash registers rang up 5 cents for a total purchase? How the department stores has sales people every few feet to help you? How the street was filled with cars that now can only be found in museums? How innocent the dating was reflected in film...kissing was like...going all the way! It is also interesting to notice how the rich were shown on film in the 1920s. I'll bet most people in the audience could only dream of homes like those shown. And that all the actors and actresses you see are now gone, their image lives on in film..which is a moment captured in time forever.

"My Best Girl" is the downright American love story, with Mary Pickford (the America's Sweetheart) and Charles 'Buddy' Rogers (the America's Boyfriend) wooing each other on screen in 1927, and ten years after, they were married to each other - a union lasted 42 years for the rest of Pickford's lifetime through 1979. An enviable love story.

The (silent) film is directed by Sam Taylor (who collaborated on many a Harold Lloyd hilarious fun capers). On the DVD case, it has "Script: Hope Loring, with Mary Pickford and Charles "Buddy" Rogers." Charles Rogers, so handsome, young and charming, and quite an athletic runner. Director Taylor included familiar treatment with main characters standing in the stream of traffic, cars swishing by near-miss, not lacking in car chase or chasing after car scenario - but done in a most endearing way, especially the sequence between Pickford's Maggie Johnson riding at the back of a truck, while Rogers' Joe Grant repeatedly trying to catch up with her. Clearly two persons quite smitten with each other - so lovely together without a care in the world.

The DVD restored version (supervised by Keith Lawrence, 1999 Milestone Film & Video) has an outstanding symphonic score by David Michael Frank, performed by the Bohuslav Martinu Philharmonic Zlin (Czechoslovakia), conducted by Bill Motzing. Simply love the music! It is so appealing and perfectly fitting to the fairy tale tempo of "My Best Girl": love at first sight, rags to riches, family strife and love obstacles, humor and dramatics, tears and joy all rolled into one. Mary Pickford is THE quintessential star, queen of the silent film era. She's so good at what she does, romantic comedy or tough drama (as in "Sparrows" 1926), and adept in physical moves, too. The introduction of the Shop Girl in the beginning: the juggling of the pots, that foot in the pan 'gag', the slips a-slipping thing, all delivered with such impeccable timing. Storyline progression played on mistaken assumptions, with timely humor and sweetness of the heart.

Don't let 'silent film' deter you: it's a lively piece, with lots of plot turns and dramatics, and the cast, besides the adorable pairing of Pickford and Rogers, the supporting roles from Pa Johnson and Ma Johnson, sister Liz and sleazy John Junior, down to the sidewalk 'crippled Pencil Peddler' (actually a critical small part in the love story of Maggie and Joe), are engaging as any talking pictures, maybe more so. The "Breaking Joe's Heart" segment - just watching how Mary Pickford played her scenes, running the gamut of emotions, is satisfying by itself.

Everything about this film is quality: the cinematography (the montage composition and angles following the couple, the multiple street scenes - sweet rainy or sad rainy), set design (that crate of a box where Joe and Maggie had their lunch seemed like Paradise till the camera pulled back and revealed wide) and sound (the punctuated cash registry bell, the entry of door bell rings matching pauses in the music) all contributed to "My Best Girl" being a not to be missed cinematic experience. Have a dose of fairy tale now and then. Check out the DVD, relax and enjoy it!

Wow, what a wonderful little film! While I have a VERY hard time giving movies a rating of 10, this one sure came close. No, on second thought, it is about the best example of the genre in silent form, so it merits a 10. For its day, it's an absolutely great romantic comedy that is sure to even get the curmudgeons out there to smile! And, the best part about it is that film is not overly sentimental or sappy--it just exudes quality and craftsmanship.

Mary Pickford stars as a sweet and simple girl who works as a stock girl for a 5 and 10 cent store. A new employee (Buddy Rogers--the future husband of Ms. Pickford in real life) is hired and it's her job to train him. Unknown to her and the other employees, the young man is actually the son of the owner of this large chain of stores--in other words, he's loaded! But, his father is a practical man and wants him to try to work his way up the company ladder and find out about it from the inside.

At the same time, the boy is already engaged to a rich society girl that the boy's mom has picked out for him. However, over time, Mary's sweetness wins him over--all during which she has no idea who he really is.

Instead of telling you more (and thus spoiling the film), I want to point out just why the film excels. While very romantic and even a tad melodramatic at times, the film keeps a pretty light mood as well--striking a wonderful balance. The production values are absolutely top-notch--excellent direction, acting and cinematography--with the exception of one small scene in the end as the car races to the ship--it did look pretty cheesy. But this can certainly be forgiven because the film is also written so well and really draws you in to caring about the young couple. This film is about as good as it gets for a Mary Pickford film, though I also greatly enjoyed her films DADDY LONG LEGS and SUDS.

PS--The video by Milestone was great. The print was nearly perfect, the music excellent and after the movie was over, they included home movies of Mary's real-life marriage to Buddy Rogers in 1937--a wonderful addition to this great film.