Aaron Slick from Punkin Crick

I have to admit I watched this oddity out of curiosity because of Dinah Shore's oft repeated put-downs of it. Whenever her film career was brought up over the years on her television show Dinah would mockingly mention this film with a wry smile and a chuckle, it's easy to see why that would be her reaction.

Maybe not the worst movie ever made but a dumb, flat footed concoction to be sure. If the horrible title wasn't enough of a warning, although the alternate title "Marshmallow Moon" isn't much better, the basic plot summary should warn off most people. Stereotypes abound and the musical numbers are mediocre but it has nice color photography and an amusing supporting performance by Minerva Urecal. As for the two leads, Dinah is almost idiotically naive and too chipper for words, Alan Young starts out as an annoying bumpkin but gets better as the film goes along. A forgettable enterprise best viewed, if at all, by those who enjoy campy foolishness.

Fun to watch Alan Young and Dinah Shore together. Silly musical didn't age well but still fun to watch.

May not be one of the greats...but I would have thought it well-known enough that some over-45 IMDb contributor would have compiled a review by now.

Alan Young makes a pleasant enough Aaron Slick, a likeable hayseed you would expect to see in GREEN ACRES. After Josie (a young Dinah Shore) is tricked into selling her farm she gets herself mixed up with the Mob until homespun Crick comes to her rescue. Very much a product of 50's American provincial theater.

Few laughs, a few songs..nothing much to remember five minutes after its finished. Hasn't stood the test of time either and is dated as all hell now.

At best, this old fashioned, country mouse versus city slickers story is amusing and disarmingly cute. At worst, it occasionally becomes dull. There are several things that make the movie possibly worth watching.

First, there's Alan Young. He's kind of a low rent Danny Kay with a gentle boyish style of acting reminiscent of Harry Langdon. He became a big star with the talking horse comedy series "Mr. Ed" in the early 60's. This movie shows that Young is talented and entertaining even without a talking horse. As far as I can tell, this was his only starring movie. Its too bad. He has a lovely and unique quality that should have led to a much bigger career. He makes every scene he's in amusing and interesting to watch.

Second, there's Robert Merrill. He became famous as a great Metropolitan Opera singer. This was his only straight starring acting role. He is actually quite natural and funny. Again we have an actor who shows a lot of screen presence. Unfortunately, the Hollywood studios didn't agree. He went back to the opera stage permanently after this film failed at the box office.

Third, we have Dinah Shore. She was famous as a singer and successful as a television talk show host later in the 1960's and 70's. This seems to be her only real staring movie role. She comes off as a low rent Doris Day. Unlike Merrill or Young, its hard to see her really being a movie star, she has a dull but pleasantly folksy personality, perhaps best suited to second banana roles. She probably made a good decision to stick with the singing.

This is a sweet movie which I think kids 8-12 would really enjoy. It should probably be seen in conjunction with the 1940 and 1959 versions of "Li'l Abner." Some of the humor matches up.

I won't argue that it is a lost masterpiece, but it is a generally pleasant little musical 75% of the time. If you want to be put into a mild and nostalgic mood, give it a try.

This is a wonderful show with an outstanding cast. The movie is based on the play Aaron Slick From Punkin Crick, a delightful play. When I was in Jr. High School we put this play on in our church and I played the part of Aaron Slick. So.i was quite naturally drawn to this title on Netflix.

This was the time period when musicals were popular but somehow this movie missed the mainstream even with such a power house lineup that included Robert Merrill, Dinah Shore and Edy Williams. One cannot go wrong by spending time with this movie. It is a great family movie! So grab the kids pop some corn and snuggle up and enjoy some fine entertainment. I had a blast as a kid participating in the play as Aaron Slick.