A Queridinha da Família

Shirley Temple is wonderful. Beyond that, this is a movie that works on many levels for me. Claire Trevor brings an added dimension to the loyal wife and mother, and the ever-hard-luck-bitten James Dunn (A Tree Grows In Brooklyn) is perfect as the ex-con father trying desperately to put his past behind him. Alan Dinehart's slick and sycophantic private detective -- an embittered and opportunistic ex-cop -- does his best to pray on people's fears and keep Dunn with no recourse from the gutter. James Flavin, who later made a career playing Irish cops in the city, plays one here, albeit generally higher in rank and nobility than most of his later characters. Shirley only has two songs and one nice dance number with Dunn, but does more acting than musical work here, and is quite good at both. This is fine family entertainment amidst a backdrop of struggling to survive while the malicious and hypocritical try to keep others down. Certainly, although the movie was made in 1934, its themes are as resonant as ever.

When I got this film from Netflix, it said that this film was Shirley's first starring full-length film. However, I noticed that "Stand Up and Cheer!" and "Stand Up and Cheer" (among others) came out a month earlier. In fact, about a half dozen Temple films all came out about that time. Perhaps they meant the first full-length film where she received top-billing--which is the case with "Baby Take a Bow".

The film begins with Eddie (James Dunn) getting out of prison and marrying his girlfriend, Kay (Claire Trevor). He then gets a job working as a chauffeur and several years pass. Now they STILL are amazingly happy and have the world's most perfect child, Shirley (Shirley Temple). But, into their idyllic world comes a serious problem--there is a jewel robbery and when their employer finds out that Eddie and his friend, Larry, both had been to prison, they are fired. A dogged cop, Welch, is convinced one or both of these men did it and he spends the rest of the film trying to return them to Sing Sing. Are they innocent? And, if so, who did it and how will they prove it? And, more importantly, will little Shirley's heart be broken?!

The film has a couple minor problems--though neither harms the film significantly. Welch is a bit one-dimensional and annoying--perhaps too annoying. Also, there is a song near the beginning that Shirley and James Dunn sing--and it's so sickeningly sweet that diabetics in the audience are encouraged to stop the film to check their blood sugar! However, the film uses a young Shirley well. She is awfully young and so she is given a part that is mostly comic relief--and so the plot itself does not rest on her small shoulders--a good decision in hindsight. And, despite the schmaltz, the film is enjoyable and fun.

Eddie Ellison (James Dunn) made a big mistake and ending up serving time in Sing Sing. However, his lovely fiancé, Kay (Claire Trevor) waits for him and even takes him to Niagara Falls to get married on the day he leaves prison. Now, six years later, they live in New York City with their little girl, Shirley (Shirley Temple). Eddie presently works as a chauffeur and even got his good buddy a job with the same company. But, a crooked insurance investigator is certain that Eddie will break the law again and he watches the home constantly. On the day of Shirley's birthday, Eddie and Shirley entertain guests with their jokes, songs, and dances. But, things get complicated when an old, thieving friend of Eddie's gives Shirley a "hot" pearl necklace. He does this to bring Eddie back into the criminal fold but Shirley thinks it is a birthday gift. A ton of confusion reigns soon after as Eddie tries to hide the necklace from the insurance man and Shirley believes it is all an elaborate game of hide and seek. Will Eddie get fingered? This is a fun movie with a few dark elements, surprising in a Temple film. Shirley is adorable, young and talented, displaying her amazing talents for comedy, song, and dance. Dunn, too, is a stitch as her joking father, who is trying his best to go straight, while Trevor is very beautiful and touching as the faithful wife and mother. All of the lesser actors fulfill their roles quite nicely, too. The colorized version I watched had nice sets, costumes, songs, plot elements, and direction. If you like light comedy and vaudeville-type song-and-stomp, this is a good choice for you. Although there is a touch of violence, the sunny nature of the main players and their antics make it almost a second cousin to a Marx Brothers flick. My recommendation is to take a dose of Shirley on a day without sunshine, you'll feel like new.

I love swimming around in these old movies. Very few of them are worth watching for themselves. But many of them have such strange narrative experiments. You just can't honk around today like this.

Here's what this is. It part prison picture in tone. Prison movies were a staple in that era because the system was considered to be inherently unjust, and good men could easily be sent to the bighouse, with cops usually depicted as incompetent or cruel.

Its part adventure/comedy, with stolen jewels, hidden and with open slapstick toward the end.

And it partly a show movie with a song and dance number, apparently recreated from a previous film.

The film itself is dull and cheap, but the idea behind it is wild. A pudgy 5 year old can carry a film?

Ted's Evaluation -- 1 of 3: You can find something better to do with this part of your life.

Baby Take A Bow is based on a Broadway play called Square Crooks and ran a respectable 150 performances in 1926 and also was a silent film in 1928. But noting in the credits of both the Broadway cast and the silent film I noted all the names save for an equivalent of Shirley Temple.

Fox films showed some good judgment in grafting Shirley Temple's child character into this version. A couple of guys played by James Dunn and Ray Walker are trying to go straight and are succeeding. Both are employed by a wealthy family as chauffeurs. Dunn and Walker are married to Claire Trevor and Dorothy Libaire respectively. But Dunn and Trevor have that little bundle from heaven named Shirley Temple.

Both these guys face a pair of menaces. A recently released con played by Ralf Harolde who tries to get them back in the life. And Alan Dinehart who is a private detective who would like to become a real cop, but they won't have him. His role model in law enforcement is Inspector Javert and he hounds Dunn and Walker especially after a jewel heist is pulled on their employer.

Of course it's Shirley who in her innocent way gets Dunn and Walker out of a potential jackpot. Dunn and Trevor both have trouble keeping up with her.

Fans of the eternal moppet will be pleased.