Banjo

Caught this movie this morning.

A rather boring Shirley Temple type movie unfortunately neither the lead child actress nor her costars have any acting ability and seem to just read off cue cards and pout out their lines. The children who play the friends of the lead child actress are the worst too- they look as if someone is holding up their lines on a board off camera so the kids woodenly read them .awful.

I wasnt familiar with any of the actors except a cameo from character actor Kenneth MacDonald who you might recognize from Three Stooges shorts particulary "Hold That Lion". Overall a lousy movie.

9 year old Patricia Warren's Georgia life is turned upside down after her father dies in a horse riding accident. She and her dog Banjo are sent to live with her uptight aunt Elizabeth in Boston. Elizabeth is not eager to have the child and not happy at all with the dog. She had recently broken off her engagement to Dr. Bob. Pat decides to do some matchmaking. This is a lot of down-home sweetness flowing like molasses. It starts with bird-dogging in the old south to plenty of doggie slapstick. It's all very broad and played to its utter golly gee most by young Sharyn Moffett. It's just so broad.

We watched this movie last night with our 10 year old son.... he loved it! We are all dog lovers so we really enjoyed this

wonderful movie about a girl and her dog....why don't they make movies like this anymore? Another great movie that Sharyn Moffet is in is Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House..which is also a good family movie.

Imagine "Pollyanna" meets "little orphan Annie " with a Shirley Temple touch for good measure;you get the picture?After all,Pollyanna -who came years later- was received by her aunt into her desirable mansion(although Jacqueline White is younger than Jane Wyman ) ,and the auntie is in love with a doctor (himself younger than Richard Egan);and she's got a dog (see the title) like little orphan Annie.

That said, our young heroine is less good than Pollyanna:does't she ask a "true" gun to her dad to kill the swamp cat with her three chums ,Ezechiel,and the charming black boys ,Genesis and Exodus (!)?;this is a well told story ,well constructed - a good idea is to make the "swamp cat" appear in the flesh whereas the viewer thought it was only a legend.Younger children fond of pets should like it.

Best line: the girl to her aunt:"you're an old maid! " whereas she is still an attractive young woman.

This is a B movie to be sure, but very interesting. Sharyn Moffet plays the orphaned Pat, who is sent to live with her Aunt in Boston after having spent all of her life on the old family farm down south. Banjo is the name of her beloved dog-a pointer. Who also accompanies Pat to Boston. Misadventures soon follow the pair. If I say anymore, then you will know how it ends. It is always a pleasure to see the unpretentious Sharyn Moffet on screen.

This film was made to appeal to juvenile audiences, but the entire family will enjoy it as well.