Chatterbox

Chatterbox is a really innocent film that could actually use an update today in the sense that some things that were done in the Thirties might seem as camp to us now as Anne Shirley's mother's favorite role from the Victorian Age.

Anne Shirley a devoted daughter to her late mother who was a prominent stage actress during the Victorian Era dreams of success on the stage much to the dismay of her down to earth father Edward Ellis. He wishes she'd just settle down and marry a responsible young man which doesn't include their farm hand George Offerman or Phillips Holmes, a rich kid who'd rather paint than make money. Holmes is as much a trial to his father Granville Bates as Shirley is to Ellis.

Anyway when a small theater company wants to revive the play, Anne eagerly wants the part and gets it of course on the strength of her name. But with changing public taste what was great Victorian melodrama back in the day is now high camp and played absolutely straight might bring down the house.

We hear about many of the stage legends of the past and the names come down to us, but you never see the works revived because public tastes have changed. With film you can measure the changing tastes of the public and when reviewing items for this forum you always have to try and watch it through the eyes of the public of the time as well as through your own. Sometimes films are hopelessly dated and you must say so.

However Chatterbox is an interesting film because it deals with the phenomenon of changing public tastes in a gentle manner. I daresay it could be remade today and some of the work that was done on the stage then would be camp today.

Not everything lasts forever.

Charming film about a country girl named Jenny (Anne Shirley) with big dreams and her head in the clouds. She dreams of following in her late mother's footsteps and becoming a stage actress. Through a series of events she finds her dream actually coming true. At least that's what she thinks, as she's really being used by an unscrupulous producer who knows she's terrible and has cast her in a comedy while poor Jenny thinks she's playing a straight drama.

Anne Shirley is the whole show here. She has some good support from the likes of Edward Ellis, Erik Rhodes, Phillips Holmes, and Margaret Hamilton (in one of her more approachable roles). Oh and Lucille Ball (with platinum blonde hair!) has a small but amusing part. But Anne Shirley is the star in every sense of the word. She's such a treat to watch. Her sensitive, lovable performance carries the movie. Her portrayal of Jenny Yates is one of the more endearing characterizations I've ever seen on film. It's impossible not to like this girl and still have a heart. It's a very pleasant, enjoyable film with some nice comedic touches and a little bit of romance too. Strays off course slightly at the climax but it ends well. Give it a shot and I'm sure you won't be disappointed.

A Good movie with a good cast. Anne Shirley is one of those forgotten actresses of the 1930's and people should take a second look at what she has done. The Chatterbox is a "B" movie but it still should be put on DVD so new generations can see these wonderful performances.

I do not want to write anything that would spoil someone's interest in wanting to see this movie. I would recommend this movie to movie goers who are not happy these days with what Hollywood is producing. The older movies are classics and be available to a hungry movie fan wanting good entertainment.

So check on the Internet and look up these wonderful movies and if it is not available make a request of either TCM to show it or find out which studio produced it and see if it will becoming out on DVD anytime soon.

CHATTERBOX is a combination of drama and comedy.. The film was less predictable than I thought. Jenny (Anne Shirley), a young girl from Vermont, wants to be an actress. Her mother was an actress and her most famous role was in the 1890's stage play "Virtue's Reward". Jenny is a bit otherwordly, living in a world of her own, the bygone world of the 1890's. She meets a young artist/painter Phil (Phillips Holmes). She is secretly in love with him. He appears to be not interested in her. Reluctantly he takes her to a theatrical company in New York where she can get a part in her favorite play "Virtue's Reward": This melodramatic play has now become a comedy, but she doesn't know that and she takes the part very seriously. Phil worries about what will happen when she finds out the truth about the whole thing.

This is a wonderful film from start to satisfying finish. Perfect acting by the entire cast. Young Anne Shirley gives a terrific performance. She's very intense and she makes even the comedy parts dramatic and honest. Her trustfulness and enthusiasm are poignant. The very talented Phillips Holmes (now undeservedly degraded to B-films) is also surprisingly good and totally convincing. A remarkable film. I am hoping for a DVD release for a better print quality!

Jenny Yates lives with her grandfather because her mother died some time ago. However, she holds some resentment towards her grandfather because he essentially tossed the mother out of the house after she left to try to become an actress. Now, many years later, Jenny has a chance to leave home to act in the same play that her mother starred in...and although her grandfather is gruff and grumpy about this, he's not about to disown her like he did his daughter...by Jenny doesn't know this. So, she takes a giant leap and joins a traveling company of actors...and finds out it's not all it's cracked up to be.

Apart from seeing one of the theater company members in black-face, this is a very good film...enjoyable and with a few fun moments. This is a good showcase for Miss Shirley...one of her better films of the 1930s.