Kathleen

KATHLEEN (Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, 1941), directed by Harold S. Bucquet, stars Shirley Temple, former child star for 20th Century-Fox (1934-1940) in her first and only film for the MGM studio. Though MGM could have cast Temple opposite someone like Mickey Rooney in a backstage musical or a dramatic story opposite Freddie Bartholomew in a horse racing theme similar in theme to NATIONAL VELVET (1944) that later made an overnight star of Elizabeth Taylor, Temple was offered a title role based on an original story by Kay Van Riper dealing with a poor young rich girl striving for the love and attention of her widowed father who is hardly around.

Kathleen Davis (Shirley Temple), is a 12-year-old girl whose mother died at the time of her birth. She lives in a luxurious home surrounded by servants who have looked after her more than her father, John Staunton Davis (Herbert Marshall), who is more away on business trips than spending quality time with his daughter. Kathleen has a strict governess, Mrs. Farrell (Nella Walker), whom she hates. Her only true friend happens to be Mr. Schonet (Felix Bressart), an elderly antique dealer who knows the truth behind Kathleen's imaginary friend, the girl on the hill, whose life echoes that of her own unhappy existence. Further complications ensue when Mr. Davis returns home with Lorraine Bennett (Gail Patrick), his female companion. Though unaware of her father's wedding plans to Miss Bennett, Kathleen takes an immediate dislike to her anyhow. Because of her strong dislike for Mrs. Farrell, Lorraine suggests Kathleen be examined by a child specialist. Doctor Montagu Foster (Lloyd Corrigan) finds nothing wrong with Kathleen but suggests Mrs. Farrell be dismissed and substituted by Doctor A. Martha Kent (Laraine Day), a child psychologist, who could remain with her until September before Kathleen is to be sent away to boarding school. At first Kathleen dislikes the young and down-to-earth lady doctor, but in time, grows fond of her enough to call her "Angel," based on her first name, Angela. While Kathleen hopes for Angela to become her father's new wife, she faces further disappointments when she learns of her father's upcoming wedding plans and extensive honeymoon trip with Lorraine, and having Angela cancel her proposed trip to South America to fill in for the responsibility actually intended for her neglectful father. Others in the cast include: Guy Bellis (Jarvis, the butler); Wade Boteler (The Policeman); and Joe Yule (The Sign Painter).

Though the plot for KATHLEEN could have been a Temple vehicle for 20th Century-Fox during her teenage years, this new MGM edition resumes the traditional Temple format originated by her own studio, that of a daughter of a single parent or an orphan. Temple even gets to have one song number, "Around the Corner," performed during her dream sequence rather than being part of the plot. Now a teenager and no longer a cute little child with the blondish curls, Temple's physical appearance gets reinvented through her darker and longer 1940s hairstyle along with her more mature speaking voice of a teenager. Being the only child for its entire 88 minutes, it would have been interesting had KATHLEEN been slightly altered by having two Temples for the price of one playing twin sisters scheming to get their father to realize his marriage to a woman they dislike would be a mistake. This idea was later put to good use for the Walt Disney classic, THE PARENT TRAP (1961) starring Hayley Mills playing the twin sisters. Having Temple in a dual role might have been too costly and time consuming for a standard movie project, yet might have been more pleasing for Temple fans.

As it stands, KATHLEEN is satisfactory entertainment with moral lesson learned by a father who lets others raise his daughter, who's a stranger to him, rather than by himself. Laraine Day is good as the pretty doctor who fills in as Kathleen's pretend older sister while Felix Bressart gives a likable performance as an elderly grandfather type to Kathleen. Gail Patrick stands out in her "other woman" role she's been doing quite often in other films around this time. As much as Herbert Marshall and Laraine Day do their parts well, it's interesting that in their previous pairing in Alfred Hitchcock's FOREIGN CORRESPONDENT (United Artists, 1940) they were cast together playing father and daughter. Though MGM never acquired further services from Temple, the studio would soon get a child star of its own, Margaret O'Brien, the Shirley Temple of the 1940s.

Unlike Temple's films for 20th Century-Fox, KATHLEEN was never distributed to video cassette nor, though currently available on DVD. It was never even part of Shirley Temple film festivals, but did get some exposure during the after midnight hours on the "late-late show" during the 1970s. KATHLEEN often plays on Turner Classic Movies cable channel, the home of the MGM film library. (**1/2)

I first saw this film when I was about 13 and loved it then. It's a good film for the right age group. I was fascinated with the tricks Kathleen plays on her nurse, the strict household she lived in and how she gets away. It was also interesting to see the difference in the manners of the 40's. For example, Kathleen politely says "how do you do" to an adult she hates. She accepts a decision her father makes which she feels is unfair. I can see how this film might not be very interesting to an adult seeing it for the first time. But is good classic entertainment for the right audience. It's also great seeing Shirley in a role where she's not a sweet little tyke!

By the time Shirley Temple makes Kathleen in 1941 she had been cut loose from 20th Century Fox by Darryl Zanuck as the budding teen Shirley was no longer box office. Imagine being a has been at 12.

Still MGM grabbed her for Kathleen where she's a girl entering puberty and quite frankly in this film a bit spoiled. She's a rich kid, daughter of Herbert Marshall who is all about business. She misses her late mom and Shirley also cannot stand the housekeeper/governess Nella Walker. And the one she really can't stand is Gail Patrick, the woman who Marshall wants to marry.

These films are usually so loaded in the sense we watch and can't believe that Marshall is such a blockhead that he can't see that Patrick is a bad woman and the lady psychologist that is there to treat Temple, Laraine Day is the woman for both of them.

Kathleen is not in a league with some of Shirley's best work at 20th Century Fox, but it is reasonably entertaining.

After Shirley Temple was released from Twentieth Century Fox, this was her attempt to transition to mature roles. At the time, Temple was in her preteen phase and had outgrown the type of characters she usually played. KATHLEEN was her first, and only film, at MGM. Temple was left out of the teenybopper movies that were being made with the likes of Mickey Rooney and Judy Garland. KATHLEEN is still a decent effort though the story is a bit uninspired. The lead character Kathleen (Temple) is a restless child who only wants to win the affection of her father (Herbert Marshall) who is marrying a woman who does not love him (Gail Patrick). After Kathleen drives away her governess, Dr. Martha Kent (Laraine Day) has been enlisted to get to the root of Kathleen's nasty behavior. I enjoy this film because Shirley still gave us a good performance and handled her dramatic scenes well. She would go on to work with David O. Selznick who gave her better material.

One of the other reviews called this picture a weak vehicle for Shirley Temple. It's definitely not her best, but it's not terrible either. This said, I think she was wrong for the part-- which was given to her after her mother objected to Shirley being cast in a Wallace Beery film called BARNACLE BILL. Virginia Weidler, who had originally been cast as KATHLEEN, was pulled off this movie and paired her with Beery instead. Shirley then took over to do what her mother felt was material better suited for her. But it's really not a good vehicle for her, for a variety of reasons.

I think the main problem is that Shirley looks too old. Virginia would have been more believable (with the braids, which were becoming a cliché by this point in her career). However, it certainly would have worked best with a young Margaret O'Brien. It really had to be someone very tiny and fragile looking, who desperately needed a new mommy to look after her. Laraine Day is fine in her role, Nella Walker as a battle-axe is very good, and I find Felix Bressart to be as charming as ever. However, as much as I enjoy Herbert Marshall, he is wrong for his part as daddy. It should have been someone like Walter Pidgeon.

Overall I don't think the story is the issue-- it's the casting and how these roles were directed. By the way, when Shirley was signed by MGM, the first project the studio announced for her was an Andy Hardy picture. But probably Mama Temple vetoed that in a hurry-- no B films for her daughter, and no second fiddle to Mickey Rooney. Can you imagine her conversations with Mayer about that!