Although the film itself isn't particularly memorable (the New York Times review called it "good entertainment" despite "several intrusive numbers which have little to do with the bright pivotal idea,") it at least did the job of introducing Depression-era audiences to their newest movie star.ĭirected by Allan Dwan, it stars Temple as Wendy Ballantine, whose vaudevillian parents Joe (Jack Oakie) and Kit (Charlotte Greenwood) decide to retire from show business and move to a sleepy New England town. (Their number was so popular that it served as the title for Temple and Dunn's next film, "Baby, Take a Bow," also released in 1934). That's where Temple comes in as Shirley Dugan, who performs "Baby, Take a Bow" with Jimmy Dugan (James Dunn). He assembles a crack team of entertainers to send out across the country, including a children's division run by Mary Adams (Madge Evans). ![]() Broadway producer Lawrence Cromwell (Warner Baxter) is appointed head of the newly created Department of Amusement, a governmental program meant to boost optimism while Americans wait on the breadlines. She died in 2014 at the age of 85.ĭirected by Hamilton MacFadden, "Stand Up and Cheer!" is typical of the musical revues released by Hollywood throughout the Depression. She was awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1960, received the Kennedy Center Honors in 1998, and earned a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Screen Actors Guild in 2006. Between 1974-1989, she served as a diplomat for the United States under her married name, Shirley Temple Black. Temple retired from film acting in 1950 when she was just 22 years old. If only the movie had a little more downtime to spend with them.Born in 1928, Temple began her movie career when she was just three years old, quickly becoming a superstar thanks to a small part in the musical review "Stand Up and Cheer!" Her rise was meteoric, and by 1935 she was so popular that the Academy Awards honored her with a special Juvenile Award.īy the time she was six years old, she was already starring in multiple films a year, the majority of which were thinly-plotted comedies or melodramas built around her singing and dancing skills, as she famously performed alongside the likes of Jack Haley, Buddy Ebsen, Jimmy Durante, and Bill "Bojangles" Robinson. He's ever so slightly uncertain, and he generates some warm chemistry with his co-stars, especially Scarlett Johansson and Anthony Mackie. Evans goes for the same kind of charming, simple quality that Christopher Reeve had in the Superman movies. ![]() For some reason, whenever Cap throws his shield or a fist, the camera jerks alongside it, rather than simply following it.įortunately, the heart of the movie is still beating. ![]() Captain America: The Winter Soldier focuses more on character, which is great, though the brother directors Anthony and Joe Russo - who take over for Joe Johnston - are camera-shakers, and the action in this movie is sorely lacking. The first movie, Captain America: The First Avenger, looked great, but was somehow lacking in the character department as it unfolded its lengthy, convoluted origin story. Chris Evans has grown significantly in his role since The Avengers, and is far more appealing here.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |