Rogers was fantastic in this. When she first appeared in pigtails she was extremely cute (think Doris Day in On Moonlight Bay (1951) and she passes through trying to be feminine to attract Ed, being a ballsy waitress at his diner and, finally, evolving into a strong woman who is comfortable in herself and beautiful to boot. Here are the before and after shots:
Quite a difference! The supporting cast worked very well, particularly Miles Mander as the drunken father. Queenie Vassar played the manipulative grandmother with few redeeming features better than anybody else could've and even the actress playing Ellie May's younger sister was less irritating than most child actors (and went on to play Agnes in Meet Me in St. Louis (1944). Overall, I think this film was well-written and well-acted though I don't think Ed is a particularly enticing hero. This film was my first experience with Joel McCrea so I'm not too sure about him. Ginger, however, has cemented her place at the top of my favourites list: pigtails or not.
5 comments:
Ginger should have been nominated for the Best Actress Oscar for this film. Ginger's win for Kitty Foyle belongs a little bit to Ellie May. Both performances highlight Ginger's exceptional dramatic skills.
Completely agree. Watching both of them fairly close together, I was astounded that Ginger had all this dramatic ability I wasn't aware of, having only seen a few musical films before this. Yes, she could dance but, boy, could she act! I'm looking forward to working through other films starring her.
If you have time check out my book I have written about Ginger's life and movies. You can find it at http://www.viviantalksgingerrogers.blogspot.com
The Academy, as so often happened during that era, probably gave her the Oscar for "Foyle because she was not playing a "could-be" prostitute. I, too, happen to like this film, especially for its grittiness. I wonder if the play and novel had the same romantic ending?
Good question, Larry! Little research didn't tell me much apart from that the novel's hard to get hold of. I'd place my bets on a more ambivalent ending.
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