Simply Perfect

Fantastic!

A story that's too fascinating to pass by...

The acting in this movie is really good.

Don't let the poor reviews here and the low score scare you away from this heart-warming tear-jerker. The cast, led by May Robson, does a fine job. I won't give much away, but this is a story about a decent human being (a school principal) who has devoted her life to guiding children, then has a bad break, but is "rescued" at the end by a wonderful surprise. It is a beautiful morality tale, and I enjoyed it despite some unlikely happenings. The story is so decent and ably presented that it is not so hard to "suspend disbelief" at times, and to tolerate a racial stereotype. The filming in such olden times adds a special glow to the movie, and lets us accept the implausibilities in the story, in fact makes us wistful for those times.

To understand this film, you have to understand films in the early 1930s. Many of them were simplistic morality plays, and that's exactly what this is. And when I say simplistic, I mean simplistic.The much-loved principal of a high school (no principal was ever this loved...and I say that as a retired principal myself) -- Miss Bayles (May Robson) -- attempts to close down a shady "candy store" where her students hang out. It may be sodas out front, but it's gambling in the back room, even for those underage. Miss Bayles opens her own business, but is soon closed down after a fight in her place of business. The school system fires her and takes away her pension. Who should step in? The President of the United States...a former student of hers. But, Miss Bayles never gets back her pension. In today's world, this film is downright stodgy. So why view it? Well, it's nice to see a fine character actress like May Robson get top billing for a change, and she is interesting to watch. As noted in "Wikipedia", Robson was the earliest-born person to enjoy a major Hollywood career. She was also the earliest-born person to receive an Oscar nomination", although not for this film. The latter minutes of this film are as much a tear-jerker of a movie that I've ever seen. And, this film was an early role for Fred MacMurray...his first CREDITED part. Alan Hale plays the shady store owner who turns out to have a heart of gold.Aside from being incredibly stuffy, the biggest problem with this film is the improbability of the script. There are a few young Black actors in the film, and the way their parts were played would be another eyebrow-raiser today.This is a pre-code film, and the one place that shows is when Fred MacMurray, an adult in the film, flirts very strongly with one of the high school girls. It would certainly raise eyebrows today.Worth watching once as a sort of museum piece.

Grand Old Girl (1935) ** (out of 4) May Robson plays a college principle who gives her life to make sure her students get their education and stays out of trouble. All of this is at risk when a local ice cream shop starts an illegal gambling house in one of its back rooms so Robson must go out of her way to get it shut down. This is one of the earliest "teachers doing good" films that I've seen and it's amazing that they even followed familiar turf way back then. The film offers no surprises and plays everything pretty straight without ever trying to be real or serious. The way Robson finally brings down the gambling house is incredibly stupid and the ending, which is meant to be emotional, falls flat on its face. The supporting cast incudes a good performance by Fred MacMurray and a small role from Edward Van Sloan.

This is far from May Robson's best movie. But it has its appeal. She is a school principal -- and a more caring one than I ever had. She's also meddling and a bit of a prig. But so were the ones I did have and they didn't show the interest in their students that her character does.Living alone with her cat, Robson gives all her energy over to her young charges. She helps a young football player not only pass his math exam but also learn that he's not so stupid as has been thought.She's also on a crusade to shut down a gambling parlor behind a soda shop. It's called the Back Room. Very racy for small town 1935, I'd think. As to the time, I have to wonder if a high school at that time would have a black student accepted as a member of his peer group. The exact location of the town is never specified but it appears to be the Midwest, New York, or New England. (In other words: No Southern accents.) There he is, though -- a black boy named Neptune who hangs out with the other kids.Fred MacMurray is implausibly cast in a small role and does nothing one way or the other to the movie.I like May Robson and she was in some truly bad movies. This is not bad. It just isn't good. And she puts her heart into the role.