Bright Eyes (1934)
-
78% of critics liked it
(9 reviews) -
72% of users liked it
(6,852 ratings)
Despite stiff competition like Poor Little Rich Girl and Heidi, Bright Eyes is arguably the best of Shirley Temple's 1930s vehicles. The little curly-top is cast as Shirley Blake, daughter of Mary Blake (Lois Wilson), the widowed housemaid of snooty J. Wellington and Anita Smythe (Theodore Von… More Despite stiff competition like Poor Little Rich Girl and Heidi, Bright Eyes is arguably the best of Shirley Temple's 1930s vehicles. The little curly-top is cast as Shirley Blake, daughter of Mary Blake (Lois Wilson), the widowed housemaid of snooty J. Wellington and Anita Smythe (Theodore Von Eltz and Dorothy Christy). Though continually terrorized by the Smythe's obnoxious, doll-destroying daughter Joy (Jane Withers), Shirley finds comfort in the fact that she is the darling of the airplane-pilot buddies of her late father. Especially fond of our heroine is flyboy Loop Merritt, who arranges a birthday party for the girl. Alas, even as Shirley sings "On the Good Ship Lollipop" to a gathering of beaming airmen, her mother Mary is run over by a car while shopping for her daughter's birthday cake. It thus becomes Loop's painful duty to tell Shirley that her mother "cracked up," just like her father did (if this scene doesn't move the viewer to tears, the viewer is made of granite). Fortunately, the Smythe's irascible Uncle Ned takes a liking to Shirley, securing her financial future at the expense of his repulsive relatives. But before this happy ending can come about, Shirley must be rescued from an imperiled passenger plane by the resourceful Loop. Though Shirley Temple is inarguably the main drawing card in Bright Eyes, 9-year-old Jane Withers is equally terrific as the pint-sized "villainess"; indeed, some critics felt that Withers stole the show, and it was this as much as anything else that earned Withers her own starring series at 20th Century-Fox. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Directed By
- David Butler, Stuart Marshall
- Written By
- Edwin J. Burke, William Conselman, David Butler (I), Edward Burke
- Genres
- Action & Adventure, Classics, Comedy, Documentary, Drama, Musical & Performing Arts
- In Theaters
- Dec 11, 1934 Wide
- Studio
- Fox Film Corporation
Critic Reviews
-
Heather Boerner, Common Sense Media
This "Good Ship Lollipop" is sweet, but sad, too.
-
Steve Crum, Video-Reviewmaster.com
One of Shirley Temple's best musicals, laced with sentiment and song.
-
Nell Minow, Movie Mom at Yahoo! Movies
Shirley really shines.
-
Ken Hanke, Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC)
The ne plus ultra of Templedom.
-
James Sanford, Kalamazoo Gazette
you can see here why Shirley became the idol of a nation
See more critic ratings and reviews on Rotten Tomatoes
Fresh (60% or more critics rated the movie positively)
Rotten (59% or fewer critics rated the movie positively)
Featured Audience Ratings
Currently unavailable on Flixster
Also available on
Other Retailers
Subscription Services
Cast
-
Shirley Temple
as Shirley Blake
-
James Dunn
as Loop Merritt
-
Jane Darwell
as Mrs. Higgins
-
Judith Allen
as Adele Martin
-
Lois Wilson
as Mary Blake
-
Charles Sellon
as Uncle Ned Smith
-
Walter Johnson
as Thomas the Chauffeur
-
Jane Withers
as Joy Smythe
-
Theodore von Eltz
as J. Wellington Smythe
-
Dorothy Christy
as Anita Smythe
-
Brandon Hurst
as Mr. Higgins
-
George Irving
as Judge Thompson
-
Earl Foxe
as Bond Man
-
Paul McVey
as Attorney
-
Frank Moran
as Truck Driver
-
Dave O'Brien
as Man
- Michael Callen
- Stuart Marshall
- Theodor von Eltz