A dimpled, chubby-cheeked, curly-haired moppet, Shirley Temple almost single-handedly lifted America's spirits during the darkest days of the Great Depression, when her elaborately mounted starring vehicles made this precocious child star the nation's top box-office attraction. While she might be a footnote in cinema history today, during the 1930s she inspired a generation of Americans to keep their chins up, plug along, and remain confident that prosperity (and the solution to practically any problem) was just around the corner. This boxed set collects three of Temple's very best films. In Curly Top (1935), she plays Cupid for older sister Rochelle Hudson and handsome suitor John Boles (the film includes her show-stopping rendition of “Animal Crackers in My Soup,” which would become one of her signature songs). Heidi (1937) takes considerable liberties with Johanna Spyri's classic children's novel, but nonetheless holds up as first-rate entertainment, with Temple starring as the title character, a 19th-century Swiss girl separated from her beloved grandfather (Jean Hersholt). Finally, Little Miss Broadway (1938), which takes place largely in a boarding house for theatrical folk, showcases the child superstar's musical abilities and teams her with Jimmy Durante and George Murphy, the latter for a sensational tap-dance number. Presented in both the original black-and-white and colorized versions, the set features no DVD extras, but the digital transfers are solid (especially compared to the disastrous earlier release of Heidi on DVD [VL-5/02]). Recommended. [Note: Shirley Temple Collection, Vol. 2, featuring Baby Takes a Bow, Bright Eyes and Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm, is slated for release Nov. 22.] (E. Hulse)
Shirley Temple Collection
Fox, 3 discs, 236 min., G, DVD: $29.98 Volume 20, Issue 6
Shirley Temple Collection
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