TrueHello
Fun premise, good actors, bad writing. This film seemed to have potential at the beginning but it quickly devolves into a trite action film. Ultimately it's very boring.
Kaelan Mccaffrey
Like the great film, it's made with a great deal of visible affection both in front of and behind the camera.
Lachlan Coulson
This is a gorgeous movie made by a gorgeous spirit.
boblipton
When preacher H.B. Warner drops dead during a sermon, reducing the town's population to his great-grand-daughter Natalie Wood, she follows his instructions and heads out to Sodom and Gomorrah, almost getting hit by a crashing plane, being eaten by a wildcat, and rescuing a collie. They are rescued by Dean Jagger, a country doctor, who's living with his foster father, druggist Walter Brennan a small but corrupt town run by Jerome Cowan. The story roams hither and yonder, involving Rocky Mountain fever, rotten kids, and a story line with plenty of laughs that eventually veers into a serious plot, a lecture on the necessity of getting your children vaccinated, and an over-the-top coincidence that saves the day at the end. It's carried by Dwan's impeccable direction, John Alton's flawless camerawork, and a cast of professionals that includes Ruth Warrick, Charlotte Greenwood, Margaret Hamilton, Hobart Cavanaugh, Alan Napier, Francis Ford.... well, Dwan had worked with everyone and could get them to come in. Lots of fun, and the dog was cute too.
huttonjack
Remarkable how talented a child actor Natalie Wood was. Saw this on Amazon Prime- clicked it like playing 'movie roulette' - the initial fire & brimstone deserted decayed church scene is so strange but then , yeah,it's cheesy, And sweet but you wind up liking these people and rooting for them: it's got 'Lassie' 'the wicked witch Walter Brennan , etc many character actors of that time '. It has the happy ending you know is coming and, which in these days of superior cynicism, is oddly satisfying: they're happy. Good wins.Viewing this from 2015 it's an amazing & sweet time capsule I got pulled in and wound up watching the entire thing.
mark.waltz
Not since Margaret O'Brien buried her dolls and smashed her family of snow people in "Meet Me in St. Louis" has there been such a delightfully eccentric child as Natalie Wood in "Driftwood". Outrageosly honest, Wood is getting over the death of her great grandfather (H.B. Warner in a heartbreaking cameo), and is discovered on the road by research doctor Dean Jagger who is researching a cure for spotted fever caused by ticks. Having found a dog after witnessing a horrendous plane crash, Wood is slightly in shock, and obviously in need of a place to stay. Jagger takes Wood home with him, which he shares with pharmacist Walter Brennan. Wood's brutal honesty makes adults like Brennan and town spinster Charlotte Greenwood question Jagger's taking care of her, but Jagger's lady friend (Ruth Warrick) likes Wood's spunk. When the dog protects Wood from the town bully, the pooch is put on trial, and the town takes up sides against the dog and the town's power-thumping mayor (Jerome Cowan), the father of the nasty youth. Then, an outbreak of spotted fever hits, and Jagger must find a cure before its too late.This is quite a unique film for its day, and Wood is quite good as the young heroine. The cast features some of the best character performers of its day, and its nice to see two "Aunt Ellers" ("Oklahoma!") on screen together-Ms. Greenwood (of the movie) and Margaret Hamilton (of a 1960's Lincoln Center revival). Ms. Hamilton is very amusing in her role of Brennan's clerk at the pharmacy, and "Wizard of Oz" viewers will find it ironic that she appears as a witness in the dog's defense after taking away Toto from Dorothy in the 1939 classic. Ruth Warrick, so missed as the imperious Phoebe during the last 6 years of "All My Children", plays a sweet character here, while Brennan, Greenwood and Hobart Cavanaugh add small town charm to their grouchy characters with a heart of gold. This is the perfect movie to play for adolescents to teach them both the power of honesty and the art of diplomacy and tact.
john-wmartin
I must have sat through this film at least twenty times, and cannot say that I was bored on any of them. My girls insisted I record it from them (on VHS) when it was on about 25 years ago, and then proceeded to watch it every Saturday morning for the next 6 months. It may be rather twee nd cute, but even now "daisy's ... they're my favourite flower" still evokes a smile from them and from my wife Predictable, happy ending - but then what else do you want from a children's film? Natalie Wood performs very ably, and the other main characters are highly satisfactory, including the lady who played the Wicked Witch in The Wizard of Oz. Highly recommended for those with small girls, and I wish they would issue it on DVD
