Konterr Brilliant and touching

BallWubba Wow! What a bizarre film! Unfortunately the few funny moments there were were quite overshadowed by it's completely weird and random vibe throughout.

Ella-May O'Brien Each character in this movie — down to the smallest one — is an individual rather than a type, prone to spontaneous changes of mood and sometimes amusing outbursts of pettiness or ill humor.

Staci Frederick Blistering performances.

Neil Doyle Freddie Bartholomew, the little British lad with the face of an angel and a sweet disposition, is the title character in this classic David O. Selznick version of the famous story. He steals your heart as he plays wonderfully touching scenes with C. Aubrey Smith whereby his character charms the gruff old man and softens his heart forever.The plot has Smith resenting the lad because he thinks so little of the boy's mother, through a misunderstanding of her true character. All of these things are swept aside by the time the story reaches its conclusion, with boy, mother and grandfather all reunited for a happy ending.I have to say that C. Aubrey Smith, the venerable old actor who stole scenes in many a British film, is at his finest in this particular role. Using his bushy eyebrows and monocle for great effect, his expressions of anger, joy, surprise or stern contempt are beautifully executed. What an actor! I don't think he ever showed such range in any other of his memorable character roles.Never for a moment intimidated by his gruff grandfather, Freddie stands up to him in scene after scene, matching him for pure professionalism. He too delivers a standout performance as the polite but resolute lad who worships his loving mother (Dolores Costello) whom he calls "Dearest." Mickey Rooney and Guy Kibbe are excellent in good supporting roles.John Cromwell's detailed direction is superb for this charming, if old-fashioned tale played to perfection by Freddie Bartholomew and C. Aubrey Smith.Notice how Cromwell even fleshes out background scenes with a single paper boy working hard to attract buyers while adding reality to a street scene focused on two other characters in the forefront.

movie-viking The above reviewers and this site summarize this great retelling of the still-read Little Lord Fauntleroy book. So I won't summarize, but just briefly add my cheers & jeers.Why does this tale (awash in sentimentality in Francis Hodgson's book of the same name) - yet LIVE ON? Anime and even a Russian version are recent. It's still a great tale!The 1936 LITTLE LORD FAUNTLEROY movie is basically like the 1930's movie HEIDI in one key way...i.e. the GRANDFATHER connection: A prodigal people-hating even life-hating old grandfather is brought back to the human race and to his God - by the love of a kind and good grandchild.In this great (but technically damaged) David O. SELZNICK quality family film, ....The old prodigal GRANDFATHER (the great Sir C. Aubrey Smith as the Earl) is brought back to the human race by his kind and good grandchild Cedric Errol (Freddie Bartholomew, the top male 1930's child star). ************** Wade thru the second-rate copy of this movie ...and hope that - the studio does a quality restoration of this great film.NOTE: the current worldwide interest in LITTLE LORD FAUNTLEROY should make it worth the studio's while to issue a QUALITY restored edition of 1936 LITTLE LORD FAUNTLEROY. Just make sure to dub it in Russian, Japanese and many other languages!

Jim John Cromwell gets a lot of credit for this Selznick Studio release. It is only the second time (at that time) the story had been filmed. The first was a poor silent version. Although Cromwell could have developed the story a bit more, it is well cast. Bartholomew is excellent as young Cedrick and Smith is fine as the crusty old Earl who learns to love his grandson, additionally Rooney as Dick the bootblack, and Kibbee as storekeeper Hobbs are also outstanding.Although heavy with sentimentality, Cromwell has done an excellent job of cutting out all the terrible wordiness of the novel. (Burnett writes as though she is being paid by the word and puts in way to many adjectives.) The story is well told and the scenic effects are good for their time. Unfortunately the film has not aged well and some scenes have darkened with time. Perhaps an enterprising admirer will trouble to restore this film. IF they do, hopefully they will also restore the missing scenes so the film runs its full length.A discount film hawker (Front Row Video, Canada) has the nerve to sell copies of the film (claiming a running time of 1:42) that are so butchered, that two conversations are cut right in the middle with a change of scene. Digiview Productions who states on the front cover "Sometimes the price we pay is too high" and charges only a dollar for their DVD version, has been caught with their foot in their mouth. They only charge a buck, but even that is too much for the hacked up 92 minute version of the film they sell.For purists, I urge you to find a complete copy of this well done film. THe only way you can enjoy something is to see all of it.

shneur They just don't make 'em like this anymore. You can take all your Culkins and Woods and Osments and roll them into one, and they still couldn't shine the shoes of Freddie Bartholemew (as Mickey Rooney does in this film). The difference, I believe, is that these contemporary performers think of themselves as CHILD actors, where Bartholemew and his contemporary Shirley Temple thought of themselves as ACTORS -- just as Rooney's character thought of himself as a BUSINESSMAN. The effect is palpable: you just can't fake being a real person. This of course is the familiar story of an American boy in the 1880's who learns he is the heir to an English earl and must go live with the old bloke, who parenthetically hates his mother, in an old castle. Needless to say, it is the earl who is transformed by the strength and purity of the boy's character, and not the intended reverse. Every scene and every line in this film is perfect, and if it is a "period piece," then I say we'd be so much better off if we could return to that "period."