Lost Angel

In years in which many orphans were being made by the war I'm sure that Lost Angel held a special meaning for 1944 audiences. Although World War II is never mentioned it was the overwhelming event of the time and on everyone's mind as this film was seen in theaters then.

Margaret O'Brien stars and plays an orphan child who was given over to an institution to be raised scientifically without family. At the age of six she can read and converse in several languages, but in every one of them knows there's something missing she should have.

A human interest story where free wheeling reporter James Craig is just mentioning ordinary childhood experiences makes this very smart girl know there's something out there, some experiences she won't have makes her run away to Craig.

Craig is like Nathan Detroit to committed to his carousing lifestyle to settle down with his Adelaide, Marsha Hunt. But O'Brien does a great job in cementing that relationship.

The film really belongs to O'Brien who will melt one of the Gorgon's freshly made stone creations with her performance. There's also a nice one from Keenan Wynn as a gangster from one of Craig's other stories. He and O'Brien play well off each other.

Although the dimension of World War II is not there for today's audience Lost Angel still is fine entertainment.

Before I tell you anything about this movie, I want to deal with the question of Margaret O'Brien vs. Shirley Temple as child actresses. Over the years, I don't believe Margaret was acclaimed to the degree of Shirley. Shirley was a terribly cute child who could sing and dance. Her talent was without question, particularly during the dismal years in which she brought welcome relief to our citizens who had just endured the Depression and the early years of World War II. Shirley cheered you up and made you happy to see such a delightful child. But Margaret was different in so many ways from Shirley. If you want to see an incredibly accomplished young actress, then you must see "Lost Angel." Margaret dominates the film. When she is on-screen, you can hardly take your eyes off her. She is a very unique child of 6 years playing the part of a child who is 6 years old. Her poise and diction and sheer talent is simply outstanding. This child is an actress in the fullest sense of the word. She is incredible to behold and makes the simple story a joy to watch, especially in the cynical world of 2006. The story itself concerns an infant who is dropped off on the doorstep of an institution. She is raised by scientists and has a remarkably adult view of the world. But it seems the scientists left something out of her upbringing, and a more worldly view is brought to her by a reporter and a nightclub singer. In summary, this is a "feel good" movie for all ages and some of our modern parents who feel the best way to raise a child is to indulge their every whim should sit down with them and watch this film together. I guarantee all ages will be entertained and will learn something about good behavior at the same time.

I'll never understand why Margaret O'Brien wasn't cast as the lead in Miracle on 34th Street. She was the right age, the right look, and had practically played the part before in Lost Angel. If you've ever wondered how she would have played Susan Walker, rent Lost Angel to find out.

Margaret stars as a child raised by a group of scientists, Henry O'Neill, Philip Merivale, Donald Meek, Elisabeth Risdon, Howard Freeman, Walter Fenner, and Sara Haden, instead of parents. She has a rigorous and strict study schedule including Chinese, yoga, economics, world history, and philosophy. She eats healthy, has regular exercise and playtime, and wants for nothing. When an irresponsible but charming reporter, James Craig, interviews her, he shows her the shadows on Plato's cave. He asks her if she ever reads fairy tales, and she scoffs, saying there's no point because magic isn't real. She corrects his grammar, and while he wonders what she does for fun, she tells him she has everything she needs at the institute. Sound familiar? That scene and the following scene during which she runs away from the institute and claims she's looking for Santa Claus feels like they were a rough draft of Miracle on 34th Street.

This movie is actually pretty cute, and I was a particularly hard sell on the premise. If someone is perfectly happy in her structured idyll, why give her a "better" life by showing her the real world of human emotions, arguments, and heartbreak? When Margaret runs away, she gloms onto James, insisting he show her a world of magic. During the course of her vacation, she eats junk food, gets into a fist-fight, cries her eyes out, discovers unrequited love, and has her life endangered by a runaway criminal, Keenan Wynn. Why did I like this movie? Because I just couldn't help it. Margaret is the exact precursor to Natalie Wood, and when she falls in love with James, it's unbelievably cute. James is very sweet, too, and even though he's flighty and not a good influence for a six-year-old, he's pretty irresistible. I dare you to get through this movie with a clear throat. I was a very hard sell, and even I got a lump in mine. It's pretty similar to Little Miss Marker, so if you liked watching Shirley Temple charm Adolphe Menjou, you'll like watching Margaret and James.

A young Margaret O'Brien plays a very peculiar 6 year-old named Alpha. Alpha, it seems is a scientific project being conducted by a psychiatric research facility. In a case of extremely unethical behavior, they adopted her as an infant and spent all of her life cramming her head with knowledge--advanced mathematics, Chinese, economics and many other very advanced topics. Finally, after six years work, the institute is ready to have two outside investigators examine the child to determine their success in raising a "super-child". But, before this child genius can be examined, a reporter (James Craig) meets with her and thoroughly disarms the very adult-like O'Brien. Fascinated by Craig's wild stories about magic, giants and leprechauns (things any normal child would know about, but Alpha doesn't), she is so captivated that she later escapes to find Craig--who she seems to see as a great father figure.

This film is very, very schmaltzy--in other words, it's loaded with sentimentality and dripping with saccharine. And while this usually means you've got a bad film, despite it shamelessly tugging at your heart, the film actually works--mostly thanks to a sweet script and some nice performances. While not perfect (for example her crying seemed rather fake), O'Brien proved that for her age, she was an amazing actress. And Craig and Marsha Hunt (not exactly household names) also showed a nice hand at family comedy.

All in all, this is a wonderful film for most everyone. However, the easily jaded probably will find the going a bit too sticky--but as for this curmudgeon, I still found it charming.

JAMES CRAIG and MARSHA HUNT have the adult leads in LOST ANGEL but it's obvious that MGM was hoping the vehicle, specially written for child star MARGARET O'BRIEN, would prove to boost her box-office popularity at a time when she was being groomed for big time stardom. It did.

At six, she was quite a little actress, able to turn on the tears on cue and spoke in that quivering little voice that most viewers found enormously appealing. She plays a child prodigy who's been raised by a psychological clinical institute but robbed of a normal childhood. When reporter Craig is sent to do a story on her, he gets stuck with the kid because the clinic is quarantined for measles. The rest of the plot has to deal with Craig's handling of a difficult situation, including the child's jealousy over his relationship with Hunt.

Margaret still had all of her childish appeal at this stage and she does well with her character, except for an unnecessary crying scene at a nightclub. Craig and Hunt exhibit some good chemistry in their byplay and are always a pleasure to watch. And, of course, there's a predictable happy ending for all.

Trivia note: Sharp-eyed fans will note AVA GARDNER in a bit role as the girl behind the checkroom counter in the nightclub scene and BOBBY BLAKE as a little boy who confronts Margaret. Another future child star, little BOBBY DRISCOLL, makes a brief appearance as the boy on the train playing with his toy train.

Summing up: O'Brien fans will like this one.