Saturday's Children

This obviously must have been a play first, as the film is very static and spends most of the time confined to small sets. I really wish the writers had done something to try to open the film up a bit--giving it some more energy and giving it life. Instead, you feel you are watching a play that was filmed--especially when it comes to dialog, as the actors seem to be, at times, making speeches to an audience. Now the acting is okay (though a bit too earnest if you ask me) and the general idea is okay, but just not super-compelling. You see, a young couple is married and face a huge battle against debts and struggle to get by---again and again and again. Halfway into the film, I felt like I'd had enough. Yes, they were young and in love but the day to day pressures put a lot of strain on their marriage--I understood that but after a while I just wanted this depressing film to end. About the only bright spot was the role played by Claude Rains--he was pretty funny and likable. As for the leads, Anne Shirley and John Garfield, this was definitely not one of their better films as they came off as rather whiny and immature. I just felt like yelling at the actors to buck up and deal with it--that's life!