German-5

Mr and Mrs Thomas (Frank Morgan and Irene Rich) have three daughters. The youngest, Harriet (Virginia Weidler), is always getting into trouble, snooping around or trying to connive some pistachio ice cream. Her older sister, Evelyn (Gloria De Haven), seems to spend much time in the kitchen. The story focuses on the romance of the oldest girl, Mary (Ann Rutherford), with Ted Foster (John Shelton), who is an automobile salesman at a dealership owned by Mr Hellman (Gene Lockhart). Ted and Mary soon get married and confidently expect a life of undisturbed bliss, since they are so much in love that no quarrel could ever separate them. But when Ted has some quite innocent dealings with Anastasia Atherton, a pretty model, misunderstandings and complications ensue, which require the wise intervention of Mr and Mrs Thomas. A nice little old-fashioned family picture.

I'm no fan of newer movies, but this one was a real pleasure to watch. Adults and children could watch it together - how unusual! My aunt liked it, too. It had laughter, tears, love, adventure, special effects, good actors - and a talking parrot. It reminded me of a favourite, The Wizard of Oz. The hero, Paulie, an intelligent parrot, is separated from his home and family and goes through many adventures, temptations and disappointments, always keeping in mind his resolution to find his friend, Marie. Highly recommended.

The Great Rupert is a funny, heart-warming tale of prayer and faith, poverty and philanthropy, in which hard-hearted greed gets its comeuppance and everything turns out for the best. And a cute little dancing squirrel is the agent driving the action behind the scenes!