I absolutely love this movie...it's one of those warm family comedies that makes you feel warm and mushy all over.
I don't agree with you about loving this movie but I can see why you'd say the things you do. This is a highly improbable story that sucks in the viewer. We feel sorry for Apple Annie and want things to work out for her. We root for her, worry that things will go wrong, then cheer when they eventually work out.
So, yes, one can call this a feel-good movie but a warm family comedy; not exactly. The entire premise is troublesome. Annie, whatever we may think of her behavior towards her friends, has been lying to her own daughter her entire life.
She continues to lie and deceive to the end. She's never had a real relationship with her daughter and, by all indications, that will never happen going forward. Even though it's portrayed as if she's doing all this for her daughter's sake, I happen to think that it's selfish on Annie's part. She should have either been honest with her daughter all along or finally come clean and tell her the truth.
Better yet, if she really wanted her to have the chance at a life her mother's position would interfere with her acheiving, she should have given her up. She would have probably had a family instead of growing up alone in the care of strangers. Even the way Annie chose to do it, supporting Louise all her life, she could have done it anonymously as a benefactor and let the girl believe she had died.
Yes, that would have still been a lie but the lie she went with is a rejection of her daughter. In her mind, she has a mother who has the means and the opportunity but opts to remain out of her life. Now that she's finally met her and see how well connected she is and how many friends she has, how could that not hurt?
If one can overlook all that, sure it's funny and everything works out in the end but for what purpose? It glorifies lying and deception. Those aren't exactly good wholesome family values. For me, the negative aspects of the movie far dominate any positive messages it offers. Rejoicing for Annie means sadness, in a way, for Louise.
Woman, man! That's the way it should be Tarzan. [Tarzan and his mate]
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DougDumbrille
8 years ago
Agreed. It's really a terrible film, and shows how Capra's earlier successes were a result of his collaboration with his earlier writers, especially Robert Riskin, who wrote most of his best-remembered films.
This is hokey, horribly dated, and artificial from start to finish.
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mdonln
8 years ago
Maybe Capra and other filmmakers who put out these types of movies meant well, but I'm always surprised that no one ever seemed to consider the big picture. Perhaps they did but thought all's well that ends well. They knew the audience would walk away feeling good. Happy viewers usually don't worry about the downsides of these movies; like the things I pointed out in my previous post.
Woman, man! That's the way it should be Tarzan. [Tarzan and his mate]
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