My main motivation for seeing Pollyanna was the wonderful 'Hayley Mills'. She won a special Oscar for her performance in the film, and Mills made this right in between 'Tiger Bay' and 'Whistle Down the Wind', two films that boast extraordinary performances from her. There's no comparison in quality between those two performances and her acting Pollyanna, but she still does a fine job with the lead role. And it is a pleasant enough film overall, even if one dripping in sentimentality and even though it pushes its message a bit too hard. The film kept me interested most of the time, and I was moved at times by the story.
The plot of the film is very slim - a girl moves to a town where she is able to cause some morose individuals to changes their ways - however it does have a lot to say about optimism and how simple the world is through the eyes of a child. I was particularly impressed with the music used in the film. It is hardly ever just incidental. Most of the time the music reflects what Pollyanna is thinking or feeling: her curiosity, her longing for acceptance, her excitement, etc.
Pollyanna does not understand a lot of what is going on in the minds of the townsfolk. Mills succeeds in making her look as if she is on the verge of expressing her confusion out loud, only covering it up at the last minute by trying to see how some good can come. It is a gradual thing too that she develops - compared to how she blurts out about her aunt's wealth near the beginning. The film is a reminder of life during childhood, and trying to have a good time in a world with so much that one does not understand.
The Technicolor processing gives the material an appropriately vibrant feel with sharp, intense colours. One especially good sequence for colour is when the camera photographs a boy looking underwater at a fish. The whole lake/river below the surface comes alive. The art direction and costumes are generally really good too. I wasn't around in 1900 to be able to comment properly on the costumes, however the detailed interior and exterior decoration is excellent, providing a real sense of the time.
The film has a lot going in its favour, and for that reason it makes fairly good entertainment. It is not marvellous entertainment - there are not really enough laughs for it to be a comedy, nor enough drama for it to be a good drama - nor is it particularly complex film-making, but it is just a film that is made well enough that it can be enjoyed as well as admired to a degree. The characters are not much, the storyline is not much, and the film hammers the message home, but most of what it has to say about being happy in life, looking on the bright side, the charm of children and the joy of experiencing childhood, does come across well.
The plot of the film is very slim - a girl moves to a town where she is able to cause some morose individuals to changes their ways - however it does have a lot to say about optimism and how simple the world is through the eyes of a child. I was particularly impressed with the music used in the film. It is hardly ever just incidental. Most of the time the music reflects what Pollyanna is thinking or feeling: her curiosity, her longing for acceptance, her excitement, etc.
Pollyanna does not understand a lot of what is going on in the minds of the townsfolk. Mills succeeds in making her look as if she is on the verge of expressing her confusion out loud, only covering it up at the last minute by trying to see how some good can come. It is a gradual thing too that she develops - compared to how she blurts out about her aunt's wealth near the beginning. The film is a reminder of life during childhood, and trying to have a good time in a world with so much that one does not understand.
The Technicolor processing gives the material an appropriately vibrant feel with sharp, intense colours. One especially good sequence for colour is when the camera photographs a boy looking underwater at a fish. The whole lake/river below the surface comes alive. The art direction and costumes are generally really good too. I wasn't around in 1900 to be able to comment properly on the costumes, however the detailed interior and exterior decoration is excellent, providing a real sense of the time.
The film has a lot going in its favour, and for that reason it makes fairly good entertainment. It is not marvellous entertainment - there are not really enough laughs for it to be a comedy, nor enough drama for it to be a good drama - nor is it particularly complex film-making, but it is just a film that is made well enough that it can be enjoyed as well as admired to a degree. The characters are not much, the storyline is not much, and the film hammers the message home, but most of what it has to say about being happy in life, looking on the bright side, the charm of children and the joy of experiencing childhood, does come across well.