While "Three Smart Girls" has some very nice moments, the film will probably be received less enthusiastically than it was back in 1936. Back then, the film received three Oscar nominations and Deanna Durbin received a special Oscar for her performance. However, now it just seems awfully formulaic and ordinary...though still worth watching.
The film begins with the three young ladies at home with their mother. They learn that their jerk-faced father is remarrying. Apparently, the parents divorced many years earlier and now the daughters want to see if they can break up this marriage and get their parents back together. However, and this is a HUGE problem with the film, the father (Charles Winninger) is a horse's butt. This is because he apparently hasn't seen them at all since the divorce--and why would the girls want to be involved with him? And, how could they ever expect such a self-centered guy to even care what they think? Still, the ladies somehow want to bring Daddy back to the bosom of his loving family.
So why do I STILL give this movie a 7? Ray Milland. He was WONDERFUL in the film--and how he gets involved with these goof-ball girls is awfully funny. See the film--you'll see what I mean.
The film begins with the three young ladies at home with their mother. They learn that their jerk-faced father is remarrying. Apparently, the parents divorced many years earlier and now the daughters want to see if they can break up this marriage and get their parents back together. However, and this is a HUGE problem with the film, the father (Charles Winninger) is a horse's butt. This is because he apparently hasn't seen them at all since the divorce--and why would the girls want to be involved with him? And, how could they ever expect such a self-centered guy to even care what they think? Still, the ladies somehow want to bring Daddy back to the bosom of his loving family.
So why do I STILL give this movie a 7? Ray Milland. He was WONDERFUL in the film--and how he gets involved with these goof-ball girls is awfully funny. See the film--you'll see what I mean.