Customer Reviews

That Certain Age [VHS]

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Deanna Durbin stars in yet another hit as Alice, a girl stuck between childhood and adulthood. One cannot ignore that these pre-teen or teenage years were treated a bit differently than when this film was made, so the kids might behave younger than they would in today's society, but they still deal with similar issues. For example, a writer friend of her father's comes to stay with the family. Vincent Bullitt (Melvyn Douglas) is a charismatic, no-nonsense kind of man that treats Alice as older than her parents do which makes her develop a crush on him. In turn, she does all she can to win his affections, even at the expense of hurting her semi-boyfriend Ken (Jackie Cooper).

One can easily relate to the story, as everyone has grown up and experienced crushes. What makes a trite story wonderful are the actors. Each of them play their parts convincingly and realistically, making common caricatures seem deep and unique. The film has a light mood which makes it delightful to watch.

This film flaunts an all-star cast whose players had careers that spanned decades. Aside from the beloved Durbin, Academy Award winning Douglas, and former Little Rascal Cooper, Irene Rich plays Alice's mother, Nancy Carroll plays Vincent's girlfriend, and Juanita Quigley plays Ken's mischievious little sister.

Is a classic! I believe it inspired the teaming of Mickey Rooney and Judy Garland's backyard musicals. This is the best of Deanna's teen films.