6.3 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 2.5 | |
Overall | 2.5 |
It’s spring in the Rooney household, and starry-eyed Annie dreams of blossoming love. Her father dreams of something more tangible -- to be parked on easy street. But in their working-class Irish neighborhood, the odds are against them both.
Starring: Shirley Temple, Gloria Holden, William Gargan, Guy Kibbee, Dickie MooreRomance | 100% |
Drama | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.33:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.37:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0
English SDH
Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region A (B, C untested)
Movie | 2.5 | |
Video | 3.5 | |
Audio | 3.0 | |
Extras | 0.0 | |
Overall | 2.5 |
The vagaries of fate and success in any of the performing arts are legendary, and some of you (like I do) may have friends who have experienced that rare phenomenon of grasping the brass ring in theater, film or music, only to have it ripped from their still clutching fingers. A friend of mine was once a childhood star in a Top 10 television series, raking in untold piles of cash and becoming a nationally recognized celebrity, but when that show was cancelled, acting work became next to impossible to find and this individual now works as a waiter, probably delivering food to today’s “stars” who think their fame is a given and will be with them always. It’s kind of interesting to watch Miss Annie Rooney with anecdotes like this in mind, aware that the film probably marked the beginning of the end of Shirley Temple’s film career. Sure, the once adorable child phenomenon had another few years of (sporadic) film making in her future when Miss Annie Rooney appeared in 1942, but this effort to at least partially reshape her image away from the ringleted singing and dancing tyke seemed problematic to many critics at the time of the film’s release and augured some rough career pathways ahead for Temple. The good news is of course that Temple was able to forge a rather fascinating post-film life that included all sorts of honorable activities, including as an international ambassador, with occasional forays into television that probably at least kept her Screen Actors Guild card active.
Miss Annie Rooney is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of ClassicFlix with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.33:1. ClassicFlix made a rather auspicious debut with Another Man's Poison, a transfer culled from a restoration done jointly by Cohen and the British Film Institute. This first "independent" offering from the fledgling Blu-ray label isn't quite at that level of quality, but is certainly commendable on many fronts. The best thing about this transfer is it hasn't been shorn of grain, though a few individual scenes have a slightly filtered appearance. Contrast is also generally strong, though it, along with brightness, are just slightly variable at times. There's some very slight flicker in attendance at times as well, though you have to be paying attention to backgrounds to really see it. There isn't any major damage to speak of, other than a few stray flecks that still creep into the proceedings. Some of the optical dissolves look a bit ragged, but my hunch is that's a source related anomaly. Detail levels are generally very good throughout the presentation, with elements like flyaway hair on Temple's head easily discernable.
Miss Annie Rooney sports a decent if occasionally problematic DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 mono mix. While dialogue is always listenable, there's prevalent hiss throughout this presentation, and there are also a couple of very brief audio splices (like, less than a second) in the early going that affect some of the underscore. Fidelity is about what you'd expect from a film of this vintage, with a slightly boxy sound that is most apparent during musical interludes but less distracting during dialogue moments.
There are no supplements of any kind on this disc. The main menu offers play, chapter and subtitle options (see screenshot 20). There is an insert inside the Blu-ray case which seeks to provide translations for the so-called "Jitterbug-ese", the patently fake sounding patois Temple and her teen friends spew in the film which probably struck teenagers of the day as sounding as ridiculous as it will for contemporary audiences.
It's probably stretching things a bit to refer to Miss Annie Rooney as a "classic", despite it being released by a label with that word in its title. However, Temple fans will probably enjoy the film, even if it's not Temple's most iconic moment. The biggest obstacle here is not in fact a more mature Temple, but the screenwriter's inability to effectively provide dialogue that sounds natural. The story is about as trite as can be, but Temple films were hardly the model for incredible innovation (aside from "failures" like The Blue Bird ). Technical merits are acceptable (audio) to very good (video) for those considering a purchase.
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