This wartime movie about the struggle of a family in a still economically depressed New York environment, tries hard to entertain with its Neil Simonesque dialogue. Then comes the bombshell. When father Halevy (Claude Rains), a failure by anyone's, including his own, standards, realizes that his adored daughter Bobby (Anne Shirley) is headed for an unrealized life of failure not unlike his own for want of a mere one thousand dollars, he decides to give her this money the only way he still can, by staging a potentially suicidal elevator crash. The scene of Halevy's leaving home before going through with this scheme is very close to Willy Loman's corresponding scene in "Death of a Salesman." According to the credits, "Saturday's Children" is based on a Pulitzer Prize winning play by Maxwell Anderson, which a young Arthur Miller surely must have seen. If it suggested the end of his major masterpiece "Death of a Salesman" to Miller, that alone would redeem this otherwise schmaltzy play/movie.
21 Reviews
Saturday's children have far to go.
michaelRokeefe8 November 2000
This very entertaining film is directed flawlessly by Vincent Sherman and based on a Maxwell Anderson play. Top notch script providing laughter, sympathy and reflective determination.
A lovely young woman(Anne Shirley) ends up tricking a hopeless schemer/inventor(John Garfield) into marriage. Is it tricked or trapped? The young couple struggle to the point of almost breaking up. They earn $101 a month, but spend $108. The poor lovers try to prove two can live as cheap as one...maybe if one doesn't eat!
My favorite scene is when Garfield and brother-in-law(Roscoe Karns)come home drunk. Also funny is when Garfield is told that he was tricked into the marriage.
Claude Rains is the young woman's father and plays the part cool and witty with his own brand of humor. Lee Patrick is sister Florrie, who is quite obnoxious from the get go.
A very touching movie. Being poor is no fun, but it isn't the end of the world. Someone always has it worse. More than likely another Saturday child.
A lovely young woman(Anne Shirley) ends up tricking a hopeless schemer/inventor(John Garfield) into marriage. Is it tricked or trapped? The young couple struggle to the point of almost breaking up. They earn $101 a month, but spend $108. The poor lovers try to prove two can live as cheap as one...maybe if one doesn't eat!
My favorite scene is when Garfield and brother-in-law(Roscoe Karns)come home drunk. Also funny is when Garfield is told that he was tricked into the marriage.
Claude Rains is the young woman's father and plays the part cool and witty with his own brand of humor. Lee Patrick is sister Florrie, who is quite obnoxious from the get go.
A very touching movie. Being poor is no fun, but it isn't the end of the world. Someone always has it worse. More than likely another Saturday child.
Would You Believe Humphrey Bogart Originated Garfield's Role?
bkoganbing4 March 2010
This version of Saturday's Children is the third film version of a popular Maxwell Anderson play that ran for 326 performances on Broadway during the 1927-28 season. It's a story of young love with sad to say a most miscast John Garfield.
Of course Garfield might not have thought so since back on stage the role he plays as the young calf-eyed Rube Goldberg inventor was originated by none other than fellow Warner Brothers tough guy Humphrey Bogart. Hard to believe, but Bogey on stage played those kind of roles until The Petrified Forest changed his image. He and Ruth Gordon starred in the stage version.
But image is everything and Garfield's similar image of a tough guy was set in the mind of the movie-going public then. Garfield insisted on doing this film and Jack Warner gave in. But when it flopped at the box office and it did, Warner was ready with the 'I told you so'.
A silent version was done with Grant Withers and Corinne Griffith in 1928 and Warner Brothers later did the story again in 1935 with a more suitable Ross Alexander in the lead opposite Gloria Stuart.
I suppose it was the thing back then for young marrieds to live with their parents. This film has Garfield and Anne Shirley living with her parents, Claude Rains and Elizabeth Risdon, along with other married sister Lee Patrick and her husband Roscoe Karns. No wonder these two want a little privacy.
Rains brings Shirley to work in the office where he is a clerk and there she meets Garfield whom she falls for. Garfield is like George Bailey, a guy with an itch to do great things and sees an opportunity in the Phillipines for adventurous type work. But now he's got a wife who doesn't quite share that disposition.
The best performance in the film belongs to Claude Rains. He almost makes quite the sacrifice to keep our young folk together.
Even with a John Garfield that you can't quite get over, Saturday's Children is a nice film about people in love. That's a formula that always sells.
Of course Garfield might not have thought so since back on stage the role he plays as the young calf-eyed Rube Goldberg inventor was originated by none other than fellow Warner Brothers tough guy Humphrey Bogart. Hard to believe, but Bogey on stage played those kind of roles until The Petrified Forest changed his image. He and Ruth Gordon starred in the stage version.
But image is everything and Garfield's similar image of a tough guy was set in the mind of the movie-going public then. Garfield insisted on doing this film and Jack Warner gave in. But when it flopped at the box office and it did, Warner was ready with the 'I told you so'.
A silent version was done with Grant Withers and Corinne Griffith in 1928 and Warner Brothers later did the story again in 1935 with a more suitable Ross Alexander in the lead opposite Gloria Stuart.
I suppose it was the thing back then for young marrieds to live with their parents. This film has Garfield and Anne Shirley living with her parents, Claude Rains and Elizabeth Risdon, along with other married sister Lee Patrick and her husband Roscoe Karns. No wonder these two want a little privacy.
Rains brings Shirley to work in the office where he is a clerk and there she meets Garfield whom she falls for. Garfield is like George Bailey, a guy with an itch to do great things and sees an opportunity in the Phillipines for adventurous type work. But now he's got a wife who doesn't quite share that disposition.
The best performance in the film belongs to Claude Rains. He almost makes quite the sacrifice to keep our young folk together.
Even with a John Garfield that you can't quite get over, Saturday's Children is a nice film about people in love. That's a formula that always sells.
Claude Rains fans should see this.
hollywoodlegend1 August 2011
This film is a comedy with sad parts. If you want to see the past, the fashions, the way women were treated, or just escape from modern films, you might enjoy this. I watched it solely for Claude Rains, but found the female lead to be very likable and certainly very pretty. A girl of 22 meets a man at her new job, and they begin a solid friendship. I liked that she wasn't a typical girlie-girl, trying to catch a man. She was a person first and very honest. It's her sister who is determined the two must marry. The marriage runs into trouble mostly due to finances--nothing much has changed in America, has it! Claude Rains is absolutely charming as ever, kind, gentle, funny, and very devoted to his daughter. It shocked me that a 1940s film, or any father, would tell his daughter it was OK for girls to sow some "wild oats" as well as boys! Dad's action toward the end of the film shocked me as well, and overall this was a fairly poorly written, unrealistic kitchen-sink drama. However, Anne Shirley is so lovely and likable, and Claude Rains is wonderful. Great to see him not playing a villain or an overly intense individual for once (though he did that so well!) Worth seeing for those two actors. Without them, it would be a miss.
Boy, oh boy, oh boy!
jotix10012 April 2006
This copy of this film, seen recently on TCM, had a faded look, which contributes to lose the viewer's interest in a film that doesn't seem too relevant today. The main attraction for watching it, was the interesting cast put together for it. Unfortunately, the most important part, is terribly miscast.
The story takes place in Manhattan at the end of the Great Depression. Based on a play by Maxwell Anderson, it probably worked better on the stage than in the adaptation that Julius Epstein, one of the best writers of the period, gave it. It doesn't help either, that director Vincent Sherman didn't appear to be too enthused with the material, as evident in the finished product.
John Garfield was totally wrong for Rims Rosson. He doesn't have that spark that was his trade mark. In the film he is just too bland. Ann Shirley plays the sweet Bobby Halevy. Claude Rains, though, is about the most likable character in the film because as the father of Bobby, he is an honest man who wants to do everything possible to guarantee his daughter's happiness.
The supporting cast is excellent. Lee Patrick, is seen as Florrie. Roscoe Karns and the always dependable George Tobias, make good contributions in minor roles.
Watch "Saturday's Children" as dated curiosity piece.
The story takes place in Manhattan at the end of the Great Depression. Based on a play by Maxwell Anderson, it probably worked better on the stage than in the adaptation that Julius Epstein, one of the best writers of the period, gave it. It doesn't help either, that director Vincent Sherman didn't appear to be too enthused with the material, as evident in the finished product.
John Garfield was totally wrong for Rims Rosson. He doesn't have that spark that was his trade mark. In the film he is just too bland. Ann Shirley plays the sweet Bobby Halevy. Claude Rains, though, is about the most likable character in the film because as the father of Bobby, he is an honest man who wants to do everything possible to guarantee his daughter's happiness.
The supporting cast is excellent. Lee Patrick, is seen as Florrie. Roscoe Karns and the always dependable George Tobias, make good contributions in minor roles.
Watch "Saturday's Children" as dated curiosity piece.
An uneven comedy-drama boasting a terrific cast
jacobs-greenwood17 October 2016
Warning: Spoilers
"Saturday's child has far to go" ...
Directed by Vincent Sherman and based on the play by the Pulitzer Prize winning author Maxwell Anderson, this somewhat uneven comedy- drama explores married life and boasts a terrific cast. Julius and Philip Epstein wrote the screenplay.
Career bookkeeper Henry Halevy (Claude Rains) and his wife (Elisabeth Risdon) still have their two daughters living with them, 22 year old Bobby (Anne Shirley) and her older sister Florrie (Lee Patrick), whose husband Willie Sands (Roscoe Karns) also lives under the same roof. Willie works for a collection agency.
The film opens on a Monday morning, with the always late, financially unsuccessful Henry resisting getting out of bed until Bobby reminds him that today will be her first day of work at Martin's, his place of employment, a mail order shipping company. He tells his daughter that he's both excited, that she'll be starting her first job, and sorry, that she'll realize her father isn't an important man at the office, at the same time. Florrie has her own advice for her sister Bobby's first day, find a husband! She scoffs at the idea of working women, saying that the only reason to seek employment is to find a man to marry who will provide for them. Bobby, who's never been in love, says she isn't even thinking marrying and points to Florrie's own (lack of) "success" in Willie, who has a good sense of humor about it.
On her first day, Bobby meets her new boss Mr. Norman (Berton Churchill), who says she's gotten the job on the recommendation of her father, the company's most reliable employee. He then assigns his chatty secretary Gertrude (Dennie Moore) to "show her the ropes". Gert's boyfriend is Herbie Smith (George Tobias).
Rims Rosson (John Garfield), an amateur inventor (of things which are practically infeasible) who also works at Martin's, literally bumps into Bobby on his way to and from Mr. Norman's office. Though normally oblivious to others around him, he takes note of Bobby when she helps her father provide aid to a man who is injured in an elevator accident. Rims further gets to know Bobby when he helps her to reconcile some orders with their invoices, because he speaks and reads Spanish.
Later, Gert and Herbie convince Bobby and Rims to go bowling with them, which becomes a regular Monday night date for the two, especially when Rims realizes how uniquely honest Bobby is relative to other women he's met. However, when Rims gets an opportunity to finally test one of his invention theories, making silk out of hemp in the Philippines, Bobby takes her scheming sister Florrie's advice to manipulate him into marrying her.
Once married, the young couple's struggles begin. However, they truly love each other, so they vow to celebrate all their misfortunes instead of being taken under by them. Because of the war beginning in Europe, Mr. Norman must let go the wives (of men working for the company) go until business picks up again. Though Rims and Bobby had planned to add on to their "above a garage" (worse then next to the train tracks?) apartment, they must cancel these plans. Tom Dugan and John Qualen appear briefly as the carpenters the couple has to fire.
While at home one day, Bobby gets the mail and opens a letter addressed to her husband from Manila which states that the job is still available for him there, though they cannot provide him with the salary increase required to bring his wife. That same day, Bobby learns that she is pregnant, so she tears up and discards the letter. When Bobby arrives at their apartment, she sees Rims sitting outside daydreaming. He informs her that it's time to celebrate again, he's been given a 10% decrease in salary and should probably expect another 10% decrease soon given the tough times. She decides not to tell him about her condition.
At this point, the film takes several dramatic turns. There is some comedy, involving Willie and Rims, but most of the rest of the story is more serious in nature and involves Bobby "coming clean" to Rims about "hooking him", his reaction and decision, and her father's desperate attempt to provide at least one success in his legacy for his youngest daughter.
Directed by Vincent Sherman and based on the play by the Pulitzer Prize winning author Maxwell Anderson, this somewhat uneven comedy- drama explores married life and boasts a terrific cast. Julius and Philip Epstein wrote the screenplay.
Career bookkeeper Henry Halevy (Claude Rains) and his wife (Elisabeth Risdon) still have their two daughters living with them, 22 year old Bobby (Anne Shirley) and her older sister Florrie (Lee Patrick), whose husband Willie Sands (Roscoe Karns) also lives under the same roof. Willie works for a collection agency.
The film opens on a Monday morning, with the always late, financially unsuccessful Henry resisting getting out of bed until Bobby reminds him that today will be her first day of work at Martin's, his place of employment, a mail order shipping company. He tells his daughter that he's both excited, that she'll be starting her first job, and sorry, that she'll realize her father isn't an important man at the office, at the same time. Florrie has her own advice for her sister Bobby's first day, find a husband! She scoffs at the idea of working women, saying that the only reason to seek employment is to find a man to marry who will provide for them. Bobby, who's never been in love, says she isn't even thinking marrying and points to Florrie's own (lack of) "success" in Willie, who has a good sense of humor about it.
On her first day, Bobby meets her new boss Mr. Norman (Berton Churchill), who says she's gotten the job on the recommendation of her father, the company's most reliable employee. He then assigns his chatty secretary Gertrude (Dennie Moore) to "show her the ropes". Gert's boyfriend is Herbie Smith (George Tobias).
Rims Rosson (John Garfield), an amateur inventor (of things which are practically infeasible) who also works at Martin's, literally bumps into Bobby on his way to and from Mr. Norman's office. Though normally oblivious to others around him, he takes note of Bobby when she helps her father provide aid to a man who is injured in an elevator accident. Rims further gets to know Bobby when he helps her to reconcile some orders with their invoices, because he speaks and reads Spanish.
Later, Gert and Herbie convince Bobby and Rims to go bowling with them, which becomes a regular Monday night date for the two, especially when Rims realizes how uniquely honest Bobby is relative to other women he's met. However, when Rims gets an opportunity to finally test one of his invention theories, making silk out of hemp in the Philippines, Bobby takes her scheming sister Florrie's advice to manipulate him into marrying her.
Once married, the young couple's struggles begin. However, they truly love each other, so they vow to celebrate all their misfortunes instead of being taken under by them. Because of the war beginning in Europe, Mr. Norman must let go the wives (of men working for the company) go until business picks up again. Though Rims and Bobby had planned to add on to their "above a garage" (worse then next to the train tracks?) apartment, they must cancel these plans. Tom Dugan and John Qualen appear briefly as the carpenters the couple has to fire.
While at home one day, Bobby gets the mail and opens a letter addressed to her husband from Manila which states that the job is still available for him there, though they cannot provide him with the salary increase required to bring his wife. That same day, Bobby learns that she is pregnant, so she tears up and discards the letter. When Bobby arrives at their apartment, she sees Rims sitting outside daydreaming. He informs her that it's time to celebrate again, he's been given a 10% decrease in salary and should probably expect another 10% decrease soon given the tough times. She decides not to tell him about her condition.
At this point, the film takes several dramatic turns. There is some comedy, involving Willie and Rims, but most of the rest of the story is more serious in nature and involves Bobby "coming clean" to Rims about "hooking him", his reaction and decision, and her father's desperate attempt to provide at least one success in his legacy for his youngest daughter.
Just kind of fades away
rebekahrox29 August 2020
Warning: Spoilers
This well written as far as dialogue and character but the plot was pretty lame. I tuned in for the always delightful Anne Shirley and to see the charismatic John Garfield in something a little lighter. Unfortunately he struggled in some of the lighter bits. There is a reason, it turns out, why he was cast in tense noir dramas. Claude Rains is great as her father, a rather lame character. He is charming and wise but lazy but then feels bad because he is not more of a success. His dramatic climax makes no sense.
My main problem with the plot is that it did not have any resolution or closure. Instead of going after his dream of developing silk from hemp, a process of his own invention, he fell for Anne who encouraged him to marry her by making him jealous instead of accepting a promising job in the Philippines. They struggle financially. After she gets pregnant, he turns down a second chance for the life-changing job, and they will continue to struggle with no hope on the horizon. I would have liked to see him take that job in the Philippines with or without her, or have one of his many other inventions pay off. Perhaps one which will help with the coming war effort which actually is only a year away.
Taking into consideration the ongoing WWII war efforts were underway i'ts a classic
Ed-Shullivan17 December 2020
Knowing what we know about the period 1940 and the years that preceded and succeeded this film, a world war was underway and rationing and sacrifices were having to be made by all businesses and families. These two young lovers Bobby Halevy (Anne Shirley) and Rims Rosson (John Garfield) met on Bobby's first day of work at her new job. It becomes quite evident that Bobby plays coy but she knows what she wants and how to get it. As the 2010 Beyonce Knowles song Single Ladies (Pit A Ring On It) goes, the young and very attractive Bobby wants to get married to the gullible and loved starved Rims and she quickly develops a plan to catch her fish.
The film moves along at a quick pace with each conversation talking rapidly just like it most likely did when it was first delivered as a stage play. This is a simple picture about a young couple just starting their lives together when the war efforts directly impacts their ability to maintain a living and possibly to starting a family of their own.
It is a simple story filled with both family hardships and romance and keeping in mind that WWII was underway filmgoers were looking for some glimmer of hope which Anne Shirley and John Garfield deliver. Claude Rains plays Anne Shirley's father with the charm of a lucky leprechaun which is an added bonus.
I give this eighty (80) year old classic film a decent 8 out of 10 IMDB rating
The film moves along at a quick pace with each conversation talking rapidly just like it most likely did when it was first delivered as a stage play. This is a simple picture about a young couple just starting their lives together when the war efforts directly impacts their ability to maintain a living and possibly to starting a family of their own.
It is a simple story filled with both family hardships and romance and keeping in mind that WWII was underway filmgoers were looking for some glimmer of hope which Anne Shirley and John Garfield deliver. Claude Rains plays Anne Shirley's father with the charm of a lucky leprechaun which is an added bonus.
I give this eighty (80) year old classic film a decent 8 out of 10 IMDB rating
a movie of young love in a difficult era
TMalone-512 April 2006
Anne Shirley was utterly captivating; I had never before seen her work. I had seen Claude Rains as a child but had forgotten him. It was quite enjoyable to see his portrayal of a goofy, yet devoted father.
I thought the movie was quite interesting. This is quite amazing as I do not usually enjoy movies from that era. I consider this a holdover from the 1930's; it has "depression and coming war" written all over it.
The questions the movie raised, however dated the movie, were familiar: how do young marrieds survive financially? Should men marry before they have achieved their financial goals? When, or if, should young married women drop out of the work force in order to raise a family? These are questions as difficult today as they must have been nearly 7 decades ago. The most interesting aspect was that these problems existed at all: we tend to think today that these are merely modern questions.
In spite of its "1930 style" I found it riveting; all the more so when one realizes that its stars are all gone, like the era it portrayed.
I thought the movie was quite interesting. This is quite amazing as I do not usually enjoy movies from that era. I consider this a holdover from the 1930's; it has "depression and coming war" written all over it.
The questions the movie raised, however dated the movie, were familiar: how do young marrieds survive financially? Should men marry before they have achieved their financial goals? When, or if, should young married women drop out of the work force in order to raise a family? These are questions as difficult today as they must have been nearly 7 decades ago. The most interesting aspect was that these problems existed at all: we tend to think today that these are merely modern questions.
In spite of its "1930 style" I found it riveting; all the more so when one realizes that its stars are all gone, like the era it portrayed.
John Garfield in Another Portrait of the Boy Next Door!
malvernp24 January 2023
As most IMDB folks already know, this film version of Saturday's Children (SC) is derived from a Maxwell Anderson play that first appeared on Broadway in 1927. After it opened on Jan. 26th of that year, the play ran for a respectable 310 performances before closing. While another IMDB reviewer has noted that the Rimes Rosson character (performed in the film by John Garfield) was played on the stage by Humphrey Bogart, it should be pointed out that Bogart did not originate the part. That honor was given to one Roger Pryor, who sometime after the opening came down with an undisclosed illness which necessitated his being replaced by Bogart. The female lead (Bobby) was portrayed on the stage by Ruth Gordon and in this film version by Anne Shirley. Interestingly, while Bobby's family name in both the play and film is the same ("Halevy"), in the play the male lead is known as Rimes O'Neil and not Rimes Rosson as in the film. There appears to be no known explanation for this change of names, nor is there one to clarify why Bobby's family name is pronounced in the film with the accent on its first syllable. The more common way to pronounce the name "Halevy" is with the accent on the second syllable. It is possible that the film's producers were attempting to downplay the ethnic origins of that family name. We just do not know.
In any event, Bogart left the play after a few months to then assume his next role on the Broadway stage in a farce entitled "Baby Mine.". It opened on June 9, 1927 and closed unsuccessfully after just 12 performances. The play starred Roscoe "Fatty" Arbuckle, and was intended to be a comeback vehicle for Arbuckle from a well known scandal that ultimately doomed him as an actor in Hollywood.
Garfield's role in SC is not like the work he was doing at Warner Brothers at this stage of his career. He played it in a somewhat subdued and understated way that greatly enhanced both its realism and charm. Some reviewers have suggested that Garfield was miscast in this role. Others have opined that he took it on to show that he had a broader acting range than he was able to demonstrate in his previous WB films. The latter explanation seems to be the more plausible one, based upon the many examples of similar efforts made by other Hollywood actors presented with like situations. See e.g. Fred Astaire in On the Beach (1959), Gene Kelly in Inherit the Wind (1960), Lucille Ball in The Big Street (1942), Frank Sinatra in Suddenly (1954), Bob Hope in Beau James (1957) etc. Bogart's assuming an atypical (for him) romantic and comedic leading man role in Sabrina (1954) would appear to be yet another illustration of the same phenomenon. To this reviewer, Garfield was believable, likable and quite natural playing Rimes. It is possible that under the right set of circumstances, Garfield (like James Cagney and Edward G. Robinson before him) might have also developed into a reasonably successful comedic actor. Again-----unfortunately-----we will never know.
SC is a sensitive and touching film that was greatly aided by Garfield's likable and boyish performance. Special mention also must be made of Claude Rains's nuanced portrayal as Anne Shirley's warm and kindly father. The rest of the supporting cast was strong and greatly enhanced the story's Depression-era narrative.
To many filmgoers, SC is probably an unknown or forgotten movie. Because it is so endearing, SC deserves to be seen and appreciated anew by a contemporary audience.
In any event, Bogart left the play after a few months to then assume his next role on the Broadway stage in a farce entitled "Baby Mine.". It opened on June 9, 1927 and closed unsuccessfully after just 12 performances. The play starred Roscoe "Fatty" Arbuckle, and was intended to be a comeback vehicle for Arbuckle from a well known scandal that ultimately doomed him as an actor in Hollywood.
Garfield's role in SC is not like the work he was doing at Warner Brothers at this stage of his career. He played it in a somewhat subdued and understated way that greatly enhanced both its realism and charm. Some reviewers have suggested that Garfield was miscast in this role. Others have opined that he took it on to show that he had a broader acting range than he was able to demonstrate in his previous WB films. The latter explanation seems to be the more plausible one, based upon the many examples of similar efforts made by other Hollywood actors presented with like situations. See e.g. Fred Astaire in On the Beach (1959), Gene Kelly in Inherit the Wind (1960), Lucille Ball in The Big Street (1942), Frank Sinatra in Suddenly (1954), Bob Hope in Beau James (1957) etc. Bogart's assuming an atypical (for him) romantic and comedic leading man role in Sabrina (1954) would appear to be yet another illustration of the same phenomenon. To this reviewer, Garfield was believable, likable and quite natural playing Rimes. It is possible that under the right set of circumstances, Garfield (like James Cagney and Edward G. Robinson before him) might have also developed into a reasonably successful comedic actor. Again-----unfortunately-----we will never know.
SC is a sensitive and touching film that was greatly aided by Garfield's likable and boyish performance. Special mention also must be made of Claude Rains's nuanced portrayal as Anne Shirley's warm and kindly father. The rest of the supporting cast was strong and greatly enhanced the story's Depression-era narrative.
To many filmgoers, SC is probably an unknown or forgotten movie. Because it is so endearing, SC deserves to be seen and appreciated anew by a contemporary audience.
Waste of John Garfield's talent
Chris-19516 April 2005
I've been watching any John Garfield films I can lately, and so far, this has been the most disappointing. Garfield is so miscast. I can't imagine what the studio was thinking. The film attempts to deal with the issue of young marriage facing poverty, but every character is so naive that I often found myself wondering if there was a gas leak in their building. It's the only rational way to explain their inability to cope with major problems at anything other than a fifth grade level. Garfield, who was Brando before there even was a Brando, is thoroughly wasted here. He plays his character as a sort of slack-jawed mope, who either pouts or widens his eyes at every little thing. Anne Shirley is attractive, but bland. Claude Rains starts promisingly, but even he can't surmount the problems inherent in the script. The film also commits the horror of having a character use the title in a dramatic moment in the end, summing up the entire film just before the credits roll. As if people really talk like that. John Garfield is amazing, and worth watching in just about anything. But not this.
Saturday's Children Plays Well ***1/2
edwagreen17 July 2006
The director of this film died recently as we was approaching 100. Dennie Moore, who plays the common Gertie, with a typical Brooklyn accent, turns 99 in December.
Wonderful seeing John Garfield in a non-gangster role. As the sympathetic Sims, an inventor whose a dreamer, Garfield etches a totally believable character. Anne Shirley plays the girl who loves and tricks him into marriage.
Garfield plays basically another George Bailey type. The opportunities are there for him but situations arise which prevent him from fulfilling his dreams.
Claude Rains plays his philosophical father-in-law who plots to do away with himself so that Garfield and Shirley can live happily ever after.
The two work in the same office, fall in love and marry. With the coming of war, she gets laid off and he is asked to take a pay cut.
Sad but realistic. This true to life film does end happily.
Wonderful seeing John Garfield in a non-gangster role. As the sympathetic Sims, an inventor whose a dreamer, Garfield etches a totally believable character. Anne Shirley plays the girl who loves and tricks him into marriage.
Garfield plays basically another George Bailey type. The opportunities are there for him but situations arise which prevent him from fulfilling his dreams.
Claude Rains plays his philosophical father-in-law who plots to do away with himself so that Garfield and Shirley can live happily ever after.
The two work in the same office, fall in love and marry. With the coming of war, she gets laid off and he is asked to take a pay cut.
Sad but realistic. This true to life film does end happily.
"Women only have one weapon -- marriage."
utgard1416 November 2014
Young couple struggle to make their marriage work. He's a dreamer (aren't they always) and she tricked him into marriage in the first place (ugh). This movie offered nothing that I haven't seen before. The characters whine a lot and it got on my nerves. Then there's the speeches. So many I lost count. The cast looks great on paper but mostly disappoints. John Garfield is one big sad sack of gullible self-pity. Anne Shirley, an actress I absolutely adore, can do little to redeem her character. She starts out likable enough but once her wretched sister gets in her ear, she becomes a manipulative brat. At least she's pretty to look at. On the plus side, there's Claude Rains and he's always great to watch. Maybe I'm being too hard on it. The story and characters are sincere enough. I've seen many of these "plight of the young married couple" movies from the time, many from years before this film. But the staginess and dated ideas make it all seem pretty tired.
Light as a feather
jaykay-1013 December 2004
The picture is consistently out-of-joint as a result of the filmmakers' decision to deal with some rather substantial issues (marriage, poverty, ambition) as themes appropriate for a lighthearted, quasi-comic treatment. Smiling and accepting throughout, the characters suffer no more than mildly bruised feelings before turning their thoughts toward supposedly better days ahead. Seemingly, just about any setback can be overcome by optimism, however groundless, and an acceptance of whatever it is that life holds. That such naive characters would presume to counsel one another verges on the ludicrous. None is a success, all have been manipulated by others and by the vicissitudes of life itself - apparently without having learned a thing from their experiences. The wisest, most thoughtful of them all, played by Claude Rains, has good advice for his family, but has achieved no measure of success. Anne Shirley, sweet and innocent, lacks the wherewithal to come to grips with life. The foremost liability here is the egregious miscasting of John Garfield as a wide-eyed, vacuous sap who, for all intents and purposes, might have been born yesterday. What may have been meant to be a refreshing change from his familiar type of character results in a role which is not beyond him, but beneath him.
John Garfield shines as the American "everyman"
rose_lily8 March 2013
John Garfield, a greatly underrated actor, with a sadly short career, was the first real "modern" actor pre-Brando. He is stellar as the working class hero struggling with financial setbacks, unrealized ambitions and a new marriage. He imbues the character of Rims Rosson with a poignancy illustrating the inner turmoil of a man whose responsibilities and love for his wife conflict with his desire to accomplish his dream of travel and professional distinction. Claude Rains, as the titular head of this extended family, a man toiling for years at a company desk as bookkeeper, lends heart and dignity to this story of a father driven to carry out the ultimate sacrifice in order to aid the newlyweds. Ann Shirley gives an adequate performance as the modest, simple wife whose expectations and worldly ambitions starts and end with marriage.
Although produced earlier on stage and film, the story elements are timeless. This 1940 movie version is an excellent slice of life representing the American "everyman" in a Depression era America on the brink of World War II.
Although produced earlier on stage and film, the story elements are timeless. This 1940 movie version is an excellent slice of life representing the American "everyman" in a Depression era America on the brink of World War II.
Obviously a stage production brought to the screen
planktonrules28 May 2007
This obviously must have been a play first, as the film is very static and spends most of the time confined to small sets. I really wish the writers had done something to try to open the film up a bit--giving it some more energy and giving it life. Instead, you feel you are watching a play that was filmed--especially when it comes to dialog, as the actors seem to be, at times, making speeches to an audience. Now the acting is okay (though a bit too earnest if you ask me) and the general idea is okay, but just not super-compelling. You see, a young couple is married and face a huge battle against debts and struggle to get by---again and again and again. Halfway into the film, I felt like I'd had enough. Yes, they were young and in love but the day to day pressures put a lot of strain on their marriage--I understood that but after a while I just wanted this depressing film to end. About the only bright spot was the role played by Claude Rains--he was pretty funny and likable. As for the leads, Anne Shirley and John Garfield, this was definitely not one of their better films as they came off as rather whiny and immature. I just felt like yelling at the actors to buck up and deal with it--that's life!
Love wills out
DBlackthorne23 April 2006
Warning: Spoilers
A charming and rather riveting tale about a newlywed couple who struggle through some financial hardships, yet their incessant love for each other wins out in the end, and the money naturally follows such passion.
They meet on a bus of all places, where they are immediately attracted towards one another, and allow themselves various "coincidences" to meet up again on the street - he is an inventor of such quirky gadgets like the door lock which engages like a safe, and an instant cigarette-rolling apparatus.
After a rough argument, the two temporarily part ways, and through a supremely noble sacrifice by a relative, rejoin their inevitable love. He subsequently rejects a gig in The Phillipines for their union, and all finally balances out.
They meet on a bus of all places, where they are immediately attracted towards one another, and allow themselves various "coincidences" to meet up again on the street - he is an inventor of such quirky gadgets like the door lock which engages like a safe, and an instant cigarette-rolling apparatus.
After a rough argument, the two temporarily part ways, and through a supremely noble sacrifice by a relative, rejoin their inevitable love. He subsequently rejects a gig in The Phillipines for their union, and all finally balances out.
This won a Pulitzer? Really?
marcslope18 November 2014
So the title card claims, and it's based on a play by Maxwell Anderson, a distinguished American playwright who tackled tough subjects--fascism, apartheid, congressional dysfunction. I don't know this play, but whatever it was, the Epstein brothers utterly standardized it in their thin- blooded adaptation, a weak domestic drama where co-workers John Garfield and Anne Shirley meet, fall in love, marry, and suffer small-people problems. He's polite and mild-mannered and uninteresting, and she's pure ingenue, and watching them trod along the well-worn path of conventional screen romance has no bite. Even Claude Rains, as her father, seems disengaged. At least Lee Patrick, as her scheming sister, and Roscoe Karns, as her cynical brother-in-law, provide a little bite, and George Tobias is on the periphery, playing what he always played. But, despite an attempted suicide, a hidden pregnancy, and penny-ante deceptions in the young pair's marriage, it's slow, repetitive, and unfelt. And it needs edge. Oh, how it needs edge.
Opening poem fragment is incorrect
lkpo9031 May 2005
It should go like this: Monday's child is fair of face Tuesday's child is full of grace Wednesday's child is full of woe Thursday's child has far to go Friday's child is loving and giving Saturday's child must work for a living and the child that is born on the sabbath day is bonny and blithe and good and gay. I'm not sure why Jack Warner didn't catch this. It seems that to use the title to begin with presumes knowledge of the poem (I for one have to run through the entire thing in order to make sure myself. "Work for a living" also seems to fit better with the theme of the movie-- not that it matters though since the author came up with the title to begin with.
For Saturday's children, all days are Saturdays.
clanciai20 January 2024
This is a family film to say the least. The father is Claude Rains with two daughters, at 43 he realised his life had been a waste, whereupon he resigned and just let it go on as usual. His elder daughter is married, she has no children and wakes up every morning to have a noisy argument with her husband, the younger sister is Anne Shirley who works at her father's place where he meets John Garfield, a clerk with funny ideas of inventions on which he some day will make a fortune, he thinks. Although many setbacks, the family living together and struggling by the skin of their teeth, the war (1940) affecting badly their business with constant cuts, the main tone of the film is of incurable optimism. Whenever something bad happens, John Garfield takes it for an excuse to celebrate. The dialog is priceless, there are many golden moments, the story is a heart-warmer, and you seldom see John Garfield and Claude Rains in such idyllic and innocent roles, which makes the film something of a unique treat. You will simply have to love it.
"DID you ever notice the bigger the firm, the more they skimp on . . . "
oscaralbert15 May 2021
Warning: Spoilers
" . . . Paper towels?" executive secretary Flo asks her new underling Bobby after a trip to the Ladies Room a few minutes into SATURDAY'S CHILDREN. As always, the prophetic prognosticators of the always eponymous Warner Bros. Use a film to warn America about its Corrupt Capitalist Corporate Communist Class, which begrudges Loyal Patriotic True Blue Normal Average Union Label Working Stiffs each tiny square of bath tissue they consume while slaving at work for a tiny pittance. SATURDAY'S CHILDREN also highlights the imminent danger to Filipino U. S. Citizens, who were just as American as Today's Puerto Ricans or Washingtonians, their pockets filled with their official currency of U. S. greenbacks, letters mailed with USA stamps and on pace to beat out BOTH Hawaii and Alaska to become America's 49th state. Then the Imperial Axis of Evil slaughtered more than a million of our fellow U. S. citizens after cowardly Pachyderm Political Party "General" Doug fled, forcing that racist cult to expel the surviving Filipino "losers and suckers" out of our nation in a crazed effort to minimize, cover-up and white wash the largest genocide facilitated by a single political party in U. S. history. So much for "Rims'" American Dream of making silk in the Philippines.
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