The Little Princess (1939)

User Rating:

7.1/10   

Director:

Walter Lang
(more)

Writers:

Ethel Hill (screenplay) and
Walter Ferris (screenplay) ...
(more)

Release Date:

17 March 1939 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama | Family | Musical

Plot:

A little girl is left by her father in an exclusive seminary for girls, due to her father having to go to Africa with the army.

Plot Keywords:

Servant | Teacher | School | Victoria | Birthday Party

Cast

Shirley Temple	...	Sara Crewe
Richard Greene	...	Geoffrey Hamilton
Anita Louise	...	Rose
Ian Hunter	...	Captain Crewe
Cesar Romero	...	Ram Dass
Arthur Treacher	...	Bertie Minchin
Mary Nash	...	Amanda Minchin
Sybil Jason	...	Becky
Miles Mander	...	Lord Wickham
Marcia Mae Jones	...	Lavinia
Beryl Mercer	...	Queen Victoria
Deidre Gale	...	Jessie
Ira Stevens	...	Ermengarde
E.E. Clive	...	Mr. Barrows
Eily Malyon	...	Mrs. O'Connell - the Cook
Clyde Cook	...	Hospital Attendant
Keith Hitchcock	...	Bobbie (as Keith Kenneth)
Will Stanton	...	Groom
Harry Allen	...	Groom
Holmes Herbert	...	Doctor
Evan Thomas	...	Doctor
Guy Bellis	...	Doctor
Kenneth Hunter	...	General
Lionel Braham	...	Colonel Gordon
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Frank Baker	...	Officer (uncredited)
Sidney Bracey	...	Pedestrian Discussing the War (uncredited)
Robert Cory	...	Bobbie (uncredited)
Herbert Evans	...	Orderly Chasing Sara (uncredited)
Olaf Hytten	...	Pedestrian Discussing the War (uncredited)
Lilyan Irene	...	Maid (uncredited)
Charles Irwin	...	Wounded Soldier Outside Hospital (uncredited)
Patrick X. Kerry	...	Wounded Irishman (uncredited)
Morton Lowry	...	Traumatized Young Soldier (uncredited)
Jean Manners	...	Nurse (uncredited)
Vesey O'Davoren	...	Orderly (uncredited)
Antonia Oland	...	Student (uncredited)
Rita Page	...	Minnie - Cook's Helper (uncredited)
Hilda Plowright	...	Nurse (uncredited)
Gerald Rogers	...	Pedestrian Discussing the War (uncredited)
Leslie Sketchley	...	Bobbie (uncredited)
David Thursby	...	Orderly Sergeant (uncredited)
Clare Verdera	...	Nurse (uncredited)

Directed by
Walter Lang
William A. Seiter		(uncredited)

Writing credits
Ethel Hill		(screenplay) and
Walter Ferris		(screenplay)
Frances Hodgson Burnett		(novel)

Produced by
Gene Markey	....	associate producer

Cinematography by
Arthur C. Miller		(photography by) (as Arthur Miller)
William V. Skall		(photography by) (as William Skall)

Film Editing by
Louis R. Loeffler		(as Louis Loeffler)

Art Direction by
Bernard Herzbrun
Hans Peters

Set Decoration by
Richard Day		(settings)
Thomas Little

Costume Design by
Gwen Wakeling

Production Management
Darryl F. Zanuck	....	in charge of production

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Gene Bryant	....	assistant director (uncredited)

Sound Department
Roger Heman Sr.	....	sound (as Roger Heman)
E. Clayton Ward	....	sound

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Sam Benson	....	wardrobe (uncredited)

Music Department
Louis Silvers	....	musical director
Charles Maxwell	....	composer: incidental music (uncredited)
Cyril J. Mockridge	....	composer: incidental music (uncredited)
Herbert W. Spencer	....	composer: incidental music (uncredited)

Other crew
Ernest Belcher	....	ballet stager
Nick Castle	....	dance stager (as Nicholas Castle)
Natalie Kalmus	....	technicolor color director
Morgan Padelford	....	associate technicolor color director
Geneva Sawyer	....	dance stager

Production Companies

• Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation

Distributors

• Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation (1939) (USA) (theatrical)
• Warner Home Video (1996) (Netherlands) (VHS)
• Essex Video II (1997) (USA) (DVD)
• Lumivision (1997) (USA) (DVD)
• Master Movies (1997) (USA) (DVD)
• Digital Disc Entertainment (1999) (USA) (DVD)
• Echo Bridge Home Entertainment (1999) (USA) (DVD)
• Lumivision (1999) (USA) (DVD)
• Madacy Entertainment (1998) (USA) (DVD)
• Madacy Entertainment (1999) (USA) (DVD)
• Master Movies (1998) (USA) (DVD) (widescreen)
• Platinum Disc (1999) (USA) (DVD)
• SlingShot Entertainment (1999) (USA) (DVD)
• Digital Disc Entertainment (2000) (USA) (DVD)
• Madacy Entertainment (2000) (USA) (DVD)
• SlingShot Entertainment (2000) (USA) (DVD)
• Alpha Video Distributors (2001) (USA) (DVD)
• GoodTimes Home Video (2001) (USA) (DVD)
• Marengo Films (2001) (USA) (DVD)
• Alpha Video Distributors (2002) (USA) (DVD)
• Dutch FilmWorks (DFW) (2002) (Netherlands) (DVD) (rental)
• Dutch FilmWorks (DFW) (2002) (Netherlands) (VHS)
• GoodTimes Home Video (2002) (USA) (DVD)
• Diamond Entertainment Group (DEG) (2003) (USA) (DVD)
• Dutch FilmWorks (DFW) (2003) (Netherlands) (DVD) (retail)
• Reel Media International (2004) (worldwide) (VHS)
• 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment (2007) (USA) (DVD)
• Passport Video (2007) (USA) (DVD)
• Reel Media International (2007) (worldwide) (all media)
• Critics' Choice Video (????) (USA) (DVD)
• DIV (????) (Brazil) (VHS)
• Finnkino (2008) (Finland) (DVD)
• Forum Film (19??) (Finland) (VHS)
• Harley Video (19??) (Finland) (VHS)
• Mainostelevisio (MTV) (1979) (Finland) (TV)
• Suomen Kunnallispalvelu (19??) (Finland) (VHS)
• TV3 (1987) (Finland) (TV)
• Yleisradio (YLE) (1964) (Finland) (TV)

Runtime:

93 min (TCM print)

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Hindi

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Mirrophonic Recording)

Certification:

Canada:G (Ontario) | USA:TV-G (TV rating) | Argentina:Atp | Australia:G | Chile:TE | Finland:S | Netherlands:AL | Peru:PT | USA:Approved (PCA #4712)

Company:

Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation

Trivia:

The original source of the movie was a novel called "Sara Crewe; or, What Happened at Miss Minchin's" by Frances Hodgson Burnett, and it was published in 1888. She later adapted her book for the stage calling it "A Little Princess" (in London, 1902) and "The Little Princess" (in New York, 1903). It was successful enough that her publisher, C. Scribner's Sons, requested that she expand her original novel to include scenes from the play. The result was the final novel, "A Little Princess; being the whole story of Sara Crewe," which was published in 1905, and is the secondary source for the movie.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Sara Crewe: Why are they sending so many soldiers, daddy, if it's only going to be a little war?
Captain Reginald Crewe: To make those stubborn Boers take us seriously this time, my darling. When they realize Her Majesty intends to put a stop to their nonsense, they'll quiet down.
Sara Crewe: They'd better. Anyhow, when you get there, you'll stop them. Won't you, daddy?
Captain Reginald Crewe: I'll do my best, dear.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Lost: Walkabout (#1.4)" (2004)

Soundtrack:

Rule Britannia

Temple Plays The Title

We are always captivated by a young person's grown up prowess on stage or screen. This is certainly true of Temple's performance. We are intimidated by her poise and strength, but endeared to her by her sincerity. Who will forget Caesar Romero (or better who would guess it was him)in the role of the Indian servant? The scene when Queen Victoria visits the hospital is gripping. On the one hand, we know the writers could not be so cruel to let her father escape her, yet on the other hand the writers and players condition you into feeling ... . Well, you'll just have to watch the movie.

Temple also pulls off the "the princess and the pauper" (one implied title of the movie) class switch well. Excellent character actors and actresses support.

I think a good movie for young people to watch.