utgard14 Apple Annie (May Robson) is an apple seller in New York City whose daughter (Jean Parker) has been raised in Spain and knows nothing of her mother's situation. The two communicate through letters where Annie has led her daughter to believe she is a wealthy society matron. Now her daughter is getting married to a member of Spanish aristocracy and is bringing her fiancée and his father to New York to meet Annie. Dave the Dude (Warren William), a gambling gangster who thinks Annie brings him good luck, decides to help Annie pretend to be the lady she claimed in her letters.One of my favorite Capra films. Criminally under-appreciated. Funny, touching, sentimental. Amazing performance from May Robson. She was robbed at the Oscars. Warren William is a perfect Dave the Dude. Sublime supporting cast includes Guy Kibbee, Glenda Farrell, Nat Pendleton, Walter Connolly, Halliwell Hobbes, Samuel S. Hinds, and Ned Sparks with his trademark deadpan delivery. Truly classic film with wonderful Damon Runyon characters.

mark.waltz This fantasy of depression life in New York was like "Gold Diggers of 1933" in its sympathy to the variety of character types who roamed the theatre district in search of a future. If Little Orphan Annie at this time was hoping for an escape from Miss Hannigan's reign of terror at the orphanage, the aged Apple Annie was hoping to find a way to bring happiness to her beautiful daughter raised in a Spanish convent and now engaged to a nobleman whose father wants to meet the mother in order to approve the match. The help of jaded gambler Warren William, crusty Ned Sparks, dipsomaniac judge Guy Kibbee and nightclub entertainer Glenda Farrell might just put the scheme of making her look like a lady (shades of "Pygmallion"), showing that at least in Runyeonland, gangsters have good hearts, especially if an apple a day brings luck at the race track.Character actress May Robson brings much heart to the down-on-her-luck Annie who longs to see her daughter at least one last time and be seen as the great lady she could have been rather than the poor street vendor she has become. Warren William escapes from the playboys and ruthless businessmen he was playing over at Warner Brothers to take on one of his most memorable roles as the good-hearted gangster (a staple in Damon Runyeon tales) while Ned Sparks gets most of the funniest lines. He delivers them with a cigar in his mouth, acid spewing and joy exploding out of every wisecrack he makes. Nat Pendleton is also amusing as the lovable dumb lug Shakespeare, Williams' right hand man.The chemistry between Robson and Guy Kibbee (pretending to be her husband) is totally charming, giving the impression that there will be a nice September romance once the story we see on screen ends. Parker is lovely as the innocent daughter, but Barry Norton and Walter Connelly seem miscast as Spanish nobility. That is a minor flaw through a film that totally engrosses you and goes straight to the heart.

Ursula 2.7T I'm no Capra fan, but here's a second movie of his (along with "The Miracle Woman") that I just loved. Maybe his pre-Codes are better than his other movies? I may have to change my mind about Capra, or at least see some more of his pre-Code movies; they're terrific! This movie was sweet and touching, without being sickening sweet or melodramatic. This movie also has lots of humor and some great dialogue. This 72-yr-old movie holds up extremely well. I was utterly charmed by this movie.The story revolves around an elderly woman, Apple Annie, who is quite poor. She sells apples for a living and sends all her money to her daughter, Louise, who lives in Spain. Annie is ashamed of her lifestyle, and she leads her daughter to believe she's a high-society lady by writing letters on the stationery of a posh hotel. Annie even has a friend on the inside of the hotel who passes Louise's letters that are sent to the hotel to Annie.One of Apple Annie's clients is "Dave the Dude", the head of a local mob. Before he does any business dealings, Dave always buys an apple from Annie for good luck.Well, not to spoil the movie too much, let me just say that Annie finds out her daughter is coming to town (New York) and she panics. Her panhandler friends talk Dave into setting Annie up in a suite at the posh hotel so that she can continue the pretense for her daughter's sake. Dave gets most of his mobster and street friends involved in one way or another -- the potential is here for great sappiness, but amazingly the story unfolds with just pure sweetness and lots of humor that has held up very well over the past 3/4-century.The performances by the lead actors were terrific. May Robson as Annie was wonderful; she gave a tender, subtle performance as the mother who loved her daughter so much, yet was so ashamed of the way she (Annie) lived. Warren William was terrific as Dave the Dude - I think his was probably the toughest role to play as he had to be a "bad guy" mob head as well as a softie who went out of his way to make Annie a lady for a day. Guy Kibbee as Annie's husband was superb, a common pool hustler who played an upper-crust gentleman. The rest of the cast were pretty good too ... I especially enjoyed the actor who played the dry and sardonic "Happy"; he had some of the best lines in the show.So, in conclusion, snappy dialogue, nice mix of drama and humor, and just the right amount of sweetness make for a wonderful pre-Code movie. If you enjoy old movies, this is a movie that you definitely won't be sorry you watched. Highly recommended.

daryl42 All the women are going into the bedroom to fix up the bag lady, hairdressers, manicurists, etc. One man is with the bunch. As he goes in, the head guy says "Hey, he can't go in there." The moll says "Oh, he's OK". The guys looks over, shrugs and says, the word dripping from his lips "Pierre". One of the funniest scenes in movies and one of my favorite one line deliveries.Otherwise, a funny, sweet film. Seems more naive than the remake which makes it work better.