Made available on June 20, 2012 as part of the Twentieth Century Fox Cinema Archives made-on-demand program, this 63-minute film is full of overly stoic, one-dimensional performances and heavy-handed storytelling, yet manages to be endearing due to its quaint depiction of a more simple time.
This story lacks detail and unfolds on the screen like a play produced on an extremely limited budget. The plot has holes and leaves the audience wondering why the script wasn’t fleshed out and thus expanded into a full-length feature, as the potential was clearly there. As it is, this film looks more like something shown in a high school Social Studies class.
The film is arguably (see The Shocking Miss Pilgrim) the debut of Marilyn Monroe who plays Evie, a waitress at the Gopher Hole. Looking for her, and appreciating what she does with such a small part, is one of the more enjoyable aspects of the film.
With no bonus material, recognizable stars besides Monroe and a young Daryl Hickman, and no broadcast history due to the length of the film, this will be a hard sell to the general public.
Recommendation: There are worse ways of spending an hour, and this film certainly harkens back to both a more simple time in America and movie-making. Ultimately the story is not strong enough and leaves far too many reasons for the audience to scratch its head, and move onto another DVD.
