Before Gone with the Wind (1939), even before Jezebel (1938), there was another 1930s Civil War melodrama, also starring one of
Hollywood’s top leading ladies as a Southern belle caught in the crossfire of
the conflict. That would be The Littlest
Rebel (1935), with a heroine played by that tiny dynamo of tap dancing
charm, Shirley Temple. Directed by David Butler, The Littlest Rebel takes a decidedly optimistic view of the war in
general, but it isn’t really any more sentimental or more problematic than
those better known period films. In fact, Shirley’s character, Virgie, is a lot
more sympathetic than either of the spoiled debs played by Vivien Leigh and
Bette Davis, and we get some wonderful musical numbers from Bill Robinson to
sweeten the deal.
Temple plays Virgie Cary, a true daughter of the
Confederacy who lives with her adoring parents on a big plantation filled with
remarkably contented slaves. When the war begins, her father (John Boles) goes
away to fight, but her mother (Karen Morley) dies as a result of the ensuing
hardships. Virgie’s father returns home to bury his wife, where he is captured
by the Union, but Virgie reminds the commanding officer (Jack Holt) of his own
child so much that he helps the father and daughter escape. Both men end up
sentenced to death by the Union for their actions, and it’s up to Virgie and
Uncle Billy (Bill Robinson) to appeal to President Lincoln (Frank McGlynn, Sr.)
in order to save them.
Dickensian sentiment rules in The Littlest Rebel, especially during Mrs. Cary’s death scene, but
the film’s attitudes would have gone over quite well in the era that the story
depicts. Shirley is unapologetically adorable, and her dance routines with
Robinson showcase her real talent as a performer. John Boles makes for a very
handsome daddy, while Jack Holt provides a rougher exterior for contrast, even
though he turns out to be just as susceptible to Shirley’s charms. Most of
Shirley’s films involve the formation of a new family to replace one that the
child protagonist has lost, but The
Littlest Rebel is unusual in its decision to provide Virgie with two
daddies to make up for the loss of her mother.
Children who watch the movie will need to talk over
a number of issues with an adult. The war is represented as beyond Virgie’s
comprehension, which is natural enough, but the 1935 depiction of racial issues
is really almost as thorny as the concept of antebellum slavery. Shirley
briefly appears in blackface (although for more or less practical purposes),
and the slave children on the plantation treat her as a tiny queen. Bill
Robinson’s character is relatively dignified, but Willie Best’s broadly comic
slave, James Henry, belongs more to the Stepin Fetchit school. It’s worth
noting that the Union soldiers in the movie aren’t any nicer to the slave
characters than the Confederates, which makes one wonder what their motives for
fighting are supposed to be.
If you like Shirley in The Littlest Rebel, there are plenty of other films to see. I’m
particularly fond of her two pictures with director John Ford: Wee Willie Winkie (1937) and Fort Apache (1948), although both of
them will appeal to grown-ups more than children. See more of John Boles in Stella Dallas (1937) and the Temple
picture, Curly Top (1935). Don’t miss
Stormy Weather (1943) for a really
great showcase of Bill Robinson’s talents, although you can also find him with
Shirley in The Little Colonel (1935),
Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm (1938),
and Just Around the Corner (1938).
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