Cooktopi
The acting in this movie is really good.
Maleeha Vincent
It's funny, it's tense, it features two great performances from two actors and the director expertly creates a web of odd tension where you actually don't know what is happening for the majority of the run time.
JohnHowardReid
Director: WILLIAM C. McGANN. Screenplay: Crane Wilbur. Photography: Arthur L. Todd. Film editor: Frederick Richards. Art director: Hugh Reticker. Costumes designed by Howard Shoup. Music: Howard Jackson. Dialogue director: Harry Seymour. Sound recording: Leslie G. Hewitt. Producer: Bryan Foy.Copyright 3 August 1938 by Warner Brothers Pictures, Inc. A Warner Brothers-First National Picture. New York opening at the Criterion: 19 October 1938. U.S. release: 22 October 1938. 7 reels. 63 minutes.SYNOPSIS: Innocent girl becomes involved in a bank robbery.COMMENT: Early film of Susan Hayward (not her first, however, that was Hollywood Hotel) proves of more than passing interest even to non-Hayward fans. (She has two great scenes, looks terrific, and is her usual fiery, argumentative self). The lead role (despite the billing in the ads for the 1956 re-release) is most skilfully and very sympathetically rendered by Jane Bryan, with an able assist from Sheila Bromley as the no-good Hilda. Ronald Reagan comes over ably enough, though he disappears from the action for long spells and his role is really no more than a support for the Bryan-Bromley plot. Some fine character studies are provided by Rumann (a believable tyrant) and Risdon (her farewell scene at the bus staion is quite touching), Dale and Peterson. McGann has directed with plenty of pace and verve. All told, a fast-movingly suspenseful 63 minutes.
Edgar Allan Pooh
. . . Hilda Engstrom says with her dying breath to a random priest happening by her shot-up corpse-in-ten-seconds, as President Reagan beams approvingly nearby. GIRLS ON PROBATION is another one of Warner Bros.' always prophetic warnings to Americans of the usually far (and often further) future about their upcoming Calamities, Catastrophes, Cataclysms, and Apocalypti. "Hilda" is standing in for Nancy Davis during GIRLS ON PROBATION. Some viewers may mistake Hilda's gun-toting bank robber lover for John Hinckley, but closer examination reveals him to be Reagan's future "loose cannon" rogue operator Oliver North of Iran/Contra infamy. Like Ollie, "Tony" is a serial Evil-Doer. Instead of sending Tom Cruise flying around supplying rifles to Contras (see AMERICAN MADE), Tony arms his fellow prisoners at the state pen with rifles and shotguns during GIRLS ON PROBATION. Just as actress Nancy Davis Reagan missed civics class and felt no qualms about having her astrologer ruling the USA, Hilda managed to play hooky from catechism class so often that she fails to realize that she's about to board the "Down" escalator. At least Warner Bros. tried to warn all of us about our stumbling descent along the Path to Perdition in Real Life with GIRLS ON PROBATION.
kidboots
This movie, Susan Hayward's first credited feature, was re-released in 1956, after "I'll Cry Tomorrow", and not only billed her name above the title but in misleading advertising depicted her as a gun moll - "Nice Kid Today - Jail Bird Tomorrow"!!! It must have really thrilled Miss Hayward, I don't think!! As it was, reviewers of the day didn't even notice her. The real bad girl, Hilda, was played by Sheila Bromley, who until the year before had been Sheila Mannors, unfortunately the new name didn't give her career a boost and she remained in obscurity. The star was Jane Bryan, a discovery of Bette Davis, who proved she had a real future in films, until she decided to retire in 1939 for marriage.The title "Girls on Probation" sounds up to the minute, plucked from today's headlines etc but it wasn't, just another innocent girl who gets into a heap of trouble. Connie (Jane Bryan) borrows a dress from "friend" Hilda, not realising that she has "borrowed" it from the dry cleaning shop where they both work. At a party, the real owner of the dress, socialite, Gloria (Susan Hayward) recognises her dress and reports it to the dry cleaners the next day. As luck would have it, the dress (who may be the real star of the movie) has been torn and to cut a long story short, Connie, who is completely in the dark about her friend's activities, eventually has to leave town to make a fresh start.One day Connie sees Hilda sitting in a car and decides to have it out with her, but Hilda, along with her ne'er do well boyfriend, Tony, are in the middle of a bank robbery and Connie, who is bundled into the car, is caught up in the crime. When the law catches up with her, rather than tell her real name and have her parents (her father (Sig Rumann) is a bully) learn of her shame, she keeps silent and is eventually put on probation while Hilda goes to prison. Connie goes back home and eventually gets a job with Neil Dillon (Ronald Reagan) the assistant district attorney, who has never stopped believing in her. Hilda now reappears and threatens Connie with exposure but Connie, determined now to be law abiding, informs the police and the movie ends in an exciting gun battle between the police and Tony, who has escaped from prison. Hilda is hit in the crossfire but manages to have a complete change of personality on the way to the hospital as she wishes Connie and Neill all the best.Even further down the cast list than Susan, was Peggy Shannon, "the girl with the heart shaped face", once an exquisitely beautiful actress who was now almost unemployable due to chronic alcoholism. She played Ruth, who seemed to be head girl in the prison where Connie and Hilda were sent.Recommended.
Michael_Elliott
Girls on Probation (1938) ** 1/2 (out of 4) Extremely silly but highly entertaining crime picture from Warner is "B" movie from start to finish. A good girl (Jane Bryan) gets arrested after her bad girl friend (Sheila Bromley) steals a dress and blames her. The girl gets off due to a insurance inspector (Ronald Reagan) but a little while later is arrested for conspiracy to commit robbery with the same bad girl and her now boyfriend. Once again, innocent but in the wrong place, the girl gets put on probation but soon her past catches up with her as she's now about to marry Reagan's character and is afraid of what he'll think about having a girl on probation. It's amazing how much "story" gets packed into this 65-minute movie but there's quite a bit and it never slows down. I must admit that the movie kept me entertained from start to finish but the biggest reason as to why I can't give this a higher rating is because Bryan's character has got to be the dumbest in screen history. This is coming from someone who watches over a thousand movies a year but this is without question the dumbest character I've seen in any movie. Bryan's character gets herself into so much trouble and it's all because of her doing dumb things and of course all of this blame goes to screenwriter Crane Wilbur who also directed many shorts for Warner. With that said, the performances are all pretty good with Bryan turning in fine work but the picture certainly belongs to Bromley who is perfect as the bad girl. Reagan is fine in his supporting role and early on it's Susan Hayward playing his girlfriend. The ending is downright stupid and brought me to laughs but that's just part of the entertainment to this thing. Fans of "B" movies will certainly want to check it out. Others beware.
