Ava-Grace Willis
Story: It's very simple but honestly that is fine.
Roman Sampson
One of the most extraordinary films you will see this year. Take that as you want.
Haven Kaycee
It is encouraging that the film ends so strongly.Otherwise, it wouldn't have been a particularly memorable film
howyoodoon
This is a real gem of a little film--filled with wonderful performances by its leads. Fay Wray very nearly steals the film with her boisterously show-boaty performance. And it's hard to watch the luminous (and almost totally forgotten) actress, Frances Fuller, without wondering why she didn't become one of the all-time greats of that era! Her patented look of pained disappointment in life really reaches the heart. But it's Gary Cooper who's the real revelation here. This performance is unlike anything else he ever filmed. Dark, complex, insecure--and yet strangely self-satisfied-- it's really a well- wrought role, and Cooper adds just the right touches to make the character of "Biff" likable and sympathetic. As noted by other reader/reviewers here, his best scene is the awkward, first date "courting" scene at the carnival. This is Cooper at his finest. It seems this film might have been a real breakthrough for Cooper. He shows a sure-footed confidence that had been previously under-realized. I suggest you take this film at face value--and don't judge it for something it isn't. It's pure entertainment--and Gary Cooper (who was then at the very peak of his startling handsomeness) is an absolute pleasure to watch, in every scene he's in.
MissSimonetta
One Sunday Afternoon (1933) is a rather slow, uninteresting effort. While I adore Fay Wray and Gary Cooper, neither is allowed to do much here. Cooper's main character is rather boorish and unlikable, so dumb that you can hardly root for or sympathize with him. You could argue that this is intentional, but I don't get the feeling that it is: during the finale when Cooper is supposed to see the light so to speak, I don't feel triumphant for him or his wife. I'm not even sure he really ever loved her or will love her-- he's just happy his wife isn't a shrew or a tramp! Wray gets to chew the scenery a little in the third act, but otherwise, she is wasted.The plot just rattles along from plot point to plot point. You're better served with the 1941 remake starring James Cagney and Rita Hayworth, which had a much lighter atmosphere and better pacing, plus the main character does not come across as such a lout.
atlasmb
The exposition that takes place in a dentist's office, before the flashback that constitutes the major part of this film, seemed rather long to me. And the main character, Biff Grimes (Gary Cooper), seemed to be the least likable. So, I thought this film was going to be a drag.But as the story develops, one learns that Biff, though a dense, insensitive lout, has an interesting story to tell. And the first part of the film is necessary to fully appreciate what follows.I have always felt that Gary Cooper is best suited for characters that are socially awkward. Biff is just such a role. Cooper is surrounded by actors who outshine him at times. But they form a solid ensemble for this adapted play (that would be remade two more times in the forties). Fay Wray, in particular, amazes with her transformations throughout the film.This plot is a simple story about revenge that no doubt pleased audiences of the depression era who looked to champion the common man.
bkoganbing
I was pleasantly surprised that this film was aired on Turner Classic Movies. In The Films of Gary Cooper when Warner Brothers purchased the rights from Paramount for James Cagney's remake of One Sunday Afternoon entitled The Strawberry Blonde, it says that the Paramount film itself was purchased and buried. The author said that the original might not see the light of day again. It was interesting to see this version and compare it with Cagney's.This is a much darker version and probably a lot closer to what you saw on Broadway. One Sunday Afternoon closed that year of 1933 after running for 332 performances, very nice indeed for the Depression era audience and pocketbook. Lloyd Nolan originated the role on stage and I'm sure it must have been closer to Cagney's interpretation.I can see Lloyd Nolan playing this part a lot easier than Gary Cooper. For one thing, Cooper just was not an urban type. In fact two of his most successful roles in Frank Capra's Mr. Deeds Goes to Town and Meet John Doe he was the country boy out of his environment in the big city. But Lloyd Nolan was not a movie name, in fact he'd make his screen debut shortly. The story structure is still the same, Gary Cooper while about to pull a tooth of his rival Neil Hamilton thinks back to the old days with Hamilton when they were both courting Fay Wray. Fay had a girl friend played by Frances Fuller who was all aglow over Cooper, but he couldn't see her at all. When Hamilton and Wray elope Cooper literally settles for second best and marries Fuller.The Strawberry Blonde was done with so much lighter a touch. Here the Hamilton character is far more directly responsible for Cooper landing in prison. He's a much nastier guy, much nastier than lovable blowhard Jack Carson was. In fact Hamilton commits outright perjury to land Cooper in jail where he finishes his correspondence course to become a dentist.In fact Jack Carson played the same part again in yet another version that reverted back to the same title and starred Dennis Morgan in the Cooper/Cagney lead. That one was done as a musical and didn't get nearly the acclaim that the other two did.There's not much to choose from with Frances Fuller and Olivia deHavilland. Both are the good girls of the plot and those were the kind of parts deHavilland was looking to ditch. But whereas Rita Hayworth turns out to be a shrew, Fay Wray is a tramp. Remember this was before the Code.In this case the remake was better. The story required a much lighter touch than Paramount gave it. Still a miscast Gary Cooper gives it his best shot and One Sunday Afternoon is still entertaining.But if you view this side by side with The Strawberry Blonde, I'm betting you'll what Warner Brothers did so much better.
