Peg o' My Heart (1933)

if their story seems completely bonkers, almost like a feverish work of fiction, you ain't heard nothing yet.

The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

While it doesn't offer any answers, it both thrills and makes you think.

The thing I enjoyed most about the film is the fact that it doesn't shy away from being a super-sized-cliche;

Marion Davies was given quite the acting challenge by MGM and her paramour William Randolph Hearst. In doing Peg O' My Heart she was taking on a role that was made immortal on stage and in a silent screen version by Laurette Taylor. But Marion was more than up to the challenge.In fact the film was the best of possible worlds for Davies. She could be the sweet heroine that Mr. Hearst always saw her as. But the part called for some singing and Irish dancing and Marion's great talents for mimicry. She's got the brogue down perfect, she really does sound like J. Farrell MacDonald's daughter and he came by his brogue naturally.The play was written for Laurette Taylor by her husband J. Hartley Manners and became Taylor's signature part. Davies did make it her own. The play was considerably expanded from the stage version which only takes place in the drawing room of the Chichester home in Great Britain.Young Peg O'Connell was the daughter of MacDonald and an English mother who left them because she couldn't stand the life in the fishing village in the west of Ireland. What's great for some is bad for others, the village looks and feels a whole lot like Innisfree where John Wayne couldn't wait to move to in The Quiet Man.But mom's died and she's left a will that says the Chichester family will be paid an installment to educate young Peg in proper English ways and then Peg's to receive a big inheritance. Looks like mom made out quite fine after she left J. Farrell MacDonald. Anyway she's also to cut off contact from her father completely.The usual English and Irish stereotypes circa 1912 when Peg O' My Heart opened on Broadway for a 603 performance run abound in the film version. Peg's presence however changes quite a few things in the lives of the Chichesters before she makes up her mind what her destiny is.Marion is just fine in the part, I certainly would like to know what Laurette Taylor might have thought of her performance.

Marion Davies does surprisingly well as a girl from an Irish fishing village who must abandon her father and become a proper British lady to get a large inheritance. Of course, the accents, music and dance are American stage Irish rather than Irish Irish, but a very clever script and hard work all around pays off. And they forgot to credit 'Mutt' as Marion Davies' dog.Also made in 1922 by King Vidor.

I recently saw this film on Turner Movie Classics and was surprised how charming the performance of Marion Davies was. This proves that she was indeed a fine performer when given the opportunity. Despite the fact she was in her mid 30's when this film was made, she is quite believable as a teenager.

Peg O' My Heart is really charming,due mainly to the wonderful Marion Davies. She also sings and dances in a few numbers quite delightfully! I saw this on the Turner Classic Movies cable station. A real boon to classic movie lovers!