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Bright Eyes

Play trailer Poster for Bright Eyes PG 1934 1h 23m Comedy Play Trailer Watchlist
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83% Tomatometer 12 Reviews 75% Popcornmeter 5,000+ Ratings
Having lost her father to a plane crash, 5-year-old Shirley (Shirley Temple) and her mother, Mary (Lois Wilson), live with the Smythe family, for whom Mary serves as a domestic. With the exception of Uncle Ned (Charles Sellon), the Smythes don't much care for Shirley, and she greatly prefers spending time with her godfather, pilot James Merritt (James Dunn). When Mary is killed in a car accident, the distraught Shirley becomes the object of a bitter custody battle between James and Ned.
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Bright Eyes

Critics Reviews

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Nell Minow Movie Mom 06/23/2004
3/5
Shirley really shines. Go to Full Review Meyer Levin (Patterson Murphy) Esquire Magazine 04/20/2020
Shirley Temple is seen more than in previous pictures, which is a good thing, as people come to see her. James Dunn, the aviator, seems to be the best cinema papa or god-papa she has acquired. Go to Full Review Ann Ross Maclean's Magazine 09/25/2019
One shudders to think what Bright Eyes would be like if it didn't have Shirley Temple to take the curse off. Go to Full Review Dennis Schwartz Dennis Schwartz Movie Reviews 07/12/2015
B+
The first movie Shirley Temple got top billing. Go to Full Review Heather Boerner Common Sense Media 12/18/2010
3/5
This "Good Ship Lollipop" is sweet, but sad, too. Go to Full Review Steve Crum Video-Reviewmaster.com 01/10/2009
5/5
One of Shirley Temple's best musicals, laced with sentiment and song. Go to Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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William R. P 12/24/2023 Old, stale, dull ................................. See more steve d 01/09/2023 I think you had to grow up in the 30's to like it. See more 07/25/2019 Cloying, maudlin, trained to act and respond like a rat in a maze, a little girl puts on a personality someone has taught her will please other people and rake in the dough. Then, leave all thinking at the door. Thinking will ruin your enjoyment of this hyperbolic oh-pity-me act and bring its sentimental saccharine sweetness to a just and rewarding end. You can't blame a 6 year old for this imitation of a plot -- the writers, in their attempts to pull on every heart string imaginable, and some they couldn't quite find, leave us with a mess of a plot, unrealistic situations, and childish belief systems that fit well with the Lollipop theme and sea adventure. Movie is saved only by bratty Jane Withers, who you're pulling for from the very beginning. Now if she could only get rid of her obnoxious parents... See more 01/27/2019 The best movie song ever sung: On the Good Ship Lollipop! See more 06/15/2014 This movie is amazing!!!! I loved it and I hope you do to because it's my all time favorite!!!!! See more 03/12/2014 This is the first Shirley Temple movie that I have actually taken the time to view in its entirety, but I was surprisingly unimpressed. Shirley may be cute at times, but it really wears off quickly to the point where she becomes annoying. (First and only viewing - 3/12/2014) See more Read all reviews
Bright Eyes

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Cast & Crew

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David Butler

Director

Shirley Temple

Bright Eyes

James Dunn

Loop Merritt

Judith Allen

Adele Martin

Lois Wilson

Mary Blake

Charles Sellon

Uncle Ned Smith

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Bright Eyes

Bright Eyes (1934) Bright Eyes (1934) Bright Eyes (1934) View more photos

Movie Info

Synopsis Having lost her father to a plane crash, 5-year-old Shirley (Shirley Temple) and her mother, Mary (Lois Wilson), live with the Smythe family, for whom Mary serves as a domestic. With the exception of Uncle Ned (Charles Sellon), the Smythes don't much care for Shirley, and she greatly prefers spending time with her godfather, pilot James Merritt (James Dunn). When Mary is killed in a car accident, the distraught Shirley becomes the object of a bitter custody battle between James and Ned.
Director
David Butler
Producer
Sol Wurtzel
Screenwriter
William Conselman
Production Co
Fox Film Corporation
Rating
PG
Genre
Comedy
Original Language
English
Release Date (Streaming)
Mar 17, 2017
Runtime
1h 23m
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