El sol sale mañana

I was first drawn to this movie because it draws heavily on Swedish immigrant culture in the mid-1900s. My family was a Swedish farm family and there was a comfortable familiarity about the movie.

It's also a sentimental movie, but not in a saccharine way. The cadence is very slow and deliberate, like old Laurel and Hardys, or Thin Red Line. But because of this it makes you settle in and think about all the things that are happening to this family and their community. The sweetness is cut by ordinary tragedies, though these could have been better developed.

The movie celebrates family values, but not in a harping rhetorical sense. This is about family members who truly love each other, and stay open to and embrace changes from both outside and within. I was touched by this movie, and found it to be healing of my ideas regarding family.

Excellent performances by Moorhead, Robinson and O'Brien.

Before he got into trouble with the despicable, vicious, self-serving Committee on UnAmerican activities, Dalton Trumbo was a versatile, highly respected, and talented American writer. One of his greatest works (And there were many) was this story called " Our Vines have Tender Grapes. " Directed by Roy Rowland. It tells the story of a small Wisconsin girl named Selma Jacobson (Margaret O'Brien) who's simple Norwegian father (Edward G. Robinson) tries to raise his daughter with kindness and compassion. Life is difficult, but manageable and made so by the simple way of life they live. With his wife Bruna (Agnes Moorehead, before she became Endora on Bewitched) they struggle with life on the farm and with the rural neighbors which dot their small village. Given the enduring and often-times incredible hardships, like floods, fires and natural disasters, their spirits are often tested, but their resolve remains unwavering. Thus the two children learn from their stalwart families, the importance of respect, love and most often the need for understanding the most difficult issues in the world. James Craig plays Nels Halverson. the 'Editor' of the town who's patience pervades the film as he seeks Viola Johnson (Frances Gifford) the new school-teacher and his intended. This film is incredible packed with the true ideals which so many Americans remember as the very fiber of early Americanna. Easily Recommended. ****

It's true - this is about as nice as it ever got with a movie. There are no villains, no violence (except when animals had to be destroyed in a fire...and that wasn't pictured), and just a nice story of a nice Norwegian family living in rural Wisconsin.

The story emphasizes two members of the family: the 7-year-old daughter, played by 1940s child star Margaret O'Brien, and her father, played by famous tough-guy actor Edward G. Robinson. This is Robinson as you rarely saw him and refreshingly low-key.

Yes, O'Brien tends overact a bit, but some of her lines are so touching, so moving and delivered with such a soft, sweet voice that she gets away with them. Her gesture at the end of the film - no "spoilers" here - is so astounding I doubt it would ever happen in real life.....but it's wonderful to see.

James Craig, Frances Gifford, Agnes Moorhead and Jackie "Butch" Jeknins all add to this old-fashioned wholesome film. (If those words turn you off, by all means, skip this movie.) Jenkins can be a bit much, but he does add humor to the movie. Craig and Gifford make an attractive couple.

This movie is highly recommended for those of you who want a break from films with "bad guys" and a lot of "edginess."

One of Edward G. Robinson's most beloved films is this one in which he totally reverses type and becomes the wise father of Margaret O'Brien. Our Vines Have Tender Grapes and the tender grapes referred to are the children in their innocence, Margaret O'Brien and Jackie Jenkins.

In this rural Wisconsin town where few even have electricity, the settlers are mostly Norwegian immigrants who did like our American Midwest climate because it was so similar to Norway. They are a tight knit group and are a reserved bunch. But as the film shows, during a crisis they do come together.

O'Brien and Jenkins are an appealing pair of youngsters. Their childhood is a whole lot like Tom Sawyer's and Huck Finn's. Of course in one instance they try duplicating something Tom and Huck did that nearly turns tragic.

Agnes Moorehead also shows what a capable player she is in playing Robinson's wife and O'Brien's mother. I'm sure she was grateful for not playing an evil woman for a change.

There is a subplot involving a romance of editor James Craig and new school teacher Frances Gifford. Gifford is first quite resistant to the town, she's a big city girl, but she warms up to them and Craig.

But the film really belongs to Robinson and O'Brien. Robinson has a tough fight, but he more than holds his own in scenes with the little moppet. Sad he didn't do more films like this.

Our Vines Have Tender Grapes is a timeless classic, I think children and families of any age will identify and love it.

This simple story offers sentiment without saccharine in its story of a farming family in a small community. Episodic in nature, the film follows the adventures of daughter Selma (Margaret O'Brien) and her friend Arnold (Jackie "Butch" Jenkins) as they, like the crops under her parents' care, grow into caring, loving individuals.

The cast is the great thing here. O'Brien was a gifted little actress, charming in her prissiness, and Jenkins equals her as her slightly pouty friend. Both offer memorable performances--but the truly remarkable performances here, the ones for which the film should be prized, come from Edward G. Robinson and Agnes Moorehead, who are cast against type in the roles of Selma's parents. Robinson, of course, is best remembered for his tough-guy roles, full of energetic bluster; Moorehead is most often recalled as one of the most memorable shrews in Hollywood history. But both show the range of their talents in this film, playing quietly, simply, and very movingly--and one regrets that both (particularly Moorehead) were not given more opportunity to play such in-depth roles more often.

Ultimately, VINES is about how parents teach their children and shape their lives--and about how children, for good or ill, learn from their parents. Simply filmed, beautifully performed, and memorable from start to finish, it is a film that deserves wider recognition than it normally receives. An excellent family film that both parents and children will enjoy.

Gary F. Taylor, aka GFT, Amazon Reviewer