Rosa do Deserto

Jane Withers' father was killed a year ago. She has been adopted by good-hearted Leo Carillo and his wife, Rosita Harlan. After she helps William Henry escape from a posse and she and Carillo turn the local mine's gold over to the authorities, she is sent to the schoolhouse under teacher Pauline Moore. Miss Withers discovers that Carillo was a bandit ten years ago, but one of those good ones. When sheriff Henry Wilcoxon turns out to be a bad guy, the lot of them conspire to help him escape, although he isn't terribly interested in doing so.

Miss Withers was the main competitor to Shirley Temple in this period, and given the B budgets of her movies, was likely a better return on the dollar. Miss Temple was sweet, but Miss Withers offered a more chaotic, humorous sort of movie, and this is a highly amusing one, with the good cast that 20th Century-Fox's B division offered in the period. Other noteworthy performers here include Douglas Fowley, Etienne Giradot, the ubiquitous Irving Bacon, and Russell Simpson. Miss Withers sings and dances to Carillo's accompaniment, and pulls pranks that save the day. It's a light, amusing movie that times in at a brisk 69 minutes and never drags.