Lady for a Day
Director: Frank Capra
Year Released: 1933
Rating: 3.0
Poor street peddler Apple Annie (May Robson) has her successful daughter convinced she's well-to-do, so when said daughter comes to New York with her wealthy Spanish beau, Annie enlists the help of powerful gangster Dave the Duke (Warren William) to keep the ruse up. Completely charming Damon Runyon story features his typical assortment of colorful street-types though there are small issues that keep it from being great: for one, Annie is almost completely transformed from squawking ninny to regal with just one fancy dress, and for another, the lengths The Duke has to go through to secure Annie's story basically involve a large portion of NYC, which causes credibility to strain. Still, it's a charming fantasy until the "The End" appears, which is when Annie will go back to being a pauper. Try not to think about it.
