In watching 'Coquette', you have to cut it some slack for having been made in 1929, when acting was generally hammy and plots were a little thin. Mary Pickford does her share of over-emoting, but she also has a couple of brilliant scenes while grieving, really letting go, and showing she was ahead of her time as an actor. At 37, she also pulls off the look of a young flapper, and is so cute with her short hair and standing 5'1". John St. Polis plays the part of her father well, the Southern gentleman who must look out for the family's honor, and who detests her love interest, played by Johnny Mack Brown. The two of them also have some powerful scenes as emotions overheat. I also loved the snippets of dancing scenes we get to see, they are so energetic and really convey what we think of about the 1920's. At the beginning of the film, I was put off by its slow start and the spotty quality of the film after all these years, particularly when it was hard to understand the dialogue. If you feel the same, I would recommend sticking with it. It's flawed and not going to be your favorite film of all time or anything, but it's worth spending the 75 minutes to watch Pickford and the rest of this cast.
Review of Coquette
