Review of Come and Get It (1936) by Mark Karl H — 03 Nov 2009

Based on a novel by Edna Ferber who also wrote "Giant" This Family saga sprawls 30 years from the 1880s to the 1910's when lumberman Barney Glasgow gives up his real love Lotta Bostram a barroom tart with a heart to marry the plain daughter of a business associate. His friend Swan Bostrom marries Lotta and they have a daughter also called Lotta who may or may not be Barney's offspring. (Its the30s so we arent being very explicit) Years later when Barney meets Lotta junior he falls in love all over agan and begins to make a fool of himself. It is however Barney's young son who takes Lotta's fancy...Although Walter Brennan won a best supporting actor oscar, this is Frances Farmer's film.

Playing both mother and daughter she imbues both women with distinctly different characteristics. The elder Lotta is quite a bawdy girlwith a low singing voice who gives come hither looks and is quite worldly. Her daughter looks quite innocently at men and is much lighter and more direct in getting what she wants from them. Lotta junior sings her mothers trademark song "Aura Lee" quite differently to her mother. Rarely would Farmer again have the opprtunity to show just how good she could be.