Pollyanna

1960 2h 14m EN

👍

7.0

SOLID

★7.0TMDB · 219

ComedyDramaFamily

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

A young girl comes to an embittered town and confronts its attitude with her determination to see the best in life.

“Some stories are better left unspoiled.”

WhatsApp X Facebook Telegram

Where to watch · US

Disney PlusSubscription

Amazon VideoRent

Apple TV StoreRent

Google Play MoviesRent

Google Play MoviesBuy

YouTubeBuy

Fandango At HomeBuy

Cast

Hayley Mills
Pollyanna
Jane Wyman
Aunt Polly
Richard Egan
Dr. Edmond Chilton
Karl Malden
Reverend Paul Ford
Nancy Olson
Nancy Furman
Adolphe Menjou
Mr. Pendergast
Donald Crisp
Mayor Karl Warren
Agnes Moorehead
Mrs. Snow

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: David Swift
Writers: David Swift
Languages: English
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 7

MONEY

Did you know

Shot for just $2.5M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 7

ERA

Did you know

66 years old — a genuine piece of film history.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 7

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by David Swift, shot by Russell Harlan. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 7

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Paul J. Smith. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 7

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Frank Gross shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 7

CAST

Did you know

Hayley Mills and Jane Wyman and Richard Egan carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 7

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0054195 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

Cinephile deep dive

The take

David Swift directs. Russell Harlan behind the camera. Paul J. Smith scores. Frank Gross cuts. Profitable at the box office. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Shot for just $2.5M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.
266 years old — a genuine piece of film history.
3Directed by David Swift, shot by Russell Harlan. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
4Original score by Paul J. Smith. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
5Editor Frank Gross shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
6Hayley Mills and Jane Wyman and Richard Egan carry the top of the cast.
7IMDB entry: tt0054195 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
8Classified under 9 themes, including "small town", "based on novel or book", "friends", "orphan".

The technical file

Cinematography: Russell Harlan
Original score: Paul J. Smith
Editing: Frank Gross
Runtime: 134 min · 2h 14m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Budget: $2,500,000
Box office: $3,750,000
Return: 150% of budget
Original language: EN
Certification (US): G
IMDB: Pollyanna (1960)

Also by

David Swift

Stills · wallpapers

Selected frames

Full-resolution frames — open one to save it as a wallpaper.

Wallpaper

Trailers & featurettes

Watch the pieces

Community reviews

What people are saying

Wuchak2020-07-09
★ 8/10
A spiritless New England town needs a shot of life and joy In 1912, an optimistic orphaned girl used to poverty as the daughter of missionaries (Hayley Mills) travels to Harrington, Vermont, to live with her wealthy aunt (Jane Wyman), who “owns” the town and runs it with a joyless legalistic hand. The dispirited citizens desperately need this lil’ effervescent angel. Richard Egan plays a doctor, an ex-beau of the aunt who returns to town while Carl Malden plays the pastor seriously in need of an epiphany. Nancy Olson, Adolphe Menjou and Agnes Moorehead also have key roles. On the surface, “Pollyanna” (1960) is a quaint family drama with a little comedy, but it’s heartwarming and tackles heavy real-life issues, particularly the crushing burden of legalism in which Christianity loses its heart and becomes a rule-oriented, lifeless religion where mere appearances are the all-and-end-all. One of the best sequences is the menacing sermon on eternal damnation, which evokes both concern and amusement (Malden hams it up a bit), but there are several other worthy scenes. Pollyanna reminds me of this kitten we got as a gift, found near death in a game reserve. He was the happiest cat and spread love & joy to everyone, all the time. He was a gift from God, a veritable walking miracle. The film runs 2 hours, 14 minutes and was shot in Southern Cal: Aunt Polly’s mansion was located in Santa Rosa, the Bazaar sequences were done at Universal City and the railroad station scenes were shot in St Helena; other locations are Calistoga, Petaluma and Disney Studios, Burbank. GRADE: A-/B+
Peter McGinn2020-09-12
★ 8/10
Forty years after Mary Pickford made her successful version of Pollyanna, based on the children’s book and a play, Walt Disney turned his creative team to the task. Unless you are a fan or a student of silent movies, you will probably find this newer version more entertaining. Hayley Mills shines as the cheerful child who teaches an entire town to play the optimistic aGlad Game, and she is bubbly and cute enough to pull it off. I enjoyed the humor and the pace of the story. Not a lot was left off, as it was in the short one hour long silent film. Disney films always find great character actors, it seems. My favorites among the supporting cast was Mary Grace Canfield as Angelica and Agnes Morehead as Mrs. Snow. The scenes showing the improvement of Mrs. Snow’s outlook on life were patient and earned the heartwarming feeling they produced. I found it interesting that the movie had a sentimental ending as you would expect, but it didn’t quite tie it all up in a bow as you usually find in a Disney movie, and indeed as was done in the Masterpiece Theater PBS version done forty years after this one.