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The Little Princess | 
| Directors: Walter Lang, William A. Seiter
Actors: Shirley Temple, Richard Greene, Anita Louise, Ian Hunter, Cesar Romero
Studio: Alpha Video
Category: DVD
List Price: $7.98
Buy New: $5.00
You Save: $2.98 (37%)
New (3) Used (5) from $2.00
Rating:  49 reviews
Sales Rank: 55545
Format: Color, Dvd-video, Ntsc
Language: English (Original Language)
Rating: G (General Audience)
Region: 1
Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
Number Of Discs: 1
Running Time: 91 Minutes
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.2
Dimensions (in): 7.1 x 5.4 x 0.6
MPN: D3013D
UPC: 089218301390
EAN: 0089218301390
ASIN: B00005RERM
Theatrical Release Date: March 10, 1939
Release Date: January 22, 2002
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Editorial Reviews:
Amazon.com essential video
Shirley Temple stars in this 1939 version of the Frances Hodgson Burnett novel about a little, motherless girl left in the care of a girls boarding school by her soldier father, and then made into a servant there when he's missing in action during World War I. The fine tear-jerking film is a good vehicle for the famous moppet, and director Walter Lang (The King and I) makes a memorably lavish production of the Victorian milieu. The final scene, in which our Shirley is helped by one of the most famous women in history, brings down the house. --Tom Keogh
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| Customer Reviews: Read 44 more reviews...
 What's On Tap December 2, 2008
Teresa Anson (Michigan, USA)
Long before the 1995 remake supplanted the legendary Shirley Temple in the minds of young audiences; The Little Princess was a 1939 story set in Victorian England and starring the Academy Award winning actress. As a timeless story (now eighty years old) of perseverance in the face of adversity, the Little Princess evokes a full range of emotions rarely seen in modern cinema. You'll tear up as a young Shirley is forced from her home, but you'll laugh and smile during the film's dancing (Shirley is quite an accomplished tap dancer) and singing routines.
Film historians may delight to note that this was (to the best of my knowledge) the first Technicolor film that Temple starred in, and it noticeably shows, particularly when compared to some of Shirley's earlier works that have been newly colorized by classic film studio, Legend Films. Nevertheless, the Depression-era presentation conveys a strong sense of the film's place within time, contributing a wonderfully nostalgic quality to the overall experience.
As a kid... August 15, 2008
Charles Zuber (Earth)
The Little PrincessAs a kid I would watch this movie over and over again on VHS. It has been about 21 years since I saw it and I am thoroughly impressed with the masterful acting and song in this movie. Child actors today don't have the acting talent or musical ability of Shirley Temple.
with grace, talent and natural charm, Shirley made this movie fly !!! April 16, 2008
Matthew G. Sherwin
10 out of 10 found this review helpful
The Little Princess is an excellent movie starring the great child star Shirley Temple. Shirley and the rest of the cast act very convincingly throughout the film; and the plot held my interest. The choreography and cinematography enhance the movie quite a bit.
The action begins in England in 1899 at the start of the Boer War. Captain Reginald Crewe (Ian Hunter) is being deployed to South Africa to fight in the Boer War; and he is leaving his rather pampered and emotionally vulnerable child Sara (Shirley Temple) at a prestigious seminary for girls run by a nasty old lady named Amanda Minchin (Mary Nash). Amanda Minchin runs the school although Hubert 'Bertie' Minchin (Arthur Treacher) also lives with her.
It isn't long before Sara befriends two of the staff at the school: Geoffrey Hamilton (Richard Greene) and Rose (Anita Louise), her teacher. She also befriends a young servant girl at the seminary named Becky (Sybil Jason).
The war doesn't end quite as quickly as planned. In fact, things become rather nasty--and, after several long months Sara must celebrate her birthday in the seminary without her father. There is a sweet exchange of presents just before the horrific news comes that Sara's father was killed in the war and Sara is left penniless. Amanda Minchin suddenly isn't so accommodating toward Sara; she makes Sara a servant at the seminary until her bills can be paid off; and Sara must live in a dingy old and dirty room in the attic that isn't even fit for a dog.
Of course, from here the plot can go anywhere. How will Sara handle the huge change going from pampered little rich girl to servant in the seminary? Will the other girls tease her or show sympathy for Sara? What about Sara's insistence that her father is alive--is Sara dreaming this all up or could it be true? Sara even goes so far as to search army hospitals to try to find her father. Well, there are no plot spoilers here--you'll just have to watch the movie to find out!
The ballet sequence is marvelous to behold; this is Sara's dream of being out of the hands of the evil villain, that nasty Amanda Minchin. The dancing and the music are quite good.
The DVD has few extras. There is a brief trivia quiz about the movie; and we get a brief one screen long biography about Shirley Temple's career and her life after leaving show business. Sorry, folks!
Overall, The Little Princess is a fine movie vehicle for Shirley Temple. Expect some great performances from Mary Nash as Amanda Minchin and Arthur Treacher as Bertie Minchin looks great dancing with little Shirley. I highly recommend this film for fans of Shirley Temple; and people who enjoy classic movies from the golden era of Hollywood would do well to get this film.
 The Little Princess October 7, 2007
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
The Little Princess is a book about a wealthy girl. She and her father have a very strong relationship because her mother passed away at the girl's birth. Unfortunately for the girl, when she turns five she must go to boarding school in England. Before her father leaves her he buys her a doll in a shop. She names the doll Emily. She talks to the doll and confides in it for she becomes lonely. She makes few friends. But she misses her father greatly and the teachers treat her poorly. But what happens when the girl's father passes away and his wealth is gone? Overall I thought this was a good book, it wasn't amazing, but it wasn't terrible. It was written beautifully it just wasn't exciting enough for me and I wasn't motivated to read it.
A Little Girl's Unshakable Faith is Rewarded August 22, 2007
Jan Peczkis (Chicago IL, USA)
5 out of 5 found this review helpful
Sara, played by Shirley Temple, is sent by her father to a boarding school. He is her only surviving parent. He tells her to remain strong. He says that, on her birthday, he will think of her at a specific hour, and he tells her to do the same about him at that hour. She does this.
So long as the father's wealth is relevant, the girl enjoys the status of a privileged child. She is treated to a lavish birthday party. But when news comes of her father's death in the Boer War, however, the party is stopped immediately, and she is henceforth treated as the lowest of servants. Other girls laugh at her. In a moment of rage, Sara dumps a bucket of coal-ashes over the head of one of her tormentors.
Sara never believes that her father is actually dead. Others try to convince her to "accept reality." She makes many desperate trips to a wounded-men's shelter in hopes of finding her father. The headmaster of the school realizes that Sara is skipping out of school.
The father indeed is not dead, but he is either wounded or very ill. He is in some sort of coma, and is unable to identify himself. There is no other identification on him. All the hospital staff can say about him is the fact that he keeps repeated the word, "Sara".
The suspense builds. Will Sara encounter and identify him before he is shipped away? Sara eventually gets an audience before Queen Victoria and begs that the entire premises be searched for her father. The Queen agrees, and gives the order for this to take place. Sara gets to examine every ward in the hospital. Meanwhile, her semi-comatose father is about to be taken away in an ambulance to another institution. At one point, they pass within a few feet of each other, unawares.
Sara's father is wheeled into a waiting room for the next ambulance. Sarah goes into hiding in the waiting room when she hears the headmaster and the police seeking her. At that point, Sara hears the word "Sara" uttered by her semi-comatose father. What happens next is a tear-jerker.
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