" . . . I'll break your neck--(signed) Grandma." It's as if Auntie Em told Dorothy Gale to jump off a cliff if she could not tote the broomstick of the Wicked Witch of the West back to Kansas! In the 1940s, there were fewer than 100 million Americans, since so many did themselves in as they buckled under the pressure of unrealistic expectations imposed upon them by callous people like Alice Purdee's Granny here. Back then, epidemics of low self-esteem were running rampant, decimating our population. Nowadays, thanks to a revamped U.S. Public School System tailored on the Every-Kid's-A-Winner Principle, the sheer number of Americans has tripled. ALICE IN MOVIELAND makes it obvious that Ms. Purdee cannot separate Fantasy from Reality, as she yo-yo's between unrealistic highs and soul-shattering lows whether she's dreaming or awake. Alice clearly suffers from being Manic-Depressive, even if scientists had not yet discovered this condition when MOVIELAND was filmed. Though we in the 21st Century have come up with loads of Wonderful Meds to treat Alice's illness, in the 1940s she would have been doomed to suffer the crushing expectations of her grandmother, with permanent psychological trauma as a result.

Alice in Movieland (1940) *** (out of 4) Two-reeler from Warner about a small town girl (Joan Leslie) who arrives in Hollywood hoping to become a star but she suffers one disaster after another. When she finally gets a bit part in a film she lets her dreams go too far and this here leads to another embarrassment. This is an interesting little short for a number of reasons but the biggest is because of how painful and rather embarrassing it treats the main character. A lot of shorts were made about young girls coming to Hollywood but this one here is rather painful to watch because Leslie is so good in her role that we really start to care for it and it's rather sad seeing some of the jokes pulled on her. The film manages to have some nice backbone to it and it really has some great drama. Leslie is terrific in her role as the dreamy kid and we even get Clarence Muse as a train porter who gives her some sound advice. Alan Hale, Ronald Reagan, Craig Stevens, Alexis Smith and Jane Wyman appear in a brief scene at a club where Leslie is about to act. It's obvious the stars were filmed at other times and just edited into this film but it's still nice seeing them. Fans of older movies will certainly want to check this one out as there's a lot more soul and heart than you'd normally see in a film like this.

I never complain seeing the wholesomely-beautiful Joan Leslie, even if its just a 21-minute "short" like this one. She looked absolutely spectacular, too, in this 1940 film.Here, Joan plays "Alice Purdee," the winner of a local beauty contest for girls, the top prize being a chance "for fame in Hollywood!" We go along with her, seeing her trials and tribulations in attempting to become a movie star.For classic movie fans, this is terrific. Not only do we see glimpses of Hollywood (the town) circa 1940 but quick glances at couples' Alexis Smith and Craig Stevens, Ronald Reagan and Jane Wyatt, and Alan Hale. All are in the audience (supposedly) watching "Alice" make her talent show debut. Frank Faylen, by the way, plays the emcee of the talent show.This whole thing was well-done, with some wonderful close-up photography and beautifully directed by Jean Negulesco, who went on to direct some pretty famous movies. So far, it is the best short I've seen, although it does get a bit corny the last 5-6 minutes....but a nice kind of corny.This short film was part of the "Warner Night At the Movies" feature on "Sea Hawk" DVD. I guess they felt that appropriate since one of the first lines of this feature was, "....and don't you fall for one of those movie stars like Errol Flynn!"

I liked this short even though some may find it a bit too sappy and old fashioned. However, I like it because it's a wonderful eye into the idea of Hollywood from 1940--not the real city, but the way it was viewed by the wide-eyed public and how Hollywood packaged itself. Joan Leslie stars as "Alice Purdee"--a country girl who wins a local contest whose reward is a Hollywood screen test. In so many ways, this short is like a condensed version of A STAR IS BORN minus the Norman Main character. I find the whole thing very charming, as would anyone who is a fan of Hollywood's Golden Age. My bet is that newer, younger audiences will probably find it all a bit silly and over-done, but considering what the film was intended to portray, the "schmaltziness" is actually a big plus--it helps you to understand the dreams of thousands, if not millions of girls across the nation.