MartinHafer his Andy Hardy installment finds Andy graduated from high school and trying to decide what to do next. Judge Hardy wants him to go to college and then law school whereas Andy wants to go off to the big city for a month and see what life would be like working and paying his own way. Andy agrees to try this for a month and then reassess what to do next. Unfortunately for Andy, this is the tail end of the Depression and finding a job is not easy. But through it all, Andy refuses to ask his family for help and struggles to make his own way. I would say this might just be the darkest of all the movies in the series, as it's not nearly as light-hearted as usual and, at times, is super-morbid...such as when one of Andy's friends is found dead!! But I appreciate the film because the usually feather-weight series takes a more dramatic and realistic turn. Well worth seeing.By the way, this film marks the third and final time Judy Garland appeared in the series and Betsy just disappears after this one.

JLRMovieReviews To begin with, it should be noted (and you'd know this, if you've read the other reviews) that "Life Begins for Andy Hardy" is far more serious than the other films in the "Andy Hardy" series. This film marked the third and final appearance of Judy Garland as Betsy Booth in the film series. As Andy Hardy moves to New York to find himself and a job, he starts to learn hard lessons in life. So given the fact this is a drama and not a comedy, it's not a bad movie. But it's not terribly great. At times, it feels down right depressing and downbeat, as Andy Hardy gets some hard knocks looking for a job, and ultimately this is not an upper for viewers who expected the always chipper and juvenile Andy Hardy. In fact, despite the fact Judy sang in the other two films she starred in, her songs that were shot were not used in the final cut. I can only think that (the filmmakers finally decided that) the presence of singing did not seem to go with the somberness of this film and would dilute its impact on the viewer. In one scene, Betsy sees Andy at rock bottom looking pale, undernourished, and ready to pass out. And, he befriends an aspiring dancer, who's had a history of sickness, and who ultimately dies. Death in an Andy Hardy picture! Say it isn't so! While I admire the intention to show a mature Andy Hardy, if I wanted to see more of the film series in the future in the order they were made, I would probably skip this one entirely as it is a complete downer, save for Judy Garland trying to breathe some life and humor into it, with her buoyant presence and passion. Watch and judge for yourself.

Michael O'Keefe George B. Seitz directs this hard hitting, downbeat and possibly the best of the Andy Hardy series. Andy(Mickey Rooney)makes a deal with his father(Lewis Stone)to spend a week in New York City savoring a slice of life before entering college. Andy discovers that finding a job and working is sobering and easier said than done. And some things will always stay the same ...when there is a nice looking female around; Andy is easily love struck. This is the last of the Hardy series to feature Judy Garland. Rounding out the cast are: Fay Holden, Amm Rutherford, Patricia Dane and Ray McDonald. The Andy Hardy films are so easy to relax with.

preppy-3 Andy Hardy (Mickey Rooney) graduates from high school and decides to move to NYC to make a fortune. His ex (I think) played by Judy Garland, lives there and tries to help him.**Slight spoiler in the next paragraph**I've avoided these Andy Hardy movies like the plague for years...I thought they'd be really syrupy. This one sure wasn't! This is pretty dark and downbeat. A character even dies! Originally he committed suicide but the studio changed that before it was released--they felt that was going too far. Still it all ends happily.The movie looks fantastic, the story flows pretty quickly...but there's too little of Judy. As Leonard Maltin said all her songs were cut out before the film was released! My guess is that they were too cheerful for the grim tone of this film.All the acting is good--top honors go to Lewis Stone (as Judge Hardy--boy, do I wish I had him as a father!), Ann Rutherford (having a good time playing the "bad girl") and Ray McDonald.Dark movie (perhaps not for the kids) but good. Worth catching.