SnoopyStyle Buddy recalls the Great Depression when Rose (Laura Dern) came to work for his family. She escaped prostitution in Birmingham to be the domestic servant. Kindly mother Hillyer (Diane Ladd) is partly deaf and was orphaned young. Rose flirts with father Hillyer (Robert Duvall) but he rebuffs her. Young Buddy (Lukas Haas) has a sexual encounter with Rose. She is desperate to stay and convinces him to keep it a secret. She continues to be flirtatious with the town's men. Father wants to send Rose away while mother argues to keep her.This is a nostalgic jazzy rambling reminiscence of a compelling character. My only problem is that this movie takes a light tone making this almost a fable. Despite the childhood point of view, it needs to go for a darker mood to fit this sexualized tragedy. Director Martha Coolidge is caught between making a kid's coming of age journey and a young woman's walk on a dangerous tight rope. The light airy mood keeps the darker material at a distance.

ccthemovieman-1 I haven't seen this film in quite a while but I have pretty good memories about it. It's an intriguing film, something different and appealing even though some of the subject matter is "inappropriate."I saw the last word because it involves a 13-year-old boy whose hormones are raging and his brief relationship with a grown woman. There is one sex scene that may make people squirm a bit, so be forewarned. Other than that, I don't remember anything else objectionable.I like the photography and always enjoy seeing the old days - here it's the 1920s and 1930s - portrayed on today's films with the great cameramen and directors of today. Also, the South has some beautiful scenery that is eloquently on display here.The story is well-acted with real-life mother-daughter Diane Ladd and Laura Dern, along with Robert Duvall and Lukas Haas. The latter plays the young man and was already somewhat of a star after playing the young Amish boy in the 1985 film "Witness." Duvall is one of the finest actors of his generation so you always get a good performance out of him.This is a pretty low-key story but never puts you to sleep. Modern day feminists might like this film was Ladd plays that role to the hilt. Dern also delivered, making a very believable "Rose."

jaymaloney First of all, I gave it an 8 out of ten. The acting was really quite wonderful all around, and Laura Dern can absolutely steam up a room. Her Rose was always sweet and always on a sexual hair-trigger. She was a bit dim-witted, but always quite endearing.And even this warm, feel-good, sweetheart of a film made me think...So here's the question: If a young adult woman gets into bed with a thirteen year-old boy, and then allows him to fondle her to orgasm, does that make her a criminal? In this day and age, the answer's yes. But every person commenting on the film (rightfully) loves Rose, and loves her motives.and consider this: Would there ever be a film where a young adult male gets into bed with a thirteen year-old girl, and where one or the other fondles the other to orgasm, and the film goes on to develop that adult male into a sympathetic character? The answer is No. Such a film produced in the 1930s or today, would have had the perp rightfully jailed or rightfully shot.Now,it seems to me, that while Rose today would go to jail, in more sensible times Rose would not be a sexual offender. In fact, I figure that the boy would be universally recognized as one really lucky fellow. But our current social norms would see poor steamy Rose placed under arrest.In today's wacky, feminized legal system (in which ideology must regard males and females as always the same, all the time), Rose would have to be regarded as a criminal, simply because any male who had a sexual relationship with a minor female is a criminal --and rightfully so.In this wacky, feminized time, we read all about fabulously gorgeous 20-something high school teachers who get arrested for having sex with under-age boys. A generation ago, what would have been a boy's fantasy come true, is now portrayed as a boy's nightmare. Talk about screwing around with a kid's head!Is there anything at all about 1932's Buddy that is so different from young teenage boys of today? If not, how can the encounter between Buddy and Rose be so okay in the eyes of every commentator (and in my eyes, too, by the way), while similar encounters today between 14-15 year-old boys and 30 year-old women is now called a "crime"? What am I missing here?

tompatseay This movie gives a eyeopening glimpse of the 1930's and a hidden agenda of a very moralistic time. It is a charming story of the maid's attempt to walk the line between her own natural inclinations and the societies expectations for her. Laura Dern offers a very realistic and convincing performance that marks her as a great character actress. The interaction with her own mother, in the supporting cast, shows a natural adaptation to a role that is rare in such a young actress. Duvall is wonderful in a role that demands a vast understanding of human emotion and character study of his part. The set and old automobiles lend a real authenticity to this period in history. It takes you back to a simpler time, but underscores all of the attitudes of the time. This is a movie to be enjoyed again and again at each opportunity. I highly recommend it.