Savannah Smiles

Yesterday I wrote about Excess Baggage, a movie about a rich girl who fakes a kidnapping to get her dad's attention. Today I thought I'd take a look back at a similar themed 1982 comedy with a more family friendly take on it, Savannah Smiles.

Bridgette Anderson stars in the title role as the daughter of a politician, Chris Robinson, who's running for a Senate seat. Feeling ignored by her parents, Savannah decides to run away. She hides out in the backseat of a car that was stolen by an escaped convict named Alvie, Mark Miller, and his partner in crime Bootsie, Donovan Scott. The two criminals find out about a reward for the missing girl and try to figure out a way to collect on it. But over the course of a couple of days, they begin to grow attached to young Savannah, making it harder to give her up.

This is a super sweet little film, the kind I would usually roll my eyes at. But there's just something about it that is quite charming. Anderson is adorable in the title role. Miller and Scott are both funny and likable as the two felons. And it has a good supporting cast that includes Peter Graves, Pat Morita, and Michael Parks.

Miller,who also wrote the screenplay, intended for Savannah to be played by his daughter Penelope Ann Miller. By the time the film was shot however she was too old for the part. Plus the director, Pierre De Moro, was impressed with Anderson's ability to ad lib at the audition. On a sad note, Anderson would die of a drug overdose at the age of 21. Sorry to bum everyone out.

Savannah Smiles is the kind of movie that would have played as a double feature with something like The Adventures Of The Wilderness Family. It has that kind of feel. Strangely enough, I saw it as a double bill with Spring Fever.

I really don't have guilty pleasures. I don't believe you should feel guilt over something you like. But I guess if I did have guilty pleasures, Savannah Smiles might be one. It's a super sweet family film that is easier to take than most other kid comedies.

It's available on dvd,