A Tree Grows in Brooklyn (Kazan, 1945)

A Tree Grows in Brooklyn (Kazan, 1945) - DTC #636

A young family struggles to make the wish of the daughter for better schooling come true.

There is a weird similarity to the "I Remember Mama" which is more upbeat and more rewarding to watch I think. But this one has extremely strong acting, and although I thought the interpretation of the mother let on too much variability which made her emotional development a bit harder to follow.

I felt a bit strange about how the very charmingly played father of the family disappears out of the picture exactly at his personal turning point. If his turn-around had been a bit more troubled than the rather kitschy Christmas situation I would have been more convinced.

Overall, the movie had an extremely theatry feel to it, something that significantly changed with later films of Kazan.

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