Barbara Hunter Movies

Mother Simplicia (Rosalind Russell) is the head nun at an all-girl school. Aided by the young Sister George (Stella Stevens), the two try to convert the wayward girls to prim and proper ladies with a solid religious foundation. Rosabelle (Susan St. James) and Marvel Ann (Barbara Hunter), are the leaders of the teenage girls who often rebel against authority.Arthur Godfrey plays the Bishop, and Milton Berle provides a hilarious cameo as a film director whose big cowboy chase scene is ruined by the arrival of the girl's school bus. Farriday (Robert Taylor) is the helpful neighbor, and Van Johnson is the priest who heads the school for boys in this mildly amusing comedy. Tommy Boyce and Bobby Hart sing their self-penned title track. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide

The Trouble With Angels opens on the first day of school for a new batch of students at St. Francis Academy, run by a very strong-willed Mother Superior (Rosalind Russell). She is used to having things her way, but she may have met her match in the headstrong and independent Mary Clancy (Hayley Mills) and her newfound friend, Rachel Devery (June Harding). Mary, easily bored and ready to rebel at the drop of a hat, comes up with an endless series of "scathingly brilliant" schemes designed either to amuse her and Rachel, torture insufferable schoolmate Marvel-Ann, or in some way help them get ahead. Rachel, who would never come up with such ideas on her own, is delighted to go along with them. The duo starts right away by convincing several of the girls to join them in giving fake names to the sisters that register them. Future escapades include guided tours of the nuns' living quarters, illicit cigarette smoking that brings about the fire brigade, replacing sugar with soap bubbles, and many others. Several times the Mother Superior is on the brink of expelling the girls, but she relents, knowing something of their home lives and that they will benefit from the more nurturing environment of the school. By the end of the film, the girls have indeed grown, and Mary, in particular, has developed a special love for the Academy. ~ Craig Butler, All Movie Guide

Child star Frank "Junior" Coghlan's final film on his DeMille-Pathe contract was the military-academy drama Square Shoulders. After the death of his mother, young Tad (Coghlan) is made a ward of a newsboy's home. Proud of the Distinguished Service Cross left to him by his reportedly dead war-hero father, Tad organizes his fellow "newsies" into an ersatz army. His authority is challenged by wealthy military-school cadet Eddie (Phillipe De Lacy), but after an initial scrap, Tad and Eddie become good pals. Later on, when Tad is left a hefty sum of money by an unknown benefactor, he signs up at the same academy attended by Eddie. Little does Tad suspect that the academy's seedy stablehand Slag (Louis Wolheim) is actually his own father, who did not die on the battlefield but instead spent several years in prison. Not even after Slag sacrifices his own life to save Tad's does the boy ever learn the truth. Conceived as a silent film, Square Shoulders was transformed into a "talkie" by the expedient of adding sound to the final reel (unfortunately, only the silent version survives). Also appearing in the film are two second-generation Hollywoodites, Erich Von Stroheim Jr. and Chuck Reisner Jr. (later known as Dean Reisner). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Although Vanity was one of Leatrice Joy's most successful films, it can hardly be considered one of her best. Joy is cast as spoiled society girl Barbara Fiske, who, out of boredom, begins romancing roughneck tramp-steamer skipper Dan Morgan (Alan Hale). She offers to spend the night with Morgan on his vessel, which does not sit well with Barbara's wealthy fiance Lloyd Van Courtland (Charles Ray). During her nocturnal voyage, Barbara is nearly raped by the brutish ship's cook (Noble Johnson). Scurrying to the rescue, Morgan is killed by the cook, who in turn is shot dead by the terrified Barbara. Having had her fill of sea life, Barbara gladly returns to Van Courtland's arms. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

This satirical comedy-drama was C. Gardner Sullivan's first producing effort. To insure its success, he hired a veteran writer to pen the story and screenplay -- himself. When Donald Dillingham (Cullen Landis) weds Ardell Kendall, a chorus girl (Lillian Rich), his snobbish and wealthy parents disown him. When famed sculptor Gustaf Borgstrom (Jean Hersholt) chooses Ardell as a model, Donald's parents decide to make amends. They invite the couple and Borgstrom to their estate. One of the other guests is Maybelle Westcott (Bessie Eyton), who has her eye on Donald. She manages to catch his attention, and Ardell wheedles money out of his father (who has his own infatuation with a chorus girl) so that she can buy Maybelle off. When Maybelle doesn't keep her end of the bargain, Ardell exposes her in front of the other guests. This causes an argument between her and Donald, and she angrily goes home. Donald is already there with apologies and the couple reconciles. ~ Janiss Garza, All Movie Guide