As previously mentioned in the first part of this review, Addie is played by Tatum O'Neal, daughter of Ryan O'Neal who plays Mose. And she's amazingly good in this, her first acting role. The character of Addie was in fact supposed to be about 12 years old, but Tatum's audition went so well that the filmmakers decided to alter her age to nine, which is how old Tatum was at the time. Incidentally, the fact that the neighbours would just hand over a young child to a strange man who turned up for her mother's funeral- even if they do suspect that he's her father- points to a couple of facts about this time period. First of all, it was a very different time and that second, it's obvious that the Depression played a part in their actions; it would be hard enough to feed and clothe their own children without taking in a charity case with a dubious background.
The title of this film is taken- obviously- from the 1932 song It's Only A Paper Moon, originally written for the Broadway flop The Great Magoo. The song can be heard in the film- as well as a lot of other songs from the era- which, along with its being in black and white, really gives a feel of the Dirty Thirties as Mose and Addie drive across the state. But It's Only A Paper Moon is not only a period song in the soundtrack: it also has significance in the story. At the carnival where Mose becomes entangled with Miss Trixie, Addie spends some time at the photobooth where the photographer takes pictures of couples and families sitting on a fake crescent moon against a backdrop. She waits, sitting on the moon, for Mose who has told her that he'll get his picture taken with her there. But he's a no-show, having met his carnival floozy and forgotten all about Addie. This scene tells us a few things about the fakery, shallowness, and general inadequacy of Mose as a father- or father figure, depending on what you believe about him. He plays at being one for their con, and maybe occasionally feels concern for Addie's well-being, but is quick to drop the act when it becomes inconvenient to him, or cramps his style. It's also clear that Addie wishes- or hopes- that their fake father and daughter act could be real instead of (as the song says) make believe, like a paper moon over a cardboard sea. As previously mentioned in the first part of this review, Addie is played by Tatum O'Neal, daughter of Ryan O'Neal who plays Mose. And she's amazingly good in this, her first acting role. The character of Addie was in fact supposed to be about 12 years old, but Tatum's audition went so well that the filmmakers decided to alter her age to nine, which is how old Tatum was at the time. Incidentally, the fact that the neighbours would just hand over a young child to a strange man who turned up for her mother's funeral- even if they do suspect that he's her father- points to a couple of facts about this time period. First of all, it was a very different time and that second, it's obvious that the Depression played a part in their actions; it would be hard enough to feed and clothe their own children without taking in a charity case with a dubious background. Tatum O'Neal would go on to win an Academy Award for this role, becoming the youngest person to win a genuine Oscar, not an honorary one of some kind. It's well documented that Ryan O'Neal rather resented the fact that his daughter won for the film and he didn't; maybe the complicated, contentious relationship the two of them act out in the movie wasn't that much of a stretch. In any case, the character of Addie is a complex one, alternately tough and vulnerable, cynical and hopeful. She presents an impervious face to the world, but carries a small box of mementoes with her which includes a picture of her mother which, when Mose isn't around, she holds up to a mirror next to her own face, earnestly searching for some resemblance. She also wears her mother's hat almost constantly, obviously wishing to maintain that connection to her. Addie voluntarily becomes part of Moses' Bible scam and it soon becomes clear that she has better criminal instincts than even Mose, able to think and act quickly in a crisis. In addition, she's skilled at being able to look someone over and swiftly & accurately sum up their character. She also still possesses some semblance of a conscience unlike Mose who, I suspect, eradicated his years before. When Mose attempts to scam an obviously impoverished widow with a number of small children, Addie breaks into his spiel and says that he made a mistake: this Bible was fully paid for in advance. She gives it to the woman, much to Mose's disgust, either feeling guilty about trying to con this obviously grieving and needy family out of their last mite, or remembering what it's like to be a poor child who has just lost a parent. Mose has no such compunction to show mercy to the mother or children. But I'll delve more into Mose's character, and the pseudo family relationship which develops between them in Part III.
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