Ramona (1936): A Technicolor Trip Through Old California

If you're looking for something that feels like a fever dream from the mid-thirties, Ramona is your ticket. It is worth watching if you have a soft spot for old-school Technicolor, but honestly, if you need snappy pacing or modern sensibilities, you’re going to be frustrated pretty quick. It’s for the folks who want to sit back and watch Loretta Young look absolutely luminous while the plot tries to hold everything together with tape and string.

There is this moment about halfway through where the scenery just takes over. The colors in this movie are so bright they almost hurt your eyes, like someone cranked the saturation up in a room that was already too warm. Sometimes the actors look like they are standing in front of a painting that someone forgot to finish.

Loretta Young is the whole show here, really. She carries this weight of confusion so well that you kind of forget the script is asking her to do some pretty standard 'damsel' stuff. Don Ameche shows up, and he’s fine, but the chemistry feels a bit like they were told to act in love rather than actually finding it in the scene.

Odd Little Bits

• The extras in the background have this habit of just staring at the camera for a second too long.
• The music swells up at the strangest times, sometimes making a simple conversation sound like the end of the world.
• There is a sequence with a dog that I am still trying to figure out. Why was it there? Who knows.

If you have ever seen The World's Applause, you might recognize that specific way older films treat their leading ladies—like they are statues in a museum. Ramona doesn't quite reach the heights of a classic, but it’s got enough charm to keep you from turning it off. It’s uneven, sure. The middle section drags its feet like a tired horse.

It doesn't have the grit of something like The End of St. Petersburg, but it isn't trying to. It’s just trying to be a big, beautiful, sad story about California back when it was all orange groves and dusty paths. Sometimes that is enough. 🌵

Don't expect a history lesson. This is Hollywood history, not actual history. It’s glossy, it’s dramatic, and it’s a bit messy. I liked it well enough for a rainy afternoon, even if I couldn't tell you exactly why in a way that sounds smart.