Jane Withers is the only reason to watch This Is the Life

Is this worth your time?

If you like old, scrappy studio pictures from the thirties, yeah, probably. If you want something polished or emotionally grounded, stay away. It’s a bit of a relic, but Jane Withers is genuinely funny in a way that feels like she's going to break the camera.

The whole thing kicks off with this really grim setup at an orphanage. These two grifters think they’ve found a meal ticket in a kid, and they treat her like a circus animal. It’s actually kind of sad for a second before the movie pivots into this weirdly breezy musical comedy vibe.

Jane Withers is the whole show here. She’s got this bratty, high-energy thing that feels way more real than the stiff adults surrounding her. She’s not doing the typical 'cute child' routine, which is a relief. She’s just loud and annoying in the best possible way.

Some random thoughts:

• The editing feels like it was done with a pair of rusty scissors. Some cuts happen way too early.
• The orphanage scenes have this weird, drafty look to them. It feels like they were filming in a literal barn.
• I kept thinking about The Foolish Age and how much faster the pacing feels in these older studio bits, even when the logic is falling apart.
• There is a moment where the dialogue just stops making sense entirely. Everyone just starts yelling about a contract. It’s hilarious.

The middle act is a total mess of people running in and out of rooms. It’s like a stage play that forgot it had a budget for sets. You can see the stage hands in the back of some shots if you squint hard enough. Or maybe that's just my bad eyes.

I don’t know. It’s not a masterpiece. It’s barely a movie sometimes. But it’s got that specific 1935 energy where everyone is just trying to get to the end of the script before the sun goes down. It works because it doesn't try to be important.

Also, the ending happens so fast it gave me whiplash. One minute she’s a runaway, the next she’s a star, and then the credits just hit you like a brick. 🤷‍♂️