AllMovie

Arguably John Ford's weakest film, The Brat was based on a popular 1917 stage play written by and starring Maude Fulton, which in turn was made into a popular comedy for Alla Nazimova in 1919. Although vivacious and pretty, Sally O'Neil was hardly in Nazimova's league but here she is in the title role, a 17-year-old street urchin taken in by wealthy novelist MacMillan "Mack" Forester (Allan Dinehart), whose household she continues to aggravate with her street-smart wisdom. Soon enough, however, the Foresters begin to admire the girl, especially young Steven Forester who has fallen head over heels in love. "The Brat" loves the much older Mack, whose live-in girlfriends (Virginia Cherrill and June Collyer) become instantly jealous. In the end, however, the Brat realizes that Mack's infatuation with her is insincere and decides instead to marry Steven. The Brat was remade a second time by Fox in 1940 as The Girl From Avenue A, a vehicle for juvenile star Jane Withers.