At the turn of the 20th century, a precocious, spirited orphan is adopted by a farm family on Prince Edward Island, where she has problems being accepted in the household. This was the first of a trilogy of RKO films based on the novels of Lucy Maud Montgomery. Former child actress Dawn O'Day played the title character, orphan Anne Shirley, and dropped her name and rechristened herself Anne Shirley.
Shirley stars in this homespun tearjerker as we follow her from a pigtailed orphan to young womanhood. Good performances and beautiful Canadian locations help this adaptation of L.M. Montgomery's heart-tugging novel.