Since the man, named Moses Pray (Ryan O'Neal), is going to Missouri, he is asked to take Addie along for the trip. It soon becomes clear to the ciggarette smoking, radio loving youngin' that Moses is a grifter. Moses even manages to scam $200 out of Addie, but she not stupid. She's going to get it back.
Addie teams up with Moses, selling bibles to widows, scamming cashiers out of money (by playing the ol' switcheroo game) and in other ways. And, she becomes very good at it. Quickly, she starts to almost like Moses... untill he meets Trixie Delight, and her African American helper.
Addie gets rid of Trixie, and sets the African American free so to speak. She then starts on her quest to get all of her $200 back. But then Moses and herself get caught selling grain alcohol (it's prohibition don't you know), and are thrown in jail. Still, they escape, and elude captivity.
Eventually, they arrive in St. Joeseph, Missouri, and Addie is dropped off at her Aunt's house. Very quickly she finds out that she doesn't like the home, and realizes that she never got back her original $200! She sneaks out of the house to find Moses, and they team up again, so she can get her money.
Plot: 
Paper Moon has a great story to it, one that was fresh and original, in its day.
Visual Effects:
There are no visual shots, but the black and white cinematography of the film certainly makes up for it.
Sound:
Sound effect couldn't be better, and the songs are great as well, like the song "It's only a paper moon."
Character Development:
In the beginning, Addie hates Moses, and throughout the film it seems as if they grow to like each other, but that is definatly not the case. At the end of the film, addie is still mad at Moses, and still want's her $200.
Atmosphere:
Paper Moon is a fun, quirky little number. Is easy to fall in love with the adorable Addie, and the thought of making all that money - a fortune in the '30's - is still alive today.
Realism:
People are as gullable now as they were back in the old days. No kidding. People are being swindled right left and center nowadays. Sure, it's dishonest, but hey, it can't be stopped. Well, not easily.
Warren’s Rating:
7.71/10Is the movie worth your time to watch?
04-06-03
Age at win: 10 years, 153 days (youngest ever competitive catagory winner)
Nominated for: Best Actress in a Supporting Role, Addie Loggins, Paper Moon
Nomination: 1/1 (acting), 1/1 (total); Win: Only
Tatum O'Neal was very young when she won for Paper Moon, but even aside from that, she still did give a very good performance of Addie Loggins, the Orphaned little girl who smokes and steals money from other people with the help of Moses Pray (her real-life father, Ryan O'Neal).
Tatum, dresses up like a boy, is darling in this period film set in the 1930's to the tune of the song of the same name, Paper Moon. After her mother's death, She meets Moses Pray, a grifter, a con artist who sells name-engraved Bibles to widows for what little money he can get. Well, after attending Addie's mother's funeral, he is made to take little Addie to a relatives home as he is heading that way anyway. Stuck with Addie, he manages to swindle $200 out of her. But Addie isn't stupid. She hangs on close to him; she want's her $200 back.
Together they roam the American Mid-west, looking for widows to "sell" bibles to. Quickly they make a killing, but also try selling other things, like illegal booze fixings, which lands them in jail after a wild series of events.
Finally, they end up at Addie's Aunt's house, where she is to live. Moses drops her off and leaves. Addie, not liking the new home, catches up with Moses again.
Even after all of the money they made swindling people time and again, she still hasn't gotten back her original $200.
Tatum plays a great Addie; she has the cutest face and accent, and even upstaged her father, to boot.
To win at such a young age must surely have a lasting impact on the winner. Well, it did. Tatum got hardly any other good roles in her career, and even had to be treated for substance abuse. But all of this had no bearing on her great performance in Paper Moon.
4-06-03
