The Lady's from Kentucky (1939)

User Rating:

5.8/10   

Director:

Alexander Hall

Writers:

Malcolm Stuart Boylan (writer)
Rowland Brown (story)

Release Date:

28 April 1939 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Sport

Plot:

Good-natured gambler Marty Black falls into ownership of a booking joint but soon falls on hard times...

Plot Keywords:

Horse | Horse Racing | Gambling

Cast

George Raft	...	Marty Black
Ellen Drew	...	Penelope 'Penny' Hollis
Hugh Herbert	...	Mousey Johnson
Zasu Pitts	...	Dulcey Lee
Louise Beavers	...	Aunt Tina
Lew Payton	...	Sixty
Forrester Harvey	...	Nonny Watkins
Edward Pawley	...	Spike Cronin
Gilbert Emery	...	Pinckney Rodell
Jimmy Bristow	...	Brewster
Stanley Andrews	...	Doctor
George Anderson	...	Joe Lane
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Robert Milasch	...	Big Longshoreman

Runtime:

67 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Mirrophonic Recording)

Company:

Paramount Pictures

Trivia:

One of over 700 Paramount Productions, filmed between 1929 and 1949, which were sold to MCA/Universal in 1958 for television distribution, and have been owned and controlled by Universal ever since.

Quotes:

Marty Black: Here piggy, piggy, piggy, piggy!

George plays the horses

A struggling bookie calls in his last chance, an IOU for half-interest in a 2-year-old thoroughbred. The other half, of course, is owned by the title character, who fights his overly ambitious plans for the colt while quickly falling for his disarming ways. The only real reason to watch "The Lady's From Kentucky" is George Raft. He had about three screen personas in his career, most famously the soft-talking gangster, but this peppy part is the real Raft. He's completely in his element among the gambling joints and horse players. His blithe comfort makes this frivolous romantic comedy an easy watch. Unfortunately, Raft (and the horses) upstage everyone else, at least the white folks. Ellen Drew leaves little impression at all (except amateur emoting in a couple of scenes). Hugh Herbert becomes tiresome, and ZaSu Pitts is instantly and constantly annoying. The horses show far more engaging personalities. In fact, Raft's relationship with the colt is more endearing than the forced romance. There's more humor in personality than in the set-up comedy of the movie, and that can be chalked up to Raft -- whether giving blood for money, crawling under a house after a piglet or cozying up submissively to an old groom. There is little in common here with the running of a real horse farm, but that's business, and business does not fit Hollywood plots. Director Alexander Hall shoots all of the horse scenes well, and the races get brief, zippy coverage. But guaranteed you'll get sick of hearing "Camp Town Races" in almost every scene.