Home in Indiana (1944)

User Rating:

6.7/10   

Director:

Henry Hathaway

Writers:

George Agnew Chamberlain (story)
Winston Miller (screenplay)

Release Date:

July 1944 (USA)

Genre:

Adventure | Drama | Romance

Tagline:

All The Thrills Of "Kentucky"! All The Magnificence Of "Maryland"! Come Home To Your Heart in Indiana!

Plot:

A lad with a penchant for trouble is sent to live with his aunt and uncle in Indiana. Though he's not happy about the arrangement at first...

Plot Keywords:

Horse | Uncle | Indiana | Aunt | Father Daughter Relationship

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar.

Cast

Walter Brennan	...	J. F. 'Thunder' Bolt
Charlotte Greenwood	...	Penny Bolt
Ward Bond	...	Jed Bruce
Charles Dingle	...	Godaw Boole
Lon McCallister	...	'Sparke' Thornton
Jeanne Crain	...	'Char' Bruce
June Haver	...	'Cri-Cri' Bruce

Runtime:

104 min (FMC Library Print) | 106 min (copyright length)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Certification:

USA:Approved (PCA #9649) | USA:TV-PG (TV rating) | Sweden:Btl

Filming Locations:

Castleton Farm - 2469 Iron Works Pike, Lexington, Kentucky, USA

Company:

Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation

Trivia:

Early showings (from 14 June 1944 through 28 June 1944) occurred at several locations in Indiana, Ohio and Kentucky, before the national release in July 1944.

Quotes:

J. F. 'Thunder' Bolt: Bless this food and us that eats it. Amen.

Movie Connections:

Version of April Love (1957)

Soundtrack:

Gwine to Rune All Night (De Camptown Races)

Charming lead performance from Lon McAllister.

Your reaction to HOME IN INDIANA will depend entirely on whether you are a horse racing fan or at least a fan of films about horse racing. Since I am neither, I found this movie pretty dull going except for the acting and human interaction.

Walter Brennan and Charlotte Greenwood are very good in the early part of the film and are convincing as the tough, unsentimental guardians of Sparke, played by Lon McAllister. Jeanne Crain is fresh and likable and was clearly a face, body and personality to watch, though she looked much prettier and sexier a year later in STATE FAIR. June Haver presents us with her doll-like perfection and seems as bright, chilly and inhuman as ever (she later became Mrs. Fred MacMurray after a stay in a convent).

The real find here was Lon McAllister. Poised and completely charming, he had an easy way with dialogue, an expressive face and an ingratiating smile. This should have been the beginning of big things for him, but it wasn't. Too bad the perky, Mickey Rooney boy-next-door types were going out of fashion (Rooney himself never regained the stardom he enjoyed before he went into the military during WWII.) McAllister ought to have succeeded in television, but perhaps he tired of show business. Wonder what happened to him after this?