National Velvet (1944)

A jaded former jockey helps a young girl prepare a wild but gifted horse for England's Grand National Sweepstakes.

Director:

Clarence Brown

Writers:

Enid Bagnold (novel), Theodore Reeves (screen play)

Stars:

Mickey Rooney, Elizabeth Taylor, Donald Crisp

Won 2 Oscars. Another 1 win & 4 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Mickey Rooney	...	Mi Taylor
Donald Crisp	...	Mr. Brown
Elizabeth Taylor	...	Velvet Brown
Anne Revere	...	Mrs. Brown
Angela Lansbury	...	Edwina Brown
Jackie 'Butch' Jenkins	...	Donald Brown (as Jackie Jenkins)
Juanita Quigley	...	Malvolia Brown
Arthur Treacher	...	Race Patron
Reginald Owen	...	Farmer Ede
Norma Varden	...	Miss Sims
Terry Kilburn	...	Ted
Arthur Shields	...	Mr. Hallam
Aubrey Mather	...	Entry Official
Alec Craig	...	Tim
Eugene Loring	...	I. Taski

Storyline

Mi Taylor was a young wanderer and opportunist whose father had given him "all the roads in the Kingdom" to travel. One of the roads, and a notation in his father's journal, leads him to the quiet English country-side home of the Brown family. The youngest daughter, Velvet, has a passion for horses and when she wins the spirited steed Pie in a town lottery, Mi is encouraged to train the horse for the Grand National - England's greatest racing event.

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Plot Keywords:

based on novel | horse | england | jockey | teenage girl | 

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Taglines:

Based on the Novel "National Velvet"

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Genres:

Drama | Family | Sport

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Certificate:

G

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

26 January 1945 (USA)

Also Known As:

Fuego de juventud

Filming Locations:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios - 10202 W. Washington Blvd., Culver City, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

123 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Sound System)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The music during the "lobster for dinner" scene between Mr. & Mrs. Brown is actually a very close paraphrase of "Ballet Of The Unhatched Chicks" from Moussorgsky's "Pictures At An Exhibition" as orchestrated by Ravel. Moreover, film composer Herbert Stothart had actually used this exact music chart in 1940 for a sequence in "Pride & Prejudice."

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Goofs

The horses are shown turning right during the race. All turns on the Grand National course are made to the left.

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Quotes

Mrs. Brown: What's the meaning of goodness if there isn't a little badness to overcome?

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Crazy Credits

A frame, with music, was added to the film at the end: "To families of servicemen and women: Pictures exhibited in this theater are given to the armed forces for showing in combat areas around the world. [signed] War Activities Committee/Motion Picture Industry"

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Connections

Spoofed in The Carol Burnett Show: Episode #10.3 (1976)

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Soundtracks

Hielan Laddie
(uncredited)
Traditional

User Reviews

A marvelous family film

A sentimental, heart-tugging family film set in England of the 1920s. A young Elizabeth Taylor wins a horse in a raffle and decides to enter him in the Grand National; fortunately, ex-jockey Mickey Rooney is around to give Liz some help. Director Clarence Brown displays some remarkable control with material that could've been excessively maudlin in someone else's hands. He and screenwriters Helen Deutsch and Theodore Reeves take great care in establishing genuine characterizations and developing the story naturally. True, there are one or two scenes that seem a bit forced, but overall it's quite affecting, and gorgeously filmed in Technicolor. The race itself is quite thrilling, and like so many great classics, there's a marvelous, three-hankie fade-out at the end. Liz proves that she was a real trooper right from the start, and Rooney--who I usually find rather annoying--is surprisingly subdued and really very good. Donald Crisp is terrif as Liz's gruff father and Angela Lansbury is a delight as her older, boy-crazy sister. Most of the acting kudos, however, belong to Anne Revere, who won a richly deserved Supporting Actress Oscar playing Liz's wise and caring mother.