Smartorhypo Highly Overrated But Still Good

MusicChat It's complicated... I really like the directing, acting and writing but, there are issues with the way it's shot that I just can't deny. As much as I love the storytelling and the fantastic performance but, there are also certain scenes that didn't need to exist.

Casey Duggan It’s sentimental, ridiculously long and only occasionally funny

Nayan Gough A great movie, one of the best of this year. There was a bit of confusion at one point in the plot, but nothing serious.

MARIO GAUCI This film had been shown on local Cable TV in the late 1990s, but I had missed out on its handful of broadcasts; in any case, the main reason that would have drawn me to it was the fact that amiable character actor Walter Brennan won the second of three Supporting Oscars (a record, also because all occurred within a five-year span!) for his performance here. In retrospect, while his contribution is easily the best thing about the movie, I would argue that Brennan's fellow nominees were perhaps more deserving of the accolade – since, for one thing, none would ever win eventually and they each involved more demanding roles! For the record, I have yet to catch Basil Rathbone in IF I WERE KING (as the French King Louis XI), but did get to see John Garfield in FOUR DAUGHTERS (his renowned debut), Gene Lockhart in ALGIERS (though Malta's own Joseph Calleia, in his personal favorite part, was no less impressive!) and Robert Morley in MARIE ANTOINETTE (as Louis XVI).The film is nevertheless also notable for its gleaming Technicolor: that said, the thin narrative of a Southern Romeo and Juliet-type feud was hardly worthy of such exclusive attention, especially since its horse- racing backdrop had already been (more) successfully dealt with in monochrome in such classics as Frank Capra's Broadway BILL (1934) and the Marx Bros. vehicle A DAY AT THE RACES (1937)! Anyway, following a nicely atmospheric prologue set during the Civil War (the participation of Karen Morley and Douglass Dumbrille is restricted to this sequence), we fast-forward to contemporary times as their offsprings, Richard Greene and Loretta Young respectively, end up romancing each other without the latter knowing the former's true identity; he even trains their sole remaining horse (actually owed to them by Greene's banker father) after the patriarch blows away all their money on cotton whose price "nose-dived" soon after!Brennan is the man's brother, a connoisseur of thoroughbreds but who is deemed an eccentric on account of his irascible behaviour – indeed, while Young had her eyes set on the champion stud in the Greene family stable, her uncle persuades the heroine to settle for the second-best – because he saw in its eyes what he calls "The Look Of Eagles", the title of the story which inspired the film! Incidentally, the scene where the stallion is chosen constitutes an undeniable highlight – the crooked groom hides the two horses from their enemies, but Eddie "Rochester" Anderson's singing the champion's praises are enthusiastically joined in by Brennan, egging him on into revealing its whereabouts! Despite the subject matter, only two contests are incorporated into the plot (and with the first being only heard on the radio in the ticket booth); both are won by the horse Brennan had faith in…but its triumph at the all- important derby is too-briefly enjoyed by him, since he suffers a heart attack and expires at the racetrack. Unsurprisingly, 'uneducated' black servants abound throughout – notably a chicken thief expelled from one household and taken in by another. Finally, I guess I ought to point out that this was thrice remade – as DOWN ARGENTINE WAY (1940), HOME IN INDIANA (1944; also featuring Brennan) and APRIL LOVE (1957) – but, it goes without saying, I have no immediate interest in checking them out...

vincentlynch-moonoi I'll have to begin with the biggest negative to this film. Do we really need yet another film where young Bobs Watson demonstrates his ability to cry hysterically????? In "Boys Town" it was touching, but it got sickening after a while.Beyond that, this is a really good film. Particularly because one of its supporting actors, and in my view the real star of the film -- Walter Brennan -- who at 40 years of age was able to skillfully play the grandfather (who had been played in childhood by Bobs Watson).The titled star of the film -- Loretta Young -- doesn't arrive until 18 minutes into the film, but I think that tells you something about the intent here -- to make a good film, not just highlight the stars. She's beautiful, and one can see why she was a star. This was one of her few color films. The other star is Richard Greene, a British actor who was building to a great career until the war intervened, and never quite got it back together after the conflict. He's very good here.What isn't so good any longer is the color, which has faded somewhat and is a bit uneven, particularly on Loretta Young's face. Almost makes this look like a colorized film, but it's real Technicolor. And, the age and lack of restoration has made the print shown on TCM not crisp. However, the original production standards here were high, and it's noticeable.This film is far better than its listing description, which makes it sound like a hillbilly film with two feuding families. Yes, the families are feuding, but they're not hillbillies...they're the horse-racing elite of Kentucky -- families divided years before by the Civil War (that part of the story is highlighted in the first 15 minutes of the film, then it forwards to the "present" time...where Loretta Young and Richard Greene come in).Films all have happy endings. Right? Wrong. The ending here is bittersweet, at best. And throughout the picture, 3 key characters die. But again, that proves that the producers here wanted a solid story, and they deliver.A fine film. Watch it!

lorason61 Real footage of Lawrin's win. 2 horses, Bluegrass & Postman. I just wanted to point out that the silk colors for Blugrass/Lawrin were green w/white polka dots.Eddie Arcaro won his 1st Derby aboard "Bluegrass" aka Lawrin.Im surprised no-one picked up on this !!! Same w/"Glory" (1956). The film footage of "Glory" winning was actual footage of Swaps/Nashua in 1955. The silk colors in the movie match Swaps & Nashua.I recommend this movie because of the locations & Loretta Young. Scenes of the farms in KY like Calumet, Greentree and others add to the beauty of it all.

capitan_movie Walter Brennan set a standard for supporting actors with this perfect equine movie. You actually believe that the 38-year-old Brennan is a wizened 68-year-old track veteran. Young Loretta is equally winning in her starring debut. This is the classic movie that all the cliches copied.