Glory

Obviously, this a 'feel good' film, but that is typical of the 50's when everyone was good, honest and Ike was president.

Margaret O'Brien and Walter Brennan carry this film. I thought Margaret was just as good an actress as in her childhood roles. She is just as pretty as Natalie Wood and I have never figured out why she wasn't cast in more adult roles. Was she adverse to playing femme fa tales? Did she lack the figure of a Janet Leigh or Elizabeth Taylor (note: O'Brien had small breasts and large thighs, calves). Was she flat in acting roles that required an adult theme? Or, was she just sick of acting? The film is not of the quality of 'National Velvet' but pretty good family fare. Personally, I think Margaret O'Brien would have been a superstar had she been born twenty years later.

I thought Margaret was 13 in 'Little Women' made in 1948 and released in 1949, but, if she was 19 in 1956 she would have been 11 in 'Little Women.' Many lay critics have told me she was 13 in 'Little Women,' Janet Leigh was 17, Elizabeth Taylor was 16 and June Alyson was 34.

Margaret O'Brien was very attractive in 'Glory,' and I would rank her with Natalie Wood and Janet Leigh in looks and acting ability. Taylor? NOT! Someone, please tell me why Margaret O'Brien didn't have an adult career at the level of the others mentioned in my review

I was born in Louisville, on Derby Day, in the year of the Horse. I grew up in horse farm country (Lexington), and I used to work in the horse race business (as a Video Engineer).

I enjoy this film, immensely, because there are not many great horse race films (Seabiscuit, was a near-classic). I really enjoy the location shots, the horse barn, the race tracks, the close-ups of the magnificent horses.

The acting is not great, despite some excellent character actors. The verisimilitude of horse racing, is however, spot-on. The writers obviously did their homework. Seeing the color photography of Keeneland, and Churchill Downs, in the 1950's is always a treat.

There have only been three (3) fillies, to win the Kentucky Derby: Regret, Genuine Risk, and Winning Colors. So, the title horse has to be a filly! The horse race crowd, loves an underdog, look at the enthusiasm for Mine That Bird, who was a 50-1 shot in the 2009 Derby.

Long live the races!!

I'm a horse racing fan, so I enjoyed seeing the color footage of the Churchill Downs and Keeneland racetracks from the 1950s. The footage they used for Glory's Kentucky Derby was from the 1955 Derby, when Swaps and Bill Shoemaker beat Nashua and Eddie Arcaro in one of the all-time great matchups.

Aside from the peak at history, the story is so hokey that it makes "Leave It To Beaver" seem like a gripping reality series. It's one of those really campy movies where you might want to invite some friends over, pump 'em full of beer, and have fun laughing at how bad the plot, dialog and acting are.

Call it "Plan Nine From Churchill Downs."

Bit of fluff about a teenage girl named Clarabel (child actress Margaret O'Brien in a grown-up role), living in a trailer on a Kentucky horse ranch, who falls in love - with the new little chestnut filly just born on the ranch, who she names "Glory". When Glory becomes a yearling, Clarabel's "Gram" (Charlotte Greenwood) puts the horse up for sale (she has warned Clarabel to "never fall in love with one horse") for they need the money badly - but sad, sad Clarabel is helped out by local millionaire youth Chad and a horse doctor who prevents the sale. Clarabel and Chad have tons in common since, after all, all he talks about is horses, apparently - one problem, it's rumored he is engaged to one Candy Trent, who is one rich stuck-up snob. Well, Glory is trained for racing and proves to be a fast runner, and Clarabel decides to enter her prized horse in the "Kentucky Derby", even though it's rare for a filly to have a chance to win against the colts.

This film is a decent B-movie with a racehorse theme, mildly entertaining, painlessly pleasant. It oddly switches gear about the middle of the way through into a semi-musical (with several rather mediocre songs thrown in). Clarabel plays guitar and sings to her horse, then suddenly she is heard in the stables by a good-looking radio celebrity and hired to sing on his show, a second little romance to follow for her (but you just know she'll always be loyal to horse-lovin' Chad). There is a bit of history of thoroughbreds related at the beginning of the film including a shot of real-life Triple Crown winning race horse Citation; the finale features real footage of a Kentucky Derby race. For fans of Margaret O'Brien, it is so nice to see her in one of her almost adult roles - she's a charmer, but unfortunately the weak script doesn't really give her much of a chance to shine here. A side story features favorite character actor Walter Brennan as her "Uncle Ned" who constantly bickers and yells back and forth with Clarabel's Gram (but it appears they secretly really like each other!). Cute, lightly entertaining film - nothing great though.

I sat through Glory was because Hot Toasty Rag was honoring Margaret O'Brien as Star of the Week, and this was the only movie I could get my hands on to see her acting talents as a young woman. The one nice thing I'll say about this movie is that there's nothing wrong with Margaret, and I would have loved to see more of her adult acting. Now for the not-too-nice stuff:

Nineteen-year-old Margaret plays a tomboy who lives and breathes horses. Her grandmother, Charlotte Greenwood, does nothing besides reprise her role as Aunt Eller in Oklahoma! and engage in irritating screaming contests with Walter Brennan. I can only imagine how tired Walter was of playing the grumpy, old hick, so why didn't he turn this movie down? Since Charlotte Greenwood had already been in Oklahoma!, why didn't she turn this movie down? If everyone involved protested and refused to make this movie, there would be no movie to criticize, and no one's feelings would be hurt from reading such terrible criticism. As it stands, people did show up to work, Glory did get made, and everyone who's ever seen it has panned it.