Kentucky (1938)

It's not great by any means, but it's a pretty good movie that didn't leave me filled with regret for investing time in it.

It is not deep, but it is fun to watch. It does have a bit more of an edge to it than other similar films.

This is one of the few movies I've ever seen where the whole audience broke into spontaneous, loud applause a third of the way in.

I didn’t really have many expectations going into the movie (good or bad), but I actually really enjoyed it. I really liked the characters and the banter between them.

this movie played twice on THIStv, a great channel.Kentucky is one of my favorites. I am teaching a Southern History course, and I use the "Southern" any movie about the South to talk about how Hollywood viewed blacks, the different classes of southern society. A great movie similar to this that also starred Walter Brennan is Maryland Fox 1940 Hattie McDaniel is in this one It takes place on a large estate in Maryland, and has to do with steeplechase and fox-hunting. Both of these movies are fun a bit dated with the racial views, but in the context of a good story,a dn history well worth watching. Where can I get a copy or view online Maryland? also please write thistv and let them know you like movies such as Kentucky,Maryland They must have purchased a cache of 20thCenturyFox films, they showed the 1953 Titanic on Sunday. Also anyone who has done research on the Southern as a genre please let me know I am planning to do an aritcle.

Kentucky (1938) *** (out of 4) Fun film involves two horse racing families from Kentucky who have been doing battle since the start of the Civil War and it continues to the current times. Eventually opposite family members Loretta Young and Richard Greene fall in love just as the Kentucky Derby comes around where Greene tries to prove himself as a horse trainer. I was surprised to see how enjoyable thing film was and one of the big benefits is the Technicolor used in the film. These early Technicolor films are often hit and miss on how well they look but this film here is quite beautiful to look at. It's certainly one of the best looking early Technicolor films that I've seen from this period. Another nice thing are the performances, which are all a lot of fun. Neither Young nor Greene speak with a southern accent, although the screenplay gives a reason for Greene not doing so. Even with the accents being wrong, both work incredibly well together and this here helps the love story (and the fighting moments). Walter Brennan won the Best Supporting Actor Oscar and he gives a fun, if over the top, performance. His redneck antics are pretty over the top but it's still fun and keeps the film moving with some nice laughs. Being from Kentucky it was great seeing how Churchill Downs looked back then as well. The stereotypes of the black servants in the film might offend some as they all come off rather dumb but so do the Southern characters.

Frankly, I paid less attention to the plot than to the horses in the early part of the film. My God, where did they get those magnificent animals? Golden Chimes, Grenadier, Torch Bearer were worth the whole film to a horse lover! And the films of the great horses of the period, especially Man o' War, are a special treat. However, having to sit through Bobs Watson, probably the worst child actor in history, is really an effort. Little Bobs didn't cry, he BLUBBERED, with his cheeks swollen like balloons, and that whiney, squally voice--! Oh, well, I guess you can't have everything. Enjoy the horses and forget the rest!

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.