On N List of Movie Reviews

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National Velvet (1944)

Rate: 5
Viewed: 10/12

NationalV
10/12: What should've been a great film, National Velvet comes off as a major disappointment, mostly due to Mickey Rooney and Donald Crisp.

The way Mickey Rooney acts is a pathetic midget trying to be a forty-year-old man. It's hard to stomach. So does Angela Lansbury. For a nineteen-year-old girl, she looks to be in her 40's. On the other hand, Donald Crisp...oy vey! Can his character be less pessimistic? He ruins the show.

Finally, the Grand National. Similar to the chariot race in Ben-Hur, it's by far the best part of National Velvet. The race also looks authentic as the jockeys and their horses take a nasty spill after jumping over the fence. However, there's so little of it that I'm forced to watch Mickey Rooney's character tugging on a guy's clothes.

Apart from the race, the film is about Anne Revere's and Elizabeth Taylor's characters. They've done an outstanding job in the acting department by bringing the best out of the material. It's a pity that the negatives have overshadowed their work. Honestly, to this day, I've not seen a better performance by a child star this young like Elizabeth Taylor. Her character reminds me of Lord Fauntleroy, but the sexually suggestive bit she did on the bed, eh...I can do without.

All in all, despite the can't-miss cinematography, National Velvet needs better editing with Mickey Rooney completely cut out.