Perhaps the best way to tell the story of Black Beauty is with animation. This version of the Anna Sewall family classic that stars Mona Freeman and Richard Denning is a nice film, but not the story.
Too many years ago that I care to remember I read the book as a kid and the story is told from the horse's point of view. I do remember the whole first part of the novel with the birth of Black Beauty and how he interrelated with the other horses on the estate of widower Charles Evans and his daughter Mona Freeman.
Circumstance separates the horse from his mistress and the novel tells of the horse's odyssey. A lot of that is rushed through until the reunion. The book is about the horse's experience with the various humans who owned him, some good and some bad.
Mona Freeman does a nice job of the spirited young lady, a lot like Elizabeth Taylor in National Velvet who lives for her horse. Freeman is a little older than Taylor's character and she wants handsome young American Richard Denning to notice her. Denning at first has eyes for the sophisticated Evelyn Ankers who was taking a break from those Universal horror flicks. In real life she was Mrs. Richard Denning at the time.
Best role in the film for me was J.M. Kerrigan as the very wise groom John on the Evans estate. Next to Black Beauty be's the smartest one in the film.
This version of Black Beauty is a nice family film, done a bit on the cheap by 20th Century Fox's B film unit.
Too many years ago that I care to remember I read the book as a kid and the story is told from the horse's point of view. I do remember the whole first part of the novel with the birth of Black Beauty and how he interrelated with the other horses on the estate of widower Charles Evans and his daughter Mona Freeman.
Circumstance separates the horse from his mistress and the novel tells of the horse's odyssey. A lot of that is rushed through until the reunion. The book is about the horse's experience with the various humans who owned him, some good and some bad.
Mona Freeman does a nice job of the spirited young lady, a lot like Elizabeth Taylor in National Velvet who lives for her horse. Freeman is a little older than Taylor's character and she wants handsome young American Richard Denning to notice her. Denning at first has eyes for the sophisticated Evelyn Ankers who was taking a break from those Universal horror flicks. In real life she was Mrs. Richard Denning at the time.
Best role in the film for me was J.M. Kerrigan as the very wise groom John on the Evans estate. Next to Black Beauty be's the smartest one in the film.
This version of Black Beauty is a nice family film, done a bit on the cheap by 20th Century Fox's B film unit.