National Velvet is a sports drama film directed by Clarence Brown and was shot in Technicolor. The 1944 film stars the future iconic actress Elizabeth Taylor who was age 12 during the making of this picture, along with fellow screen icons Mickey Rooney and Angela Lansbury.
In National Velvet, Michael “Mi” Taylor (Mickey Rooney, A Midsummer’s Night Dream, Quicksand), who lost his father, was given “all the roads in the Kingdom” to travel. He wanders to a place where it’s noted in his father’s journal, to a quiet home in Sussex, England where Brown family resides. There’s patriarch Herbert Brown (silent film star Donald Crisp, Mutiny on the Bounty, Don Q, Son of Zorro, The Birth of a Nation), his wife Araminty Brown (Anne Revere, Body and Soul, Toys in the Attic), youngest son Donald(Jackie Jenkins, The Human Comedy) older daughter Edwina (Angela Lansbury, Gaslight, The Picture of Dorian Gray), Malvolia (Juanita Quigley, The Lady and the Monster) and their youngest daughter, Velvet (Elizabeth Taylor, Father of the Bride, A Place in the Sun), who is the main character of the film with a strong passion for horses. When she wins a horse named Pie in a town lottery, Mi trains Velvet and Pie to train the horse for the Grand National, which is England’s greatest racing event! Both Mi and Velvet go through a lot to get to the event as Pie is a wild horse, including Velvet getting a haircut to look like a man because the race doesn’t allow for women to be jockeys.
This movie is nothing short of a heartwarming feel-good tale for the entire family to watch. The film won a pair of Oscars while nominated for a few others. This is the movie that put Elizabeth Taylor on the map. Mickey Rooney was outstanding as usual in his role as a reluctant horse training. Angela Lansbury, Donald Crisp, Anne Revere were also superb in their roles, even if they did fall by the wayside when the picture completely focuses on Rooney and Taylor and their horse Pie.
Warner Archive has given the often-requested National Treasure a Blu-ray release. The image quality as expected is top-notch with rich bold colors. Everything from the clothing the actors have on to the scenery under clear blue skies is exceptionally sharp and polished. The Technicolor looks as good as ever, with a clean image throughout. This is easily an upgrade over the DVD as with this Blu-ray, everything has been cleaned up.
The English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 soundtrack also comes in crisp and clear without any drop-offs or hissing. The sounds from dialogue to horse racing are all sharp and blend in perfectly together. English subtitles are available.
This classic has only been given a trailer for a supplement
National Velvet
Director- Clarence Brown
Cast- Mickey Rooney, Elizabeth Taylor, Donald Crisp
Country of Origin- US
Distributor – Warner Archive/Warner Brothers
Number of Discs – 1
Reviewed by – David Steigman
Date –11/28/2021