Cattle Annie and Little Britches (film)
Encyclopedia
Cattle Annie and Little Britches is an American film based on the lives of two adolescent girls in the late 19th century who became infatuated with the Western outlaw
heroes they had read about in Ned Buntline
's stories and left their homes to join them. It was scripted by David Eyre and Robert Ward from Robert Ward's book and directed by Lamont Johnson
.
(Burt Lancaster
). Annie (Amanda Plummer), shames, and inspires the men, to become what she had imagined them to be. The younger sister Jenny (Diane Lane
), finds a father figure in Doolin, who calls her Little Britches. Doolin's efforts to live up to the girls' vision of him lead him to be carted off in a cage to an Oklahoma jail where he waits to be hanged. With the help of the girls, and the gang, Doolin gets out and rides off to safety with his men. The girls are triumphant, but they can't escape the Marshal (Rod Steiger
), and are sent back East to a Massachusetts reformatory.
The film was favourably reviewed by the critic Pauline Kael
in The New Yorker
. " The cinematography [by Larry Pizer] is vivid..the colours are strikingly crisp and intense. The dialogue and most of the incidents have a neat, dry humor. Its a wonderful, partly true story...there are some wonderful performances. As Bill Doolin, Lancaster (who made the film before Atlantic City), is a gent surrounded by louts - a charmer. When he talks to his gang he uses the lithe movements and the rhythmic, courtly delivery that his Crimson Pirate
had when he told his boys to gather round. In his scenes with Diane Lane, the child actor who appeared in New York in several of Andrei Serban
's stage productions, and who single handed made the film A Little Romance
almost worth seeing, Lancaster has an easy tenderness that is never overdone. Lancaster looks happy in the movie and still looks tough: its an unbeatable combination. Young Amanda Plummer gives a scarily brilliant performance."
Outlaw
In historical legal systems, an outlaw is declared as outside the protection of the law. In pre-modern societies, this takes the burden of active prosecution of a criminal from the authorities. Instead, the criminal is withdrawn all legal protection, so that anyone is legally empowered to persecute...
heroes they had read about in Ned Buntline
Ned Buntline
Ned Buntline , was a pseudonym of Edward Zane Carroll Judson , an American publisher, journalist, writer and publicist best known for his dime novels and the Colt Buntline Special he is alleged to have commissioned from Colt's Manufacturing Company.-Naval and military experience:Edward Judson was...
's stories and left their homes to join them. It was scripted by David Eyre and Robert Ward from Robert Ward's book and directed by Lamont Johnson
Lamont Johnson
Lamont Johnson was an American actor and film director who has appeared in and directed many television shows and movies. He won two Emmy Awards....
.
Plot
The outlaws the girls find are the demoralised remnants of the Doolin-Dalton gang, led by the aging Bill DoolinBill Doolin
William "Bill" Doolin was an American bandit and founder of the Wild Bunch, an outlaw gang that specialized in robbing banks, trains and stagecoaches in Arkansas, Oklahoma, and Kansas during the 1890s.- Early life :...
(Burt Lancaster
Burt Lancaster
Burton Stephen "Burt" Lancaster was an American film actor noted for his athletic physique and distinctive smile...
). Annie (Amanda Plummer), shames, and inspires the men, to become what she had imagined them to be. The younger sister Jenny (Diane Lane
Diane Lane
Diane Lane is an American film actress.Born and raised in New York City, Lane made her screen debut at the age of 13 in George Roy Hill's 1979 film A Little Romance, starring opposite Sir Laurence Olivier. Soon after, she was featured on the cover of Time magazine...
), finds a father figure in Doolin, who calls her Little Britches. Doolin's efforts to live up to the girls' vision of him lead him to be carted off in a cage to an Oklahoma jail where he waits to be hanged. With the help of the girls, and the gang, Doolin gets out and rides off to safety with his men. The girls are triumphant, but they can't escape the Marshal (Rod Steiger
Rod Steiger
Rodney Stephen "Rod" Steiger was an Academy Award-winning American actor known for his performances in such films as On the Waterfront, The Big Knife, Oklahoma!, The Harder They Fall, Across the Bridge, The Pawnbroker, Doctor Zhivago, In the Heat of the Night, and Waterloo as well as the...
), and are sent back East to a Massachusetts reformatory.
The film was favourably reviewed by the critic Pauline Kael
Pauline Kael
Pauline Kael was an American film critic who wrote for The New Yorker magazine from 1968 to 1991. Earlier in her career, her work appeared in City Lights, McCall's and The New Republic....
in The New Yorker
The New Yorker
The New Yorker is an American magazine of reportage, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons and poetry published by Condé Nast...
. " The cinematography [by Larry Pizer] is vivid..the colours are strikingly crisp and intense. The dialogue and most of the incidents have a neat, dry humor. Its a wonderful, partly true story...there are some wonderful performances. As Bill Doolin, Lancaster (who made the film before Atlantic City), is a gent surrounded by louts - a charmer. When he talks to his gang he uses the lithe movements and the rhythmic, courtly delivery that his Crimson Pirate
The Crimson Pirate
The Crimson Pirate is a 1952 American adventure film directed by Robert Siodmak. It stars Burt Lancaster, who also co-produced the film, as Captain Vallo, the eponymous pirate, and is set in the Caribbean late in the 18th century, on the fictional islands of Cobra and San Pero...
had when he told his boys to gather round. In his scenes with Diane Lane, the child actor who appeared in New York in several of Andrei Serban
Andrei Serban
Andrei Șerban is a Romanian-born American theater director. A major name in twentieth-century theater, he is renowned for his innovative and iconoclastic interpretations and stagings...
's stage productions, and who single handed made the film A Little Romance
A Little Romance
A Little Romance is a 1979 romantic comedy film, starring Laurence Olivier and Diane Lane in her film debut. It was directed by George Roy Hill. The screenplay is written by Allan Burns and George Roy Hill, based on a novel by Patrick Cauvin...
almost worth seeing, Lancaster has an easy tenderness that is never overdone. Lancaster looks happy in the movie and still looks tough: its an unbeatable combination. Young Amanda Plummer gives a scarily brilliant performance."