Black Beauty (1971 film) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Black Beauty |
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North American Theatrical release poster
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| Directed by | James Hill |
| Produced by | Peter L. Andrews Artur Brauner Malcolm B. Heyworth Executive producer: Peter Hahne Tony Tenser Harry Alan Towers (uncredited) |
| Written by | Anna Sewell (novel) Wolf Mankowitz (screenplay) James Hill (additional dialogue) |
| Starring | Walter Slezak Mark Lester Patrick Mower John Nettleton |
| Music by | Lionel Bart John Cameron |
| Cinematography | Chris Menges |
| Editing by | Ann Chegwidden Pablo González del Amo |
| Distributed by | Tigon British Film Productions |
| Release date(s) | April 1971 |
| Running time | 106 minutes |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
Black Beauty is a 1971 British drama film. It was directed by James Hill. The movie is based on Anna Sewell's famous 1877 novel of the same name. This film is the fourth time Anna Sewell's story was made into a movie. Lionel Bart created the exciting music for the film.
The movie stars Walter Slezak, Mark Lester, Uschi Glas, Patrick Mower, and John Nettleton.
Contents
The Story of Black Beauty
The story of Black Beauty begins around 1856 in England. Black Beauty is a young stallion, a male horse. He is born in front of a boy named Joe. Joe's father gives the foal to Joe.
Soon, a tough local leader takes over Joe's family farm. This happens because the family cannot pay their loan. Black Beauty is then taken by this leader. After the leader dies, the horse is bought by Irish Travellers.
Black Beauty's Adventures
Black Beauty runs away after a horse race and a fight. He is then caught by a horse trader. The trader sells him to a Spanish circus. In the circus, Black Beauty learns many cool tricks.
Later, he is given to Sir William, a proud British military man. Then, Sir William's daughter, Anne, gets the horse. Anne's fiancé is Lt. Gervaise Caldicott. He is a soldier. Sir William thinks Gervaise is not brave enough for his daughter.
To prove his courage, Gervaise decides to join the army overseas. Anne gives him Black Beauty as his horse for the journey.
Bravery and Return Home
Black Beauty travels with Gervaise to a faraway land. This area is called the Northwest Frontier. Scenes for this part of the movie were filmed in Spain. Sadly, Gervaise is killed in battle.
Because of his bravery in the fight, Black Beauty is sent back to England. However, Gervaise's friend, who is now struggling, sells the horse. Black Beauty is then used to pull coal by a harsh owner. He becomes very sick with pneumonia.
At his worst, Black Beauty is rescued by a kind old woman. She runs a farm for horses that are retired. Her employee helps her care for the horses. This employee turns out to be Joe, the boy who knew Black Beauty as a foal! The kind old woman is actually Anna Sewell, the author of the original Black Beauty book. This happens sometime after 1870.
Meet the Cast
- Mark Lester as Joe Evans
- Walter Slezak as Hackenschmidt
- Uschi Glas as Marie Hackenschmidt (credited as "Ursula Glas")
- Peter Lee Lawrence as Lt. Gervaise Caldicott
- Patrick Mower as Sam Greene
- John Nettleton as Sir William
- Maria Rohm as Lady Anne Piggott
- Eddie Golden as Evans, Joe's Father
- Clive Geraghty as Roger
- John Hoey as Muldoon
- Patrick Gardiner as Seamus O'Flaherty
- Brian McGrath as Mark Beauchamp
- Ronan Smith as Farmboy
- John Franklyn as Coalman
- Margaret Lacey as Anna Sewell
Filming Locations
The movie was filmed in two main places. These were Ireland and Spain.
