That's My Man
1947
Action / Drama / Music / Romance / Sport

That's My Man
1947
Action / Drama / Music / Romance / Sport
Plot summary
A poor young man is finally able to achieve his dream of running a horse at the track, but when he starts becoming successful, he begins to lose sight of what mattered to him before.
Director
Top cast
Tech specs
720p.BLU 1080p.BLUMovie Reviews
I have a feeling that this wouldn't pass muster nowadays
A Man And His Horse
Don Ameche decides to live life on his own terms. He quits his job as an accountant and buys a colt. He doesn't have a place to keep it. Catherine McLeod offers her apartment. That doesn't work out. However, the horse, Gallant Man, wins every race for the soft-spoken Ameche and his bride. But when Ameche retires the horse rather than carry 140 pounds in handicap, and Miss McLeod tells Ameche not to come home, he goes on the skids.
Frank Borzage's movie of the love between a man and a horse has echoes of his mystical films of the late 1920s and early 1930s, but at times it seems as if Miss McLeod is the third wheel. Still, Ameche pulls off his role by speaking softly and sounding sincere, and there's Roscoe Karns, Joe Frisco, and Frankie Darro to make the whole thig seem possible for 97 minutes. Tony Gaudio offers some great footage of horse races.
Well made, but slow paced and overly sentimental
Sweet, sentimental romantic drama about a good man who sincerely loves his wife but who's gambling addiction continually sabotages their relationship. The first 20 minutes or so is fun and engaging meet-cute romantic comedy, but then the movie turns dark.
In 2014 the film became available for the first time on DVD in it's original length. After initial release in 1947, had only been seen rarely and in a heavily edited version. The DVD image and sound are fairly good; it looks to be a new video transfer made from a decent quality archival print.
The production looks surprisingly plush, given it was made for Republic Pictures.
I found the film well acted, especially by Don Ameche, whose unusual for him, calm and underplayed performance made the story a lot more credible than it would have been otherwise. The female lead gave a believable performance, but lacked star quality that would have made her character's tribulations more watchable.
Unfortunately, I found the film slow moving and overly sentimental. I became bored, especially with the overly repetitious plot.