Annie Get Your Gun (1950)

100% of critics liked it
(11 reviews)
63% of users liked it
(8,325 ratings)

Judy Garland was originally slated to star in MGM's film version of Irving Berlin's Annie Get Your Gun, but she was forced to pull out of the production due to illness (recently discovered out-takes reveal a gaunt, dazed Garland, obviously incapable of completing her duties). She was replaced by… More Judy Garland was originally slated to star in MGM's film version of Irving Berlin's Annie Get Your Gun, but she was forced to pull out of the production due to illness (recently discovered out-takes reveal a gaunt, dazed Garland, obviously incapable of completing her duties). She was replaced by Betty Hutton who, once she overcame the resentment of her co-workers, turned in an excellent performance--perhaps the best of her career. Hutton is of course cast as legendary sharpshooter Annie Oakley, who ascends from dirty-faced backwoods gamin to the uppermost rungs of international stardom. Her mentor is Buffalo Bill, played by Louis Calhern (like Hutton, Calhern was a last-minute replacement: the original Buffalo Bill, Frank Morgan, died before production began). Annie's great rival is arrogant marksman Frank Butler (Howard Keel) with whom she eventually falls in love. She goes so far as to lose an important shooting match to prove her affection--a scene that hardly strikes a blow for feminism, but this is, after all, a 1950 film. Of the stellar supporting cast, J. Carroll Naish stands out as Sitting Bull, whose shrewd business acumen is good for several laughs. Virtually all the Irving Berlin tunes were retained from the Broadway version, including "Doin' What Comes Naturally", "You Can't Get a Man with a Gun", "Anything You Can Do", "The Girl That I Marry", "My Defenses are Down", "They Say It's Wonderful" and the rousing "There's No Business Like Show Business", which was later tantalizingly excerpted in MGM's pastiche feature That's Entertainment II. Alas, due to a complicated legal tangle involving the estates of Irving Berlin and librettists Herbert Fields and Dorothy Fields, Annie Get Your Gun hasn't been shown on television in years. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Rating, Runtime: Unrated, 1 hr. 47 min.
Directed By: George Sidney II
Written By: Sidney Sheldon
Genres: Western, Musical & Performing Arts, Classics

In Theaters: Jan 1, 1950 Wide
On DVD: Jul 3, 2001
Studio: MGM

Critic Reviews

Elliott Stein, Village Voice
Stalwart baritone Howard Keel makes an impressive Hollywood debut as Hutton's leading man.
Dennis Schwartz, Ozus' World Movie Reviews
A loud and gaudy production of a hit play turned into a hit movie.
Emanuel Levy, EmanuelLevy.Com
In this fun musical, Betty Hutton gives perhaps an overenergetic peformance in a part that was intended for Judy Garland before she was fired.
Scott G. Mignola, Common Sense Media
A rootin' tootin' good time.
Steve Crum, Video-Reviewmaster.com
Colorful, tuneful, brassy musical version of Berlin's hit Broadway show.
James Sanford, Kalamazoo Gazette
The chemistry between Hutton and Keel is delightful and when his full-throttle baritone meets her rich alto in the duets, you'll be bewitched.
Daniel Eagan, Film Journal International
Stiff adaptation buoyed by brilliant Berlin score
John J. Puccio, Movie Metropolis
...its new DVD incarnation is splendidly bright, vivid, and detailed.
John J. Puccio, Movie Metropolis
...it gets an enlivening, high-octane delivery, thanks to Hutton and director George Sidney.

Read all 9 critic reviews

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Featured Audience Ratings

jay n

saucy betty, strapping keel, good fun although a reportedly a nightmare to make.
Anastasia B

Betty Hutton is amazing as the rather simple-minded but talented Annie Oakley. It's a delightful 1h47min to spend watching this Michigan native spin an Ohio accent -- if you are indeed a fan of the musical genre. if you are not, this film is bad news for you, even though it does… More
Betty Hutton is amazing as the rather simple-minded but talented Annie Oakley. It's a delightful 1h47min to spend watching this Michigan native spin an Ohio accent -- if you are indeed a fan of the musical genre. if you are not, this film is bad news for you, even though it does give us the story of "the first American female superstar". It does not offer more than a whirl around or two on the plot and apart from it's protagonist there isn't much to discover here, for a modern viewer who has had their dose of high profile musical prodigies like "Chicago' (2002) or "Moulin Rouge" (2001) in the past decade. For those with a taste for the classic though... you'll be rewarded accordingly.

Cast

            Betty Hutton as Annie Oakley

            Howard Keel as Frank Butler

            Louis Calhern as Buffalo Bill

            J. Carrol Naish as Chief Sitting Bull

            Edward Arnold as Pawnee Bill

            Keenan Wynn as Charlie Davenport

            Benay Venuta as Dolly Tate

            Clinton Sundberg as Foster Wilson

            Evelyn Beresford as Queen Victoria

            Eleanora Brown as Minnie

            Sue Casey as Cowgirl

            André Charlot as President Loubet of France

            Diane Dick as Nellie

            John War Eagle as Indian brave

            Budd Fine as Immigration officer

            Elizabeth Flournoy as Helen

            Lee Tung Foo as Waiter

            John Hamilton as Ship captain

            James H. Harrison as Mac

            Judy Landon as Cowgirl

            Nolan Leary as Immigration officer

            Meredith Leeds as Cowgirl

            Edith Mills as Squaw

            Brad Mora as Little Jake

            John Mylong as Kaiser Wilhelm II

            Susan Odin as Jessie

            Nino Pipitone as King Victor Emmanuel of Italy

            Carl Sepulveda as Cowboy

            Marjorie Wood as Constance

            Chief Yowlachie as Little Horse

            Michael Dugan as Cowboy

            William Tannen as Barker

            Dorinda Clifton as Cowgirl

            Carol Henry as Cowboy

            Charles Regan as Barker

            Al Rhein as Barker

            Warren MacGregor as Cowboy

            Charles Mauu as Indian brave

            Tony Taylor as Little boy
See full cast