The Farmer's Daughter (1947)

75% of users liked it
(652 ratings)

When Loretta Young stepped up to accept her Academy Award for The Farmer's Daughter, the ever-youthful leading lady, who'd been in films since 1928, sighed "At long last!" Young is cast as Katie Holstrum, an independently-minded Swedish girl who leaves her family's Minnesota farm to take a domestic… More When Loretta Young stepped up to accept her Academy Award for The Farmer's Daughter, the ever-youthful leading lady, who'd been in films since 1928, sighed "At long last!" Young is cast as Katie Holstrum, an independently-minded Swedish girl who leaves her family's Minnesota farm to take a domestic job at the Washington DC home of congressman Glenn Morley Joseph Cotten. Katie's outspokeness and Scandanavian common sense immediately endears her to Morley, his mother Ethel Barrymore, and the family's crusty-but-kindly butler Clancy Charles Bickford. Sensing that the political machine backing Morley isn't thoroughly honest, Katie takes an active hand in Washington politics, leading to her own nomination for a congressional seat. The machine-boss villains (depicted rather provocatively as right-wing reactionaries) try to discredit Katie on the eve of the election, but she is rescued by Morley, who of course has fallen in love with her. Adapted from Juurakon Hulda (Hulda, Daughter of Parliament), a Finnish play written by Hella Wuolijoki (using the pen name Juhani Tervapää), which had originally been optioned as a potential vehicle for Ingrid Bergman, The Farmer's Daughter later matriculated into a weekly TV series, with Inger Stevens as Katie and William Windom as Morley. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Rating, Runtime: Unrated, 1 hr. 37 min.
Directed By: H.C. Potter
Written By: Allen Rivkin, Laura Kerr
Genres: Classics, Comedy

In Theaters: Mar 26, 1947 Wide

Critic Reviews

Emanuel Levy, EmanuelLevy.Com
Loretta Young won the Oscar for Potter's cheerful but naive upward mobility fable about an ambitious farm girl(of Swedish descent) who becomes a congresswoman and wins the man (Joseph Cotten).
Ken Hanke, Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC)
Charming film of a type completely absent these days.

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Cast

            Keith Andes as Sven Holstrom

            Loretta Young as Katrin Holstrom

            James Arness as Peter Holstrom

            Joseph Cotten as Glenn Morley

            Art Baker as Anders Finley

            Ethel Barrymore as Mrs. Morley

            Charles Bickford as Clancy

            Harry Davenport as Dr. Matthew Sutven

            Don Beddoe as Einar

            Lex Barker as Olaf Holstrom

            Thurston Hall as Wilbert Johnson

            William Harrigan as Ward Hughes

            Rose Hobart as Virginia Thatcher

            Anna Q. Nilsson as Mrs. Holstrom

            Tom Powers as Nordick

            Rhys Williams as Adolph Petree

            William Bakewell as Windor

            Sven Hugo Borg as Dr. Mattsen

            William B. Davidson as Eckers

            Douglas Evans as Silbey

            Frank Ferguson as Maattinaan

            Bess Flowers as Woman

            John Gallaudet as Van

            Cy Kendall as Sweeney

            Charles McGraw as Fisher

            Jason Robards Sr. as Night Editor

            Harry Shannon as Mr. Holstrom

            Robert Clarke as Assistant Announcer

            Charles Lane as Jackson
See full cast

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