The Kentuckian (1955)
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48% of users liked it
(316 ratings)
Produced and directed by star Burt Lancaster, The Kentuckian is a leisurely western occasionally punctuated by spurts of startling brutality. The recently widowed Lancaster heads towards Texas with his son Donald McDonald. Most of the folks he meets, notably winsome schoolmarm Diana Lynn, bondslave… More Produced and directed by star Burt Lancaster, The Kentuckian is a leisurely western occasionally punctuated by spurts of startling brutality. The recently widowed Lancaster heads towards Texas with his son Donald McDonald. Most of the folks he meets, notably winsome schoolmarm Diana Lynn, bondslave Dianne Foster, and Lancaster's down-to-earth brother John McIntyre and sister-in-law Una Merkel, are pretty good souls, despite the raging family feud that motivates the plotline. The same cannot be said of whip-wielding saloonkeeper Walter Matthau (in his film debut), who goads Lancaster into a bloody fight. Matthau wins this round, but he gets his just deserts before the final fadeout. Based on a novel by Felix Holt, The Kentuckian makes excellent use of Technicolor and Cinemascope, as well as the musical expertise of composer Bernard Herrmann. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Directed By
- Burt Lancaster
- Written By
- Felix Holt, A.B. Guthrie Jr.
- Genres
- Western, Drama, Classics
Unrated,
- In Theaters
- Aug 1, 1955 Wide
- Studio
- United Artists
Critic Reviews
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Dennis Schwartz, Ozus' World Movie Reviews
Burt Lancaster's only effort as solo director is this slow-moving, flat, so-so western.
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Fresh (60% or more critics rated the movie positively)
Rotten (59% or fewer critics rated the movie positively)
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Cast
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Burt Lancaster
as Big Eli
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Dianne Foster
as Hannah
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Diana Lynn
as Susie
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John McIntire
as Zack
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Walter Matthau
as Bodine
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Una Merkel
as Sophie
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John Carradine
as Fletcher
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John Litel
as Babson
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Rhys Williams
as Constable
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Edward Norris
as Gambler
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Lee Erickson
as Luke
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Clem Bevans
as Pilot
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Lisa Ferraday
as Woman Gambler
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Donald MacDonald
as Little Eli
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Douglas Spencer
as Fromes Brother
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Paul Wexler
as Fromes Brother
- Whip Wilson
