The Brave One **** (1956, Michel Ray, Rodolfo Hoyos Jr, Elsa Cárdenas, Fermin Rivera) – Classic Movie Review 3260

Director Irving Rapper’s 1956 rarely-shown or little-remembered family drama movie can now be properly recalled thanks to the film Trumbo (2015) that tells the story of its writing. The Brave One won an Oscar for Best Original Story, originally credited and awarded to Robert Rich, a front for persona non grata blacklisted Communist screen-writer Dalton Trumbo, who finally received his award in 1975.

Trumbo writes a sweet original story for this simple but affecting movie based on a true incident about a brave Mexican peasant lad called Leonardo (Michel Ray) who enlists the President of Mexico’s help to save his pet bull from certain death in the bullring. The boy first saves the bull named Gitano during a storm and adopts ‘The Brave One’ but Gitano’s owners claim the animal and take him to the bullring where he faces the top matador (Fermin Rivera). 

Director Rapper directs effectively and atmospherically in Mexico, and tugs the heartstrings with practised ease.

Because he was not permitted to work because of the Hollywood blacklist, Trumbo wrote the story, was nominated and won – under the pseudonym Robert Rich, who had nothing to do with the film industry and is a nephew of the King Brothers, producers of the film.

For obvious reasons, Maurice King and Frank King repeatedly denied rumours that this was so. So it was not acknowledged for several years that the writer was actually Trumbo, who finally received his award on May 2 1975 shortly before his death from the Academy president Walter Mirisch. The official screen credit was not changed until many years later. Harry Franklin and Merrill G White are credited for the screenplay, now along with Trumbo.

It is now fully restored on DVD, doing justice to Jack Cardiff’s lovely CinemaScope cinematography.

© Derek Winnert 2015 Classic Movie Review 3260

Check out more reviews on http://derekwinnert.com