Annie Get Your Gun (1950)

TOMATOMETER

100%

——

Critic Consensus: No consensus yet.

AUDIENCE SCORE

67%

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Movie Info

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.

Cast

Betty Hutton
as Annie Oakley
Howard Keel
as Frank Butler
Keenan Wynn
as Charlie Davenport
Louis Calhern
as Buffalo Bill
J. Carroll Naish
as Chief Sitting Bull
Edward Arnold
as Pawnee Bill
Benay Venuta
as Dolly Tate
Clinton Sundberg
as Foster Wilson
James Harrison
as Mac
Brad Mora
as Little Jake
Sue Casey
as Cowgirl
Susan Odin
as Jessie
Diane Dick
as Nellie
Dorinda Clifton
as Cowgirl
Chief Yowlachie
as Little Horse
Eleanor Brown
as Minnie
Michael Dugan
as Cowboy
Evelyn Beresford
as Queen Victoria
Elizabeth Flournoy
as Helen
André Charlot
as President Loubet of France
Lee Tung Foo
as Waiter
John Mylong
as Kaiser Wilhelm II
John Hamilton
as Ship captain
Nino Pipitone
as King Victor Emmanuel of Italy
John Phillip Law
Carol Henry
as Cowboy
Judy Landon
as Cowgirl
Nolan Leary
as Immigration officer
Meredith Leeds
as Cowgirl
Warren MacGregor
as Cowboy
Charles Mauu
as Indian brave
Edith Mills
as Squaw
Charles Regan
as Barker
Al Rhein
as Barker
Carl Sepulveda
as Cowboy
William Tannen
as Barker
Tony Taylor
as Little boy
John War Eagle
as Indian brave
Marjorie Wood
as Constance
Budd Fine
as Immigration officer
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Critic Reviews for Annie Get Your Gun

All Critics (11) | Top Critics (1)

Stalwart baritone Howard Keel makes an impressive Hollywood debut as Hutton's leading man.

Apr 13, 2004 | Full Review…
Village Voice
Top Critic

A loud and gaudy production of a hit play turned into a hit movie.

Mar 8, 2012 | Rating: B | Full Review…
Ozus' World Movie Reviews

In this fun musical, Betty Hutton gives perhaps an overenergetic peformance in a part that was intended for Judy Garland before she was fired.

Jun 27, 2011 | Rating: B | Full Review…
EmanuelLevy.Com

A rootin' tootin' good time.

Jan 2, 2011 | Rating: 4/5 | Full Review…
Common Sense Media

Colorful, tuneful, brassy musical version of Berlin's hit Broadway show.

Oct 23, 2008 | Rating: 5/5
Video-Reviewmaster.com

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.

Dec 27, 2005 | Full Review…
Kalamazoo Gazette
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Audience Reviews for Annie Get Your Gun

½

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

jay nixon
jay nixon

Super Reviewer

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.

Anastasia Bartzoulianou
Anastasia Bartzoulianou

Super Reviewer

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Annie Get Your Gun Quotes

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