Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.5
Audio		5.0
Extras		2.0
Overall		4.0

Cattle Annie and Little Britches Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov August 11, 2021

Lamont Johnson's "Cattle Annie and Little Britches" (1980) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Kino Lorber. The supplemental features on the disc include exclusive new video interview with producer Rupert Hitzig and vintage trailer for the film. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-A "locked".

If you have seen and enjoyed Phillip Borsos’s The Grey Fox, you should track down and see Lamont Johnson’s Cattle Annie and Little Britches. Burt Lancaster’s old-timer is very similar to the one Richard Farnsworth plays, plus both films see and accept the irreversible transformation of the Wild West in an almost identical fashion. You could take a look at David Miller’s Lonely Are the Brave as well, which comes from an earlier decade but introduces another terrific old-timer played by Kirk Douglas. There is a great deal of sadness in these films but they are not soapy melodramas that can give a serious headache. It is because they tell the stories of their characters with a degree of honesty that is incredibly moving and, in a way, thought-provoking as well. Indeed, even though they ride horses and fire their guns, they actually go through life like you do, which is very slowly and while making and learning from all sorts of different mistakes.

In Cattle Annie and Little Britches, Lancaster is Bill Doolin, an outlaw who leads a small gang of mercenaries in the Oklahoma Territory. They have been around for a long time and accomplished a lot of great things together which is why virtually everyone admires them, including Marshal Tilghman (Rod Steiger), who has vowed to put every single one of them behind bars.

While robbing a train somewhere in the wilderness, Doolin and his men encounter teenage girls Annie (Amanda Plummer) and Jenny (Diane Lane) who decide to join them so that they can get a taste of the outlaw lifestyle. However, shortly after Marshal Tilghman uncovers the gang’s lair and following a risky bank robbery Doolin is captured. The news splits the gang members and some state their intention to walk away, but the girls urge them to do whatever is necessary to free their charismatic leader.

Cattle Annie and Little Britches was inspired by true events, but viewers expecting a great deal of factual accuracy from it are guaranteed to be disappointed. Why? Because the focus of attention is on the type of evolving reality that Doolin shares with his men and two young admirers rather than on the particular nature of their adventures. (For what it’s worth, the exact same approach is utilized in The Grey Fox as well). For a substantial period of time this reality is captured from two drastically different angles as well. On one hand, Johnson uses Doolin to gradually summarize the inevitable end of an era and the classic outlaws like him that defined it. The transition is in progress and whether Doolin chooses to go out with a bang, quietly walk away, or surrender to Marshal Tilghman is utterly irrelevant -- one way or another, it is all coming to an end. On the other hand, Johnson uses the two girls to preserve an obviously idyllic image of the West and its heroes. They recognize that a transition is in progress as well, but both are fixated on the present where Doolin is still a classic outlaw that ought to be admired. It is the one and only reason why they do whatever they can to slow down the inevitable end.

It is worth noting that while shooting Cattle Annie and Little Britches Lancaster reportedly suffered a mild heart attack and fell quite ill. He definitely looks frail throughout the film so clearly something wasn’t right. However, his physical appearance actually makes his aging character look remarkably authentic and his emotional ups and downs are rather striking.

There are fine contributions from John Savage, Scott Glenn Redmond Gleeson, and William Russ. However, Plummer and Lane do not look too convincing. The former in particular routinely struggles to control her emotions in a way that actually make them look justified in different situations.

Cattle Annie and Little Britches Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.85:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Cattle Annie and Little Britches arives on Blu-ray courtesy of Kino Lorber.

The release is sourced from a very beautiful recent 2K master. Aside from a few white specks, I think that it looks superb. Yes, density levels could be a bit better, but overall this master really does look wonderful. Delineation, sharpness, depth, and fluidity are as good as I expected them to be. The color scheme is excellent as well. There are terrific earthy primaries and lovely ranges of beautiful supporting nuances. The overall balance is very convincing. Image stability is good. As you could probably guess, there are no traces of problematic digital adjustments. Well done. My score is 4.75/5.00. (Note: This is a Region-A "locked" Blu-ray release. Therefore, you must have a native Region-A or Region-Free player in order to access its content).

Cattle Annie and Little Britches Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There is only one standard audio track on this Blu-ray release: English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0. Optional English SDH subtitles are provided for the main feature.

The lossless track is solid. The dialog is very clear, sharp, and stable. I had the volume of my receiver turned up quite a bit and thought that dynamic intensity was excellent for a film from the late '70s/early '80s as well. The upper register does not reveal any signs of aging either.

Cattle Annie and Little Britches Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Trailer - vintage trailer for Cattle Annie and Little Britches. In English, not subtitled. (3 min).

• The True Story of Cattle Annie and Little Britches - in this exclusive new video interview, producer Rupert Hitzig quickly explains how Cattle Annie and Little Britches came to exist. In English, not subtitled. (6 min).

Cattle Annie and Little Britches Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Cattle Annie and Little Britches will appeal primarily to folks that have seen and enjoyed The Grey Fox. I think that the latter is unquestionably a superior film, but Burt Lancaster's Bill Doolin is a very interesting and moving character. Kino Lorber's release is sourced from a terrific recent 2K master that makes Cattle Annie and Little Britches look brand new. RECOMMENDED.