Elizabeth Taylor in "Courage Of Lassie" (1946)

Elizabeth Taylor in "Courage of Lassie" (image from JSR Pages)

REVIEW:
To capitalize on the success of "Lassie Come Home" and "National Velvet", M.G.M. chose another family movie for Elizabeth Taylor: "Courage of Lassie". This time, Elizabeth Taylor is billed first of the cast, above the title of the movie that will be the last of her period as a "child actress". The following films will make a smooth transition for Elizabeth Taylor to the roles of the young teenage, making her one of the few children in the film industry who survived their own glory.

FILM TITLE
"COURAGE OF LASSIE" (U.S.A./M.G.M./1946)

PROMO
Lassie becomes a warrior in The Second World War!

OVERVIEW
Lassie had a baby, Bill, that was abandoned in a forest. He will try to make new friends among the wild creatures of the forest, trying to survive. One day, however, he will be shot by accident, risking to lose his life. But his luck will appear immediately, being found and adopted by young Kathie (Elizabeth Taylor), who will take him home and take care of him. Everything seemed to be perfect, but an accident will separate the two friends. The dog becomes a fighting dog in the U.S. Army, developing into a vicious dog. After a while he manages to return to Kathie, but things have changed. Now Bill is considered a dangerous dog and may even be sentenced to death for an alleged crime he had committed...

CAST
Elizabeth Taylor (Kathie Merrick), Frank Morgan (Harry MacBain), Tom Drake (Sergeant Smitty).
DIRECTED BY
Fred M. Wilcox.
SCREENPLAY
Lionel Houser.
PRODUCED BY
Robert Sisk.
COLOR
Technicolor.
DURATION
92 minutes.
GENRE
children, family, drama, war.
PRODUCTION DATES
between August 1944 and January 1945.
RELEASED
July 1946.

TRIVIA
- Although the film's title is "Courage of Lassie", the collie dog's name is... Bill!

Watch TRAILER here.