Product Details

• Actors: Michel Ray, Rodolfo Hoyos Jr., Elsa Cárdenas, Carlos Navarro, Joi Lansing
• Directors: Irving Rapper
• Format: Color, DVD, NTSC
• Language: English
• Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  
• Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Rated: NR (Not Rated)
• Studio: VCI Entertainment
• DVD Release Date: January 24, 2003
• Run Time: 100 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• ASIN: 6305986959
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #71,176 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)
• For more information about "The Brave One" visit the Internet Movie Database (IMDb)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

This family favorite, a south-of-the-border variation of the classic boy-and-his dog story, stars Michel Ray as Leonardo, a young Mexican boy who appeals to the president of Mexico to spare his beloved bull from death in the bullfighting ring. Does the bull meet a grisly fate at the hands of a sombrero-topped matador? We're not telling, but charming performances and some gentle tear jerking make The Brave One an agreeable movie for kids. The film is also known for an interesting footnote of Hollywood history: When it won the Academy Award in the now-defunct category of best original story, screenwriter Dalton Trumbo (using the pseudonym "Robert Rich") was unable to accept the Oscar due to the infamous Hollywood blacklist. He officially claimed the award in 1975. --Jeff Shannon

Product Description

A film full of warmth and sensitivity. "The Brave One" is the love story of a boy and a bull. Gitano -- or Gypsy -- is the name the boy gives the bull whose life he saves during a storm. The animal follows him around like a puppy until the legal owners spirit the mature Gitano away to do battle with matador Fermin Rivera in the Plaza de Mexico bullring in Mexico City. The boy protests in vain at the cruelty of the arena and finally secures a "pardon" for his pet signed by the President of Mexico but he is too late. The bullfight continues. What follows is such a display of courage that the crowd calls for the "undulto" -- a demand that the bull be allowed to live. Released in 1956 by RKO. Not Rated. Dolby Digital - Stereo, DVD-5, Widescreen 2.35:1, Scene Selection, Cast Bios, Original Theatrical Trailer. Bonus Features: Scene Selection| Theatrical Trailer| Actor Bios. Specs: DVD5; Dolby Digital Stereo; 100 minutes; Color; 2.35:1 Aspect Ratio; MPAA - NR; Year - 1956; SRP - $9.99.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Shield of Love, August 26, 2005

By 

Jason Troy (USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Brave One (DVD)

The Brave One was beautifully crafted in 1957 by blacklisted author Robert Rich and immediately established itself as a superb classic. The tale is of a small Mexican boy and his enduring love for his courageous pet bull. Set in Mexico, a boy discovers a cow has been killed after delivering and orphaning a male offspring. Naming the calf Gitano, The boy becomes it's friend and caretaker. Realizing the boy's loneliness, the parents encourage the bond, but fail to emphasis the eventual fate of the animal. Throughout the Calf's life the boy's love inexorably grows unaware of his parent's financial responsibility to the bull's true owner. By the time the animal has grown to market size and becomes a cash commodity, the boy's parents are torn between their son's love and their duty to the Patrone. Using subterfuge, the parents separate the two. Returning from a fool's errand, the boy discovers his best friend and lifetime companion has been sold for the purpose of bull fighting and its eventual destruction. Despite the frantic warnings of his parents that it's too late to save the animal, the small boy adroitly played by Michel Rey, sets off to save his courageous friend from certain death. The boy visits everyone from the Patrone to the Governnor of Mexico in a vain attempt to alter the fate of his pet. The film culminates with the boy's magnificent bravery before an arena filled with spectators. True loyalty to any animal has never had a more poignant test of love and courage. For any viewer with a human heart, this tear-wrenching film will leave you joyfully weeping. ****

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Brave One scores with fans, January 21, 2006

By 

Allan Zirlin "Bullfighter" (Morton Grove, IL USA) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Brave One (DVD)

This is the best family-type film dealing with the sometimes controversial subject of bullfighting. The photography, score and story are all first class even though some parts seem dated from a 2006 perspective. Well worth having in your video library.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A delight in sight and sound..., December 18, 2006

By 

Roberto Frangie "Robert" (Leon, Gto. Mexico) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Brave One (DVD)

"The Brave One" is about a peasant boy who runs away to Mexico City to save his brave bull, Gitano... Irving Rapper directed the beautiful simple story of Leonardo and his attachment to his pet bull with understanding... It has an authentic look in the bullring, on ranches and in Mexican streets... It has humor, attachment, determination, bravery, suspense, and a terrific climax...

The highlights of the film are many as the weaning and branding of the bulls and how they are tested in the open fields; la Fiesta Brava filling resplendently in the gold and pink brocades of Mexico, mixing with the elegance of swirling capes; the father of Leonardo (Rodolfo Hoyos) trying to make Leonardo understand that the pet bull is born to die in the ring - the reason of his life -

With a tremendous score and an outstanding color photography of exceptional beauty, Jack Cardiff realized the most beautiful and expressive scenery of the Mexican landscapes... "The Brave One" had the flavor of the bullfight game and its devotees and hangers-on...