The Littlest Outlaw

1955 film

December 22, 1955 (1955-12-22)

Running time

73 minutesCountriesUnited States
MexicoLanguagesEnglish
SpanishBox office$1.6 million (US)^[1]

The Littlest Outlaw is a 1955 drama film produced by Walt Disney, released by Buena Vista Distribution on December 22. It was directed by Roberto Gavaldón and written by Larry Lansburgh (story), and Bill Walsh (screenplay).

It starred Pedro Armendáriz as Gen. Torres, Joseph Calleia as the Padre, and Andrés Velázquez as Pablito.

Plot

Little Pablito is the ten-year-old stepson of a cruel horse trainer. The trainer is responsible for training a Mexican general's horse to jump for the grand race. The trainer's methods cause the horse to become afraid of jumping and the general orders the animal's death. Pablito runs away with the horse, becoming a fugitive. He travels throughout Mexico encountering several fugitives and a priest who tries to help.

Cast

Pedro Armendáriz as Gen. Torres
Joseph Calleia as Padre
Rodolfo Acosta as Chato
Andrés Velázquez as Pablito
Laila Maley as Celita
Pepe Ortiz as Himself
Gilberto González as Tiger
José Torvay as Vulture
Jorge Treviño as Barber
José Ángel Espinoza as Señor Garcia
Enriqueta Zazueta as Señora Garcia
Irving Lee as Gypsy
Carlos Ortigoza as Doctor
Margarito Luna as Silvestre
Ricardo Gonzáles as Marcos

Production

Larry Lansburgh had been at the Walt Disney Studios for approximately 10 years when he submitted the story treatment for The Littlest Outlaw. At the time, Lansburgh had directed several short films for Disney, mostly simple stories about animals. Bill Walsh expanded the treatment into a screenplay and Lansburgh was retained as producer.

The entire film was shot in Mexico, mostly around San Miguel Allende, with a bilingual English/Spanish cast. Because of this, the film was shot twice, once in English and once in Spanish, enabling it to be released directly into Spanish-speaking markets without the usual dubbing process.^[2]

Reception

The Littlest Outlaw received a mildly critical reception. Variety spoke well of the child star Andres Velasquez, but most critics dismissed the film as a routine affair.^[3]