Gentle Annie (1944): cast, story & where to watch

Released in 1944, Gentle Annie is a romance and western film directed by Andrew Marton, running about 80 minutes. “ROMANCE RIDES THE TRAIL OF A THOUSAND THRILLS!” — that tagline sets the tone.

What it’s about. The Goss family live on a farm they call the dust bowl where the wind blows during the day and the coyotes howl at night. When the train is robbed, everyone thinks that Cotton and Violet were the ones that did the job, but no one has any proof. US Marshal Lloyd Richland comes into town in disguise to find the truth and he finds that the sheriff is corrupt and that the Goss family is gosh darn nice. They take in Richland and a stranded woman named Mary without any questions. Cotton believes that Sheriff Tatum shot their pa in the back, and the sheriff is now trying to plug the boys. Richland is looking for the train robbers, and at the same time is keeping an eye on Tatum and the lovely young Mary.

Who’s in it. Gentle Annie stars James Craig as Lloyd Richland aka Rich Williams, Donna Reed as Mary Lingen, Harry Morgan as Cottonwood Goss (as Henry Morgan) and Marjorie Main as Annie Goss, among others.

How it landed. With an audience score of 5.1/10, Gentle Annie has proved divisive with audiences.

Where to watch. Streaming options change often. See the full, country-by-country breakdown on our where to watch Gentle Annie page.

If you liked it. Fans of Gentle Annie tend to enjoy Forrest Gump, Your Name., Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge and Cinema Paradiso.