''The Yearling'' is a 1994 American

made-for-television A television film, alternatively known as a television movie, made-for-TV film/movie or TV film/movie, is a feature-length film that is produced and originally distributed by or to a television network, in contrast to theatrical films made fo ...

coming-of-age Coming of age is a young person's transition from being a child to being an adult. The specific age at which this transition takes place varies between societies, as does the nature of the change. It can be a simple legal convention or can ...

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super-g ...

based on the 1938 novel ''

The Yearling ''The Yearling'' is a novel by American writer Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings, published in March 1938. It was the main selection of the Book of the Month Club in April 1938. It won the 1939 Pulitzer Prize for the Novel. It was the best-selling n ...

'' by

Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings (August 8, 1896 – December 14, 1953)
accessed December 8, 2014. was an

. It was produced by

RHI Entertainment Halcyon Studios, LLC., formerly known as Sonar Entertainment, RHI Entertainment, Hallmark Entertainment, Qintex Entertainment, HRI Group and Robert Halmi Inc., is an American entertainment company specializing in the production and distribution ...

, sponsored by Kraft

General Foods General Foods Corporation was a company whose direct predecessor was established in the United States by Charles William Post as the Postum Cereal Company in 1895. The company changed its name to "General Foods" in 1929, after several corporate ...

and broadcast on

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...

on April 24, 1994. It is also a remake of the 1946 theatrical film ''

'' starring Gregory Peck and

Jane Wyman Jane Wyman ( ; born Sarah Jane Mayfield; January 5, 1917 – September 10, 2007)"Actress, P ...

Premise

A young, impoverished 12-year-old boy named Jody Baxter (

Wil Horneff William Samuel "Wil" Horneff (born June 12, 1979) is an American former child actor and martial artist who won two Young Artist Awards from three nominations. After leaving his career as an actor, Horneff opened Training Grounds Jiu-Jitsu & MMA ...

), the lone surviving child of four, lives on a farm in 1870s

Florida Everglades The Everglades is a natural region of tropical wetlands in the southern portion of the U.S. state of Florida, comprising the southern half of a large drainage basin within the Neotropical realm. The system begins near Orlando with the Kissimm ...

shortly after the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...

. Jody develops a lasting bond with an orphaned deer named Flag.

Cast

Peter Strauss Peter Lawrence Strauss (born February 20, 1947) is an American television and film actor, known for his roles in several television miniseries in the 1970s and 1980s. He is five-time Golden Globe Awards nominee. Early life Strauss was born in C ...

as Ezra "Penny" Baxter *

Jean Smart Jean Elizabeth Smart (born September 13, 1951) is an American actress. After beginning her career in regional theater in the Pacific Northwest, she appeared on Broadway in 1981 as Marlene Dietrich in the biographical play '' Piaf''. Smart was ...

as Ora Baxter *

Philip Seymour Hoffman Philip Seymour Hoffman (July 23, 1967 – February 2, 2014) was an American actor. Known for his distinctive supporting and character roles—typically lowlifes, eccentrics, underdogs, and misfits—he acted in many films and theatrical produ ...

as Buck *

as Jody Baxter *

Jarred Blancard Jared is a given name of Biblical derivation. Origin In the Book of Genesis, the biblical patriarch Jared (יֶרֶד) was the sixth in the ten pre-flood generations between Adam and Noah; he was the son of Mahalaleel and the father of Enoch, ...

as Fodder-Wing * Brad Greenquist as Lem Forrester *

Mary Nell Santcroc Mary may refer to: People * Mary (name), a feminine given name (includes a list of people with the name) Religious contexts * New Testament people named Mary, overview article linking to many of those below * Mary, mother of Jesus, also calle ...

as Ma Forrester * Richard Hamilton as Pa Forrester *

Scott Sowers Scott Nicolai Sowers (November 5, 1963 April 1, 2018) was an American actor. He is best known for his roles as Detective Parker in the late 1990s ABC series ''Cracker'' and for his role as Stanley Kowalski on stage in ''A Streetcar Named Desire' ...

as Boyle *

Ed Grady Edward Louis Grady (August 31, 1923 – December 10, 2012) was an American stage, film and television actor and teacher. Early life Grady was born to Eddie Jones Grady and Maude Clara (née Hodges) Grady on August 31, 1923, in Kinston, Nor ...

as Doc Wilson * Susan F. Allen as Lyla * Kerry Wallum as James * Bart Hansard as Milwheel

Reception

Reviewer Drew Voros of ''

Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

'' wrote that "the absence of true grit and dirt-under-fingernails feeling weaken the believability of the drama," though "like the novel and the ’46 film version, death is taken very seriously, and life is not taken for granted. For this alone, despite the glitches, young viewers should be encouraged to watch."

References

External links

* * * 1994 films 1994 television films 1990s coming-of-age drama films 1990s teen drama films American coming-of-age films Remakes of American films American teen drama films CBS network films American drama television films 1990s English-language films Everglades in fiction Films about animals Films about deer and moose Films about families Films directed by Rod Hardy Films about pets Films scored by Lee Holdridge Films set in the 1870s Films set in Florida 1994 drama films 1990s American films {{US-tv-drama-film-stub