The prairie is endless
| Movie | |
|---|---|
| German title | The prairie is endless |
| Original title | The Sea of Grass |
| Country of production | United States |
| original language | English |
| Publishing year | 1947 |
| length | 123 minutes |
| Rod | |
| Director | Elia Kazan |
| script |
Marguerite Roberts Vincent Lawrence |
| production | Pandro S. Berman |
| music | Herbert Stothart |
| camera | Harry Stradling Sr. |
| cut | Robert Kern |
| occupation | |
| |
The Prairie is Endless is an American western with elements of a marriage drama, which director Elia Kazan directed for MGM in 1946 . It is a film adaptation of the novel of the same name by Conrad Richter .
action
The action takes place in New Mexico , the 1880s. James Brewton is a wealthy cattle baron, a tough man who ruthlessly seeks to drive out the settlers who are trying to make a living on “his” pasture. He predicts that converting the prairie to farmland would result in an ecological disaster and wants to prevent it at all costs.
He marries the strong-willed Lutie Cameron, who initially stands by him loyally and gives him a daughter. However, she leaves him when she can no longer bear his obsession and harshness in the fight against the settlers and the wasteland of the pastureland. She has a brief affair with Brice Chamberlain, a lawyer who is defending the settlers' cause. Chamberlain ultimately prevails against Brewton - the land is settled and farmed by order of the government. There is one last confrontation between Brewton and the settlers, with Lutie taking the side of the settlers. Brewton surrenders. This seals the separation of Brewton and Lutie.
Many years go by. Brewton is right: just a few years later, drought and erosion have completely deserted the once fertile land. This reflects real historical events, particularly the 1930s Dust Bowl . Lutie regrets facing up to her husband.
Lutie's affair with Chamberlain has resulted in a son. The children grow up at Brewton, estranged from their mother. There are always rumors that the son is illegitimate, a bastard. Under the influence of these rumors, the son turns into a do-no, breaks the law and is eventually killed by the sheriff's people.
Purified by the loss of their son, Lutie and Brewton find each other again.
Production and reception
Production history
After A Tree Grows in Brooklyn was Endless, the Prairie is Elia Kazan's second long film. At the time of production he was considered an important stage director, while his film work had hardly attracted any attention. Spencer Tracy initially agreed with the choice of this director, but the collaboration turned out to be difficult because Kazan expected method acting from "his" actors , that is, an intellectual access to the representation, which Tracy could neither achieve nor wanted.
Katharine Hepburn got the female lead because Tracy wanted her to be a partner. The prairie is endless is the fourth of a total of nine films in which Tracy and Hepburn appeared together. Due to serious shortcomings in the script, which their acting skills could not compensate for, it is considered the weakest film of this screen couple .
The outdoor recordings for Endless is the Prairie took place in Arizona ( Canyon De Chelly ), New Mexico ( Gallup , Plains of San Agustin near Magdalena ) and California ( Vasquez Rocks ). Filming began on May 20, 1946 and ended in August 1946. For the most part, much to Kazan's displeasure, the film was shot in the studio. After this commissioned work, in which he was unable to realize himself artistically, Kazan turned his back on the Hollywood system and looked for greater freedom.
Theatrical release
The film, which premiered in the United States on February 27, 1947, grossed $ 3.6 million for distributors.
Reviews
The lexicon of international film judges that the film is a "carefully staged and acted noble Western" . Joe Hembus notes that the film is a "well-kept family novel" . The Protestant film observer draws the following conclusion: "A marriage tragedy against the background of the fighting between cattle breeders and farmers in the Wild West, designed by Elia Kazan with a masterly and careful hand."
literature
- Conrad Richter : The prairie is endless. A classic western novel (original title: Sea of Grass ). German by Alfred Dunkel . Heyne, Munich 1980, 126 pages, ISBN 3-453-20414-X
- Donald Deschner: The Complete Films of Spencer Tracy. Citadel, Secaucus NJ 2000, ISBN 0-8065-1038-2 .
- Romano Tozzi: Spencer Tracy. Pyramid illustrated History of the Movies (= Pyramid Books 3248). Pyramid Publications, New York NY 1973, ISBN 0-515-03246-8 (German edition: Spencer Tracy. His films - his life (= Heyne books 32, 9). Heyne, Munich 1990, ISBN 3-453-86009- 8 ).
Web links
- Endless prairie is in the Internet Movie Database (English)
- The prairie at www.cinema.de is endless
Individual evidence
- ^ Phil Hardy: The Encyclopedia of Western Movies . Woodbury Press Minneapolis 1984. ISBN 0-8300-0405-X . P. 280.
- ↑ The prairie is endless. In: Lexicon of International Films . Film service , accessed March 2, 2017 .
- ^ Joe Hembus: Western Lexicon - 1272 films from 1894-1975. Carl Hanser Verlag Munich Vienna 2nd edition 1977. ISBN 3-446-12189-7 . P. 174.
- ↑ Evangelical Press Association Munich, Review No. 577/1955