Northwest Passage (film)
Nordwest-Passage is an American feature film directed by King Vidor for Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer in 1939 . The adventure film , which was elaborately produced in color and based on a punitive expedition by the British colonial army against hostile Indians, was to be the first part of a double film about the search for the Northwest Passage , which was to receive the overall title of Rogers' Rangers , the second part after the economic failure the first, however, was never produced. The film is based on the novel of the same name by Kenneth Roberts .
action
The action takes place in the British crown colony of New York and neighboring Canada ; the time is that of the French and Indian Wars (1754–1764).
Langdon Towne has to leave Harvard for criticizing the food there and is then thrown out by the family of his loved ones because he wants to be a painter. While getting drunk in the village pub, he utters some disrespectful things about the British and almost ends up in jail for it. To avoid further problems, he makes the decision to join Major Rogers at Crown Point . This is a British officer who, with the ranger unit he founded , is supposed to lead a punitive expedition against a group of Indians who are in league with the opposing French. The Indians succeeded in slaughtering the last man, but the long way back to the British colony turned out to be extremely difficult. The expedition, which had already been cut off from the supply of provisions since the journey there, was attacked repeatedly. Towne, who in the course of the plot is raised to be a ranger by the civilization-spoiled gentleman, suffers a wound and barely escapes being left behind in the wilderness. However, thanks to the trust in God and the unshakable will of the charismatic Major Rogers, who repeatedly and successfully drives his men to actually impossible achievements, 50 survivors reach the saving British fort. First they have to overcome a ridge over which the men have to drag their boats. and a torrent that they can only wade through by forming a human chain.
The film ends with Major Rogers being sent on another expedition. This time he is supposed to find the Northwest Passage. Towne stays with his bride and will soon go to London to become a major painter there.
Historical background
The film takes up the events of the St. Francis Raid , which Roger's unit undertook against the Abenaki tribe in the fall of 1759 .
shape
Nordwest-Passage was filmed in Technicolor with an image format of 1.37: 1.
Production and reception
Production history
The film, based on the first half of Kenneth Roberts' novel Northwest Passage (1937), was produced in 1939 on locations in the Cascade Range in Oregon and around McCall , Idaho . Vidor reported that they limited themselves to the first part of the book in order not to have to doubt the heroic image of Rogers, who breaks up in the second part of the novel in the further events. Phil Hardy cites another reason why no second part followed that Tracy didn't want to work with Vidor again.
Theatrical release
The film was released in the United States on February 23, 1940. In West Germany, theatrical release only began in 1955.
Television series
Between 1958 and 1959 MGM produced the television series of the same name . In the television adaptation took Keith Larsen 's role Spencer Tracy , Buddy Ebsen played the role of Walter Brennan and Don Burnett presented the role of Robert Young is.
Reviews
“In the guise of exciting entertainment, Vidor glorifies the soldier's“ hard manhood ”and justifies the massacre of the Indians. Formally not uninteresting. "
"Like Samuel Fullers Merrill’s Marauders, the film highlights the effort that characterizes the march and that ultimately turns men into emaciated savages, one of whom even succumbs to cannibalism."
Awards
The camerawork by Sidney Wagner and William V. Skall was nominated for an Oscar in 1941 , but that award eventually went to George Barnes for his work in Rebecca .
literature
- Kenneth Roberts : Northwest Passage. Novel (original title: Northwest Passage ). German by Werner von Grünau . List library. List, Munich 1990, ISBN 3-471-78543-4 .
References and comments
- ^ Joe Hembus: Western Lexicon - 1272 films from 1894-1975. Carl Hanser Verlag Munich Vienna 2nd edition 1977. ISBN 3-446-12189-7 . P. 436
- ^ Phil Hardy: The Encyclopedia of Western Movies. Woodbury Press Minneapolis 1984. ISBN 0-8300-0405-X . P. 110
- ↑ Northwest Passage. In: Lexicon of International Films . Film service , accessed July 2, 2017 .
- ^ Phil Hardy: The Encyclopedia of Western Movies. Woodbury Press Minneapolis 1984. ISBN 0-8300-0405-X . P. 110
Web links
- Northwest Passage in the Internet Movie Database (English)
- Northwest Passage. In: Zelluloid.de. Archived from the original on December 4, 2016 .