Man of Two Worlds (1934)

A British explorer in the Arctic hires a local Eskimo as an assistant. The earnest but unsophisticated young man happens to see a photograph of the explorer's beautiful daughter and falls ... See full summary »

Director:

J. Walter Ruben

Writers:

Howard J. Green, Ainsworth Morgan

Stars:

Francis Lederer, Elissa Landi, Henry Stephenson

Cast

Cast overview:
Francis Lederer	...	Aigo
Elissa Landi	...	Joan Pemberton
Henry Stephenson	...	Sir Basil Pemberton
J. Farrell MacDonald	...	Michael
Walter Byron	...	Eric Pager
Forrester Harvey	...	Tim
Ivan F. Simpson	...	Dr. Lott
Lumsden Hare	...	Captain Swan
Christian Rub	...	Knudson
Emile Chautard	...	Natkusiak
Steffi Duna	...	Guninana
Sarah Padden	...	Olago

Storyline

A British explorer in the Arctic hires a local Eskimo as an assistant. The earnest but unsophisticated young man happens to see a photograph of the explorer's beautiful daughter and falls in love with her. Soon afterwards a medical emergency results in his being flown to London for treatment, where he finally meets the girl he has longed for.

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Plot Keywords:

eskimo indian

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Genres:

Drama

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Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

13 January 1934 (USA)

Also Known As:

Aigo, der Mann zweier Welten

Company Credits

Production Co:

RKO Radio Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

92 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Victor System)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

User Reviews

Acculturation

With the success of Robert Flaherty's NANOOK OF THE NORTH, Hollywood tried to replicate the box office by using Eskimo themes. There were two pictures named simply ESKIMO and they all had a mildly anthropological air to them.

In this one, Frances Lederer is cast as Aigo, an Eskimo hunter shlepped back to civilization by Great White Hunter Henry Stephenson and guide J. Farrel MacDonald -- still at the tail end of his starring character phase.

Between the studio-bound, albeit handsome photography of Henry Gerrard -- whose distinguished career would end with his death later in the year -- and the somewhat condescending attitude of the roughnecks who make up Stephenson's crew, the modern viewer may be offended. Do not, however, be fooled, for the film is clearly on Aigo's side. Although he is a naif in terms of Western Civilization, he shows a lot of brains and gumption, as when he devises a trap for a polar bear. Nor are the 'civilized' men immune to the effects of cultural anomie, as shown most clearly when they listen, rapt, to a program of Christmas carols from London.

Modern attitudes towards different cultures may have changed in the seventy-five years since this movie came out, but it still is a good story and the modern viewer can, if he chooses, look upon it as an anthropological record of its own, a record of how the culture of Hollywood viewed other cultures back in its heyday.