The Hurricane (1937)

User Rating:

7.3/10   

Director:

John Ford

Writers:

Dudley Nichols (screenplay)
Oliver H.P. Garrett (adaptation)

Release Date:

1938 (Austria)

Genre:

Action | Drama | Romance

Tagline:

South Sea Adventure Calls

Plot:

In the days of the tall ships and colonial rule of the South Pacific, a naive native sailor working...

Plot Keywords:

Sailor | Native | Tahiti | Governor | Hurricane

Awards:

Won Oscar. Another 2 nominations

Cast

Dorothy Lamour	...	Marama
Jon Hall	...	Terangi
Mary Astor	...	Mme. DeLaage
C. Aubrey Smith	...	Father Paul
Thomas Mitchell	...	Dr. Kersaint
Raymond Massey	...	DeLaage
John Carradine	...	Warden
Jerome Cowan	...	Captain Nagle
Al Kikume	...	Chief Mehevi
Kuulei De Clercq	...	Tita
Layne Tom Jr.	...	Mako
Mamo Clark	...	Hitia
Movita	...	Arai (as Movita Castenada)

Runtime:

110 min | 103 min (video) | USA:104 min (TCM print)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Mirrophonic Recording)

Certification:

USA:Approved (PCA #3779) | USA:Passed (National Board of Review) | USA:TV-G (TV rating) | Australia:PG | Finland:K-16 | UK:A

Filming Locations:

Pago Pago, Samoa

Company:

Samuel Goldwyn Company, The

Trivia:

According to Life Magazine, special effects wizard James Basevi was given a budget of $400,000 to create his effects. He spent $150,000 to build a native village with a lagoon 200 yards long, and then spent $250,000 destroying it.

Quotes:

Terangi: [from the tree, Terangi sees two colums collapse on the west wall of the church] The church! It's going!
Terangi: [after fighting the pounding seas to get inside the church] Father Paul, come! The sea is breaking in, the walls are going, Look!
[points to the altar, where the wind starts tearing up the corrugated iron roof]
Father Paul: Take those who want to go. I am staying here!
Terangi: You will drown, Father Paul! You saved me. Take my arm and let me save you!
Father Paul: No, my son, Take Madame.
Madame Germaine De Laage: No! I'll stay with you Father Paul
Father Paul: Take her! Take her back safe to the world that will drown you, Terangi.
[storm shatters the gothic window on the west wall, more water and wind blow into the church]
Father Paul: Please Madame, Go. Terangi, Take her
[...]

Movie Connections:

Referenced in A Feud There Was (1938)

Soundtrack:

The Wedding March

A movie well worth watching.

The story line of this movie gets a bit fanciful at times, but it doesn't get out of hand and the movie does not pretend to be anything it isn't, so I think most people well enjoy it.

There are several fine performances. My favorite is that of Raymond Massey as he is very convincing in the thankless role of a cold-hearted governer who towards the end shows a sadistic side and then, at the very end of the movie, shows that there is good in everybody.

Then there is the hurricane itself. Naturally I have not seen every movie ever made, but seeing how this movie predates the computer age the hurricane is surely the greatest special effects in movie history.