How Green Was My Valley (1941)

At the turn of the century in a Welsh mining village, the Morgans (he stern, she gentle) raise coal-mining sons and hope their youngest will find a better life.

Director:

John Ford

Writers:

Philip Dunne (screen play), Richard Llewellyn (based on the novel by)

Stars:

Walter Pidgeon, Maureen O'Hara, Anna Lee

Won 5 Oscars. Another 5 wins & 5 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Walter Pidgeon	...	Mr. Gruffydd
Maureen O'Hara	...	Angharad
Anna Lee	...	Bronwyn
Donald Crisp	...	Mr. Morgan
Roddy McDowall	...	Huw
John Loder	...	Ianto
Sara Allgood	...	Mrs. Morgan
Barry Fitzgerald	...	Cyfartha
Patric Knowles	...	Ivor
Welsh Singers	...	Themselves
Morton Lowry	...	Mr. Jonas
Arthur Shields	...	Mr. Parry
Ann E. Todd	...	Ceinwen (as Ann Todd)
Frederick Worlock	...	Dr. Richards
Richard Fraser	...	Davy

Storyline

Life is hard in a Welsh mining town and no less so for the Morgan family. Seen through the eyes of the family's youngest, Huw, we learn of the family's trials and tribulations. Family patriarch Gwyllim and his older sons work in the mines, dangerous and unhealthy as it is. Gwyllim has greater hopes for younger son how to honor his hard working parents. Huw who has his own ideas on how to honor his father. Daughter Angharad is the most beautiful girl in the valley and is very much in love with Mr. Gruffydd who isn't sure he can provide her the life she deserves. Times are hard and good men find themselves out of work and exploited by unseen mine owners.

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Plot Keywords:

miner | village | girl | wales | boxing | 

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Taglines:

Rich is their humor! Deep are their passions! Reckless are their lives! Mighty is their story!

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Genres:

Drama | Family

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English Welsh

Release Date:

9 April 1942 (Australia)

Also Known As:

Richard Llewellyn's How Green Was My Valley

Filming Locations:

20th Century Fox Ranch, Malibu Creek State Park - 1925 Las Virgenes Road, Calabasas, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$1,250,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation

Technical Specs

Runtime:

118 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Mirrophonic Recording)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Two major factors entered into the decision to shoot the film in Southern California: (1) the continuous bombing of Britain by the Nazis; (2) the nervousness of Fox executives about the film's pro-union storyline. These factors, and William Wyler's reputation for perfectionism, swayed Fox to keep the filming done in the U.S.

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Goofs

On the notice that is posted telling of the wage reduction labour is spelt the American way without the letter U.

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Quotes

Ianto Morgan: We are not questioning your authority, sir, but if manners prevent our speaking the truth, we will be without manners.

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Connections

Referenced in The Red Skelton Hour: How Green Was My Money (1963)

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Soundtracks

"Myfanwy-Arabella"
(uncredited)
Music by Joseph Parry
Welsh lyrics by Mynyddag
Townfolks serenating mother at door

User Reviews

A Family Film In Every Sense Of The Word.

There has been a tendency to downgrade How Green Was My Valley recently because it beat out Citizen Kane for Best Picture of 1941. It turned out to be John Ford's only win in that department. Because Citizen Kane now is lauded as the best film EVER, How Green Was My Valley lost a bit of luster. Yet on its own merits it's a fine film and can be seen again and again without any boredom.

It's like Ford's Liberty Valance in that it shows the progress that the world's first industrial society, 19th century Great Britain as reflected in that Welsh valley, just like the settling of the American West in The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance. It's the reverse here, the valley is a place people leave, or at least a lot of the good ones. Nearly all the Morgan children and Walter Pidgeon who plays the minister.

1941 and 1942 marked the high point in the career of Walter Pidgeon. He never quite made the top rung of actors at his home studio of MGM. Yet in those two years he happened to star in both the films the Academy designated as Best Picture, this one and Mrs. Miniver in 1942. He's an outsider, arriving full of ideals and then forced to leave to stop gossip about him and Maureen O'Hara.

Maureen O'Hara made her John Ford debut in How Green Was My valley as the lovely and fetching Angharad. She and Pidgeon are in love, but Pidgeon does not want to inflict is life of denial on her. They give each other up and later their relationship is the cause of gossip.

Arthur Shields the lesser known brother of Barry Fitzgerald is the head of the deacons at Pidgeon's church. A narrow, bitter man he's one of a string of religious hypocrite characters that Ford has in his films. Offhand I can think of Willis Bouchey in The Last Hurrah and Grant Withers in Fort Apache. Barry's in this too, playing the comical Cynfartha.

The center of the film is the Morgan family headed by Donald Crisp and Sara Allgood. Playing Morgan patriarch Gwyllym Morgan, Crisp gets the Best Supporting Actor for this wonderful portrayal of strength and dignity. Sara Allgood matches him every step of the way.

Besides Pidgeon and O'Hara, the rest of the film revolves around the generational conflicts between the conservative father and his more broadminded sons who want to get a union started. In 1941 America that was a timely theme as our American Labor movement got its first backing from a friendly government in the New Deal. The labor troubles that the Morgans and the other Welsh coalminers in the valley deal with was a very relevant.

One of the great things about this is that Ford never takes sides here. Donald Crisp is never shown as a reactionary fool for his opposition to unionization. Indeed Ford puts him on a pedestal for sticking to his beliefs.

All this is seen through the eyes of young Hugh Morgan, played by Roddy McDowall in his first major part as a juvenile and narrated in flashback by British actor Irving Pichel as the adult Hugh. McDowell has his own troubles here, he and Sara Allgood fall in a freezing river and both have health problems afterward. McDowell is the first of the Morgans to go to school and he's bullied by both pupils and a snobbish teacher. Young McDowell is taught to box by Rhys Williams to take care of the kids and later Rhys Williams as Dai Bando, an ex-pugilist takes matters in his own hands with the teacher in the films most hilarious scene.

As we move into the post industrial age, the labor themes of How Green Was My Valley seem quaint. But the family travails, and heartaches, and triumphs with that 19th Century Welsh Coalmining family are timeless. This is the real genius of John Ford.