Follow the River (1995)

An "inspirational" saga of a pioneer woman who is abducted by Shawnee indians.

Director:

Martin Davidson

Writers:

James Alexander Thom (novel), Jennifer Miller (teleplay)

Stars:

Sheryl Lee, Ellen Burstyn, Eric Schweig

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Sheryl Lee	...	Mary Ingles
Ellen Burstyn	...	Gretel
Eric Schweig	...	Wildcat
Tim Guinee	...	Will
Renée O'Connor	...	Bettie Draper
Tyler Noyes	...	Tommy Ingles
Andy Stahl	...	Henry Lenard (as Andrew Stahl)
Gabriel Macht	...	Johnny Draper
Tony Amendola	...	LaPlante
Sammy D. Miller	...	Goulart
Graeme Malcolm	...	Buchanan
Juddson Keith Linn	...	Deer Following
Jimmie F. Skaggs	...	Snake Stick

Storyline

Mary Ingles is pregnant when she and her two sons are captured from their homestead in Virginia's Blue Ridge Mountains by Shawnee Indians. Her husband, Will, narrowly escapes death during the attack. Impressed by her grace under the pressure of captivity, Wildcat, the Shawnee chief, confers special privileges on Mary and her children, eventually proposing that Mary become his mate. Surprised by her attraction to the handsome brave, Mary nonetheless opts to remain faithful to Will and engineers a plan for her escape. Separated from her children, Mary joins another female settler, and together they embark on a harrowing homeward trek. Her odyssey comes full circle more than a decade later when she is finally reunited with her long-lost children.

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Plot Keywords:

escape | indian | settler | son | pioneer | 

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Genres:

Adventure | Drama

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG for some frontier violence and mild thematic material

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

22 April 1995 (USA)

Also Known As:

Herz einer Unbeugsamen

Filming Locations:

Sapphire, North Carolina, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Signboard Hill Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

91 min

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Goofs

In the scene in which Mary, Tommy and Betty are welcomed into the lodge with the Shawnee woman, Mary confides that she has little breastmilk for her newborn baby (likely due to malnutrition while in captivity). The woman gives her fennel seeds, which Mary then appears to feed directly to the baby. Seeds of any sort are never safe to feed to an infant. While fennel promotes lactation and eases colic, the best utilization is either the mother eating them or making a tea to give to the baby in very small doses.

User Reviews

Disappointment after reading the book.

Follow The River was the best book I have ever read, and knowing it was a true story made it even more interesting. It has been about a year and a half since I read the book and I was quite excited to learn that the story had been made in to a movie. Even though the movie had been around since 1995 I didn't know it existed. The movie was quite a disappointment. From what I read in the book, Mary Ingles appeared to be a strong, passionate, brave and courageous woman. I don't understand why some of the events of the story were changed in the movie. There was no need for changes.Why didn't the script stick to the story just as it happened. It was a true life event---not a work of fiction. More time should have been given to her journey home. So much was left out. I don't think the acting was strong enough either. Maybe some day there will be a remake with actors that will fit the roles and it will be in the movie theaters so it will include many of the events that were left out and give more time to the journey back home.