The Moon Is Down (1943)

During the Nazi occupation of Norway, a small Norwegian village struggles to cope with the invaders and some locals choose collaboration while others prefer armed resistance.

Director:

Irving Pichel

Writers:

Nunnally Johnson, John Steinbeck (novel)

Stars:

Cedric Hardwicke, Henry Travers, Lee J. Cobb

2 wins.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Cedric Hardwicke	...	Col. Lanser
Henry Travers	...	Mayor Orden
Lee J. Cobb	...	Dr. Albert Winter
Dorris Bowdon	...	Molly Morden
Margaret Wycherly	...	Mme. Sarah Orden
Peter van Eyck	...	Lt. Tonder
William Post Jr.	...	Alex Morden
Henry Rowland	...	Capt. Loft
E.J. Ballantine	...	George Corell
Hans Schumm	...	Capt. Bentick
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Frederic Brunn	...	German Soldier (as Frederick Brunn)
Ernst Deutsch	...	Maj. Hunter (as Ernest Dorian)
Ludwig Donath	...	Hitler's Voice (as Louis Donath)

Storyline

When the Germans invade Norway their Commandant and the town Mayor confront each other, attempting to maintain civility as far as possible. When the army tries to orgnanize townspeople to work for them sabotage which is at first humorous turns serious, resulting in death on both sides.

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Plot Keywords:

german officer | nazi invasion | sabotage | collaborator | mayor | 

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Taglines:

This Is Your Picture!

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Genres:

Drama | War

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Did You Know?

Trivia

The tune the German army is shown playing repeatedly, "We're Sailing Against England" was a Nazi "approved war song" for German soldiers in WWII according to the June 10, 194, issue of "Time" magazine. It was composed by Herms Niel (1888-1954) and had lyrics by poet Hermann Löns (1866-1914), who was killed in WWI. Originally a German Navy song from WWI, it became popular during WWII.

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Goofs

Molly opens the drawer twice between shots to get the scissors.

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Quotes

Lt. Tonder: Last night I dreamed that Hitler was crazy!

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Crazy Credits

Opening credits are shown with a hand gesturing to a map of Norway, indicating what is about to take place in the film.

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Soundtracks

Ja, vi elsker dette landet (Yes, we love this country)
National anthem of Norway
Music by Rikard Nordraak
Lyrics by Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson

User Reviews

A moving depiction of brave men - and women - under German occupation

This movie has no big-box office stars, nor a major director. Yet it tells its story effectively and, sometimes, in a deeply moving fashion, because the script is good and the actors, accustomed to playing character roles, make real individuals out of their assignments.

The movie starts off by establishing several points: 1) Norway fell fast to the Germans not because they were weak or pro-Nazi, but because they were betrayed from the inside by fifth columnists (Quislings), a fear that runs through several wartime U.S. movies (Keeper of the Flame is perhaps the best of those.) 2) The Norwegians are decent people, and therefore worth helping. The town's militia refuse to shoot at the German paratroopers as they are falling through the sky because "you're not supposed to do that," even though the Germans promptly slaughter the militia from hidden positions.

This could be compared to American movie presentations of the fall of France, in which the French are not portrayed as having been betrayed from the inside - though in fact they were, to an extent, by Pétain. That may, at least in part, be because the American government maintained diplomatic relations of a sort with the Vichy government until the Germans finally invaded formerly "Free France" in the hope of winning them over, with the result that Pétain could not be portrayed as the traitor he really was.

This is a fine movie, worth watching.

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

29 July 1943 (Mexico)

Also Known As:

The Moon Is Down

Filming Locations:

20thCFox, Century Ranch, Malibu Canyon, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Twentieth Century Fox

Technical Specs

Runtime:

90 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1