Grey Owl (1999)

The story of the life and work of the Canadian fur trapper-turned-conservationist who claimed to be an aboriginal North American.

Director:

Richard Attenborough

Writer:

William Nicholson (screenplay)

Stars:

Pierce Brosnan, Stewart Bick, Vlasta Vrana

1 win & 5 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Pierce Brosnan	...	Archie Grey Owl
Stewart Bick	...	Cyrus Finney
Vlasta Vrana	...	Harry Champlin
Annie Galipeau	...	Pony
Neil Kroetsch	...	First Hunter
Serge Houde	...	Second Hunter
Peter Colvey	...	Hotel Guest
Nathaniel Arcand	...	Ned White Bear
Jacques Lussier	...	Hotel Manager
Lee-Roy Jacobs	...	Hotel Porter
Jimmy Herman	...	Chief Pete Misebi
John Dunn-Hill	...	Sim Hancock
Graham Greene	...	Jim Bernard
Gordon Masten	...	Gus Mitchell
Chip Chuipka	...	First Trapper

Storyline

Archie Grey Owl is a trapper in Canada in the early 1930s when a young Iroquois woman from town asks him to teach her Indian ways. They live in the woods, where she is appalled at how trapped animals die. She adopts two orphaned beaver kits and helps Archie see his way to stop trapping. Instead, he works as a guide, a naturalist writer, and then the Canadian government hires him to save the beaver in a conserve by Lake Ajawaan in Prince Albert National Park. He writes a biography, which brings him attention in Canada and invitations to lecture in England. Before he leaves, he and Anahareo (Pony) marry. In England, his secret is revealed. Will Anahareo continue to love him?

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Plot Keywords:

canada | beaver | iroquois | writer | love | 

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Taglines:

He Fought To Change The World

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Genres:

Biography | Drama | Western

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for some sensuality/nudity

Did You Know?

Trivia

Pierce Brosnan is the second James Bond to appear in a film for Richard Attenborough. Sean Connery appeared in A Bridge Too Far. Attenborough's then daughter-in-law, Jane Seymour, appeared in his first two films; Oh! What a Lovely War and Young Winston; as well as a Bond film, Live and Let Die.

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Goofs

When Grey Owl's publisher Champlin arrives by airplane, to convince Grey Owl to go on tour in England, the airplane shown is clearly a DeHavilland DHC-2 "Beaver" on floats. This scene is set in approximately 1935, but the DeHavilland Beaver did not make its first flight until 1947.

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Quotes

[last lines]
Cyrus Finney: He never spoke in public again. That night, when we watched Archie strip away all pretense of being an Indian; I knew that what he was saying was far more important than who he really was. Afterwards, he slipped silently into the night and went back to his remote cabin on Lake Ajawaan. He died there, suddenly, of pneumonia, two years later, in April, 1938. In recognition of what Archie was trying to achieve, the North Bay Nugget agreed to hold my story while he lived. They ran it ...

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Connections

Featured in Reel Injun (2009)

User Reviews

Would-a-be or White Indians

To the Native People, this movie is about what some call a "would-a-be" or "White Indian"; although the Ojibway people, whom Gray Owl's life turns o not use the word "Indian" but "Anishnabe" which means a good person. Gray Owl as an white and wanting to live the native way, is called a "White Indian".

This movie shows him living on and around Bear Island, in Northern Ontario. Gray Owl, shows us his view of their life through his eyes and explain how the northern Canadian native; has been changed by civilization. (trapping,hunting and tourism as in the scene where the "War dance" is performed after a hat-passing collection) It is also an interesting documentary of how the Canadian beaver became a part of the 5 cent coin; as the story advances into how Gray Owl worked to conserve and even reinstate this animal which was endangered from over trapping.

The story is beautiful told to us who know and live the savage life of the Northern wilderness and how beautiful it is to return to the basic of nature and leave problems of civilization behind.

The scene of most important, to me, also a white Indian, is when Gray Owl meets the Americian Chiefs and they all laugh at the blue-eyed would-a-be Indian. But the quote of the chief was how it did not matter the color of one skin but the color of one's heart.

Everyone should have a dream, but if a Gray Owl we can live this dream it is beautiful.. Another similar and great movie of this type is "The return of a Man called Horse" with Richard Harris.

A lot can be learned from this movie.. even now after I have visited the area and met the people, I still see great lessons. (for example, Gray Owls friend is an Cree and shown this native group,living with the Ojibway on Bear Island.

Interesting off-side of this film is a recent development of an Australian who just finished a summer on Bear Island after wanting to learn about the source of this film. "Broken Arrow - A white Indian"

Details

Country:

UK Canada

Language:

English Ojibwa Sioux French

Release Date:

1 October 1999 (Canada)

Also Known As:

Grey Owl

Filming Locations:

Chelsea, Québec, Canada

Box Office

Budget:

$30,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$162,360, 3 October 1999

Gross USA:

$632,617

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$632,617

Company Credits

Production Co:

Beaver Productions, Ajawaan Productions, Canadian Film or Video Production Tax Credit (CPTC)

Technical Specs

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.39 : 1