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:

Doubles were not used for Mary Astor and Dorothy Lamour when they were lashed to a tree during the hurricane. In her autobiography, Astor said that the sand and water whipping their faces sometimes left pinpricks of blood on their cheeks.

Quotes:

Abusive Drunk: [to Terangi's friends] "Get up! Get up I said!
[2 people flee the table, Terangi does not move]
Abusive Drunk: [to Terangi] "Clear out! Get up when a white man tells ya!
[he hits Terangi, Terangi hits him back, breaking his jaw]

Movie Connections:

Featured in Rock Hudson's Home Movies (1992)

Soundtrack:

I Can't Give You Anything But Love

One Of The Better Adventure Stories Of The '30s

For a film that's billed as a romance movie, this has got a surprising amount of good suspense and action. It's really an adventure story with a romance angle. It's also very interesting and a good film with decent special effects, at least for when this was made.

It's almost a "Count Of Monte Cristo" story with an innocent man imprisoned on an island and finally succeeding in escaping. However, in this story, the escapee "Terangi" (John Hall) also has to battle a hurricane after escaping!

The film starts slowly in the first half hour, but stick with it, it's worth it. The story becomes very involving as "Terangi" begins his battle against "the law," which is not pictured very flattering here. In that respect, the film is ahead of its time with its anti-government message. However, it's behind the times with the typical classic-era white man trying to pass himself off as a dark-skinned island native. Dorothy Lamour is likewise as "Marama," Terangi's wife.

The cinematography is very good and the direction excellent. Then again, one of the best directors of all time did this film: John Ford. It also has a nice cast. Look at the supporting actors: Mary Astor, Raymond Massey, C. Aubrey Smith, Thomas Mitchell and John Carradine!

A solid Golden Age adventure story and one of the best of the 1930s decade.