The River (1938)

Director:

Pare Lorentz

Writer:

Pare Lorentz (written by)

Genre:

Short | Documentary

Plot:

This short Depression-era documentary describes the importance of the Mississippi River to the United States...

Plot Keywords:

Farming | Farmer | Mississippi River | Dam | Flood Victim

Awards:

2 wins

Cast

Thomas Chalmers

...

Narrator (voice)

Runtime:

31 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Mirrophonic Recording)

Certification:

USA:Unrated

Company:

Farm Security Administration

Trivia:

This film was selected to the National Film Registry, Libary of Congress, in 1990.

Movie Connections:

Featured in Lifestyles U.S.A. Vol. 6 (2000) (V)

Soundtrack:

A Hot Time in the Old Town

Beautifully filmed, wonderfully persuasive

I first saw this film 20 years ago in forestry school. This film vividly shows the effect of poor agricultural practices and poor timber harvesting in the water cycle. It has footage of the devastating flood on 1927 along the Mississippi River. I learned that the film had been used for years by foresters from the Yazoo-Little Tallahatchie Flood Prevention Project and other U.S. Forest Service foresters to educate the public on the value of planting trees to prevent soil erosion and help heal the land from years of crop production on marginal lands. I think every student of environmental history and management should view this film at some time in their career. It is available from a couple of places, but I found a video from Kino which has not only The River, but the companion piece, The Plow that broke the plains, and two other short documentaries. The River and The Plow that broke the plains were part of FDR's New Deal propaganda (in a positive sense) which promoted conservation using outstanding photography, outstanding scripts, and emotionally compelling scoring.