DRUMS ALONG THE MOHAWK is John Ford's first film in Technicolor (which recently perfected far richer shadings of colour than had previously been possible), and the director uses it to stunning effect. The film stars Henry Fonda as Revolutionary War-era farmer Gilbert Martin, who, in 1776, has returned with his well-born wife, .. Read more
| Starring | Claudette Colbert, Henry Fonda, Edna May Oliver, Eddie Collins |
|---|---|
| Director | John Ford |
| Genres | Action/Adventure, Drama |
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DRUMS ALONG THE MOHAWK is John Ford's first film in Technicolor (which recently perfected far richer shadings of colour than had previously been possible), and the director uses it to stunning effect. The film stars Henry Fonda as Revolutionary War-era farmer Gilbert Martin, who, in 1776, has returned with his well-born wife, Lana (Claudette Colbert), to his rustic cabin in the increasingly dangerous Mohawk River valley. At first unaccustomed to the harsh physical challenges of frontier life, Lana adjusts to the work at hand and is soon able to help her husband in the fields. Shortly after they learn that the colonies are at war with the British, their farmhouse is attacked and burned to the ground by a party of Tory-led Indians. The feisty Widow McKlennar (Edna May Oliver) provides temporary shelter for the couple, but it's only a matter of time before the Indians launch a more brutal assault. Save for THE QUIET MAN, DRUMS ALONG THE MOHAWK contains the richest passages of pastoral imagery in Ford's entire canon, the visual beauty nearly upstaging the spectacular and terrifying Indian battles. The performances, particularly Oliver (who garnered an Oscar nomination) as the vinegary widow and the superbly stoic Fonda, enable Ford to again demonstrate the heroism and limitations of rugged individualism. The scenes of an Indian prisoner spread-eagled on a wagon and Gilbert's escape are repeated almost exactly in the 1982 dystopian classic THE ROAD WARRIOR.
| Starring | Claudette Colbert, Henry Fonda, Edna May Oliver, Eddie Collins, John Carradine |
|---|---|
| Director | John Ford |
| Studio | ELEVATION |
| Run time | DVD: 1 hr 40 mins |
| Certificate |  |
| Genres | Action/Adventure, Drama |
| Language | DVD: English |
| Released | Production year: 1939 To Rent: DVD: 23 Aug 2004 |
Patchy, likeable period adventure story with domestic and farming interludes; in its way a key film in the director's canon.
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Mohawks rule
A great early Western, in the true sense of the word, i.e. set at the end of the 18th century, just before American independence was won. Despite all the gung-... read more »
[Highly rated reviewer]
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One of my favourite films in early Technicolor
One of my favourite Westerns ( or pre-westerns as I call these films set in colonial days before the days of 'Cowboys and Indians' as we usually imagine... read more »
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Alas
A distressingly wrong headed film - in retrospect. When one was young ... say fifty years ago - it was still possible to thrill to the apparent heroics of this ... read more »
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Classic Ford
A truely enjoyable film with moments of humour, and adventure. A must see for all old movie buffs.
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