Linbeymusol Wonderful character development!

2hotFeature one of my absolute favorites!

Phonearl Good start, but then it gets ruined

Phillipa Strong acting helps the film overcome an uncertain premise and create characters that hold our attention absolutely.

JohnHowardReid Copyright 4 January 1938 by Samuel Goldwyn, Inc., Ltd. Presented by Samuel Goldwyn. Released through United Artists. New York opening at the Astor, 9 November 1937. U.S. release: 10 November 1937. Australian release: 31 March 1938. 12 reels. 102 minutes. NOTES: Prestigious Hollywood award, Sound Recording (defeating The Girl Said No, Hitting a New High, In Old Chicago, Lost Horizon, The Life of Emile Zola, Maytime, One Hundred Men and a Girl, Topper and Wells Fargo). Also nominated for Supporting Actor, Thomas Mitchell (defeated by Joseph Schildkraut in The Life of Emile Zola), and Best Music Score (One Hundred Men and a Girl). Number 10 on The Film Daily's annual Best Films poll of U.S. critics.COMMENT: Of the 80 feature films produced by Sam Goldwyn, my personal favorite is "The Hurricane". (It's also second only to "Stagecoach" in my preferred list of John Ford movies.) Why? Well, firstly (and least importantly). it's a great spectacle. The use of miniatures is occasionally obvious, but the way that hurricane is staged and edited just overwhelms the senses. Secondly, here is a movie that appeals to the ear, with convincingly dramatic dialogue and a haunting musical theme. Thirdly (and now we're getting into the really important qualities), "The Hurricane" is a visual paradise — superbly photographed, attractively lit and composed. Fourthly, it has a strong story with believable and sympathetic characters. And fifthly, it is enacted by an absolutely faultless cast. It has been argued that Lamour is just a decorative sarong girl, Hall merely a personable swimmer, Astor too glamorous a governor's wife, and Massey too perversely dogmatic a white supremist. These claims (and similar criticisms) are nonsense. The performances are totally enthralling and completely convincing. When Terangi is thrown into prison, the director is not afraid to focus on Hall's anguished face; when Marama spurns Germaine's sympathy, Miss Lamour's manner betrays not the slightest trace of artifice or falsity. Admittedly, Massey is doggedly over-zealous and even theatrically paranoid — just as Carradine is over-sadistic — but these emphases are necessary for the dramatic forcefulness of the plot. All in all, It's a gripping story — worthy of the writers of Mutiny on the Bounty — and it's been translated to the screen with enhanced force and vigor thanks to the visual expertise of Goldwyn and his entire cast and crew. The film editor, for instance, has performed numerous unsung miracles in pacey yet smooth cutting of the material from the various units. For example a dockside scene directed by Ford is deftly topped with a closing shot of Hall untying a canoe directed by Heisler. In general, Ford directed all the studio sequences — except the Basevi special effects such as the hurricane and the studio storm with Hall in his canoe and all the tank shots, e.g. Hall fighting the shark. On the other hand, Heisler directed all the exterior location footage, including the diving stunts with Paul Stader and the breathtaking sequence in which Terangi/Stader just misses his ship.

zorrito1953 Wow, what a picture! If only someone would digitize, remaster and possibly colorize this flick. UCLA Film Archive, are you listening? Jon Hall and Dorothy Lamour put on some great skin beauty candy for the viewers. Both had long natural hair and athletic bodies. And the special effects were before their time. The "wind" plays as a character in the movie. You would be surprised at these special effects, given it was filmed in 1937 without computers! On a different note, I wish all seven of Dorothy Lamour's sarong movies were available on DVD with tons of special features, remastered, of course! Did you know that one of Dorothy Lamour's sarongs is in exhibition at the Smithsonian Museum? I can't wait to read her "My Side of the Road" autobiography.

solarblast I always try to catch this movie when it shows up on TV, usually TCM. Leonard Maltin calls the hurricane scenes unequaled and he's right. Quite impressive even by today's standards.Well, I guess I need to continue with this review. I didn't meet the quota on lines.I would agree with the assessment above that Lamour and John Hall are in their prime physically. Impressive that they got top billing despite the appearance of Raymond Massey, Mary Astor, Carradine, and Thomas Mitchell. Of course, John Ford, the director went on to even more successful action movies, and won numerous awards. As many know, he teamed with John Wayne for a number of award winning westerns.

windjammer777-1 The Director Jon Hall gave the audience a glimpse of how the French dominated the locals in this island paradise with imposition of very unjust legal punishment for misdemeanors. In one instance, a white patron in an island bar ordered Terengi, who sat there first, to get up an move "when a white man tells him". Terengi, believing he was an "equal" stood his ground, "Golden Gloved" this white patron and and knocked him out cold. The patron was hospitalized. Terengi was charged with assault and imprisoned for 6 months with hard labor, despite his captain's plea to the island governor to have Terengi's sentence commuted. One can infer a "what if" and say...."if this had been a white man", would his sentence been commuted? Or another scenario, "what if a white man or (woman) had have assaulted an islander? One can wager a slap in the wrist, if that, would have been in order. Overall, an entertaining and romantic sea island adventure from an an islander's (even if it's white Hollywood actors painted like islanders) point of view. (smiling)