Sunday, January 15, 2012

White Shadows in the South Seas (1928)


Winner of 1 Academy Award:
Best Cinematography
Clyde De Vinna
It won 1 Oscar out of a total of 1 nomination in 1928-29.


White Shadows in the South Seas takes us to the last remnant of an earthly paradise in the coral atolls of the South Pacific where white men are attempting to bring civilization to the native peoples.  A lone doctor, however, becomes ashamed of his race after witnessing the exploitation of the natives for the sake of acquiring precious pearls, and is ultimately shunned.  Finding himself marooned on an untouched isle, he is greeted as a "white god" by the indigenous tribe and becomes romantically involved with an island woman.  But temptation leads to terror when the good doctor must confront his own humanity and greed for pearls.


The film is based on the novel by Frederick O'Brien and actually cited as being a "camera record" of the book.  It was indeed filmed on location and primarily used islanders as actors in the film - though it must be noted that it was shot in Tahiti and not in Marquesas, as the credits state.

Most interestingly, this movie is famous for being the first MGM film with a pre-recorded soundtrack and, thus, the first MGM film to feature the sound of their trademark lion roaring at the beginning.


Editorial:

This movie is a well-done adventure-romance that is incredibly photographed and, almost as a bonus, offers up a social commentary on "civilizing" indigenous tribes.

It must definitely be recognized that the plot of this film has, to date, been completely overdone - formulating itself into such recent incarnations as Dances with Wolves (1990), Pocahontas (1995) and Avatar (2009) - to name a few.  Though this does make it insanely predictable, it is still a very enjoyable experience.  It is technically well-done and, considering the period in which the film was released, extremely refreshing.

Score  |  07/10  |  This motion picture may be essential viewing.

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