"The Big Trees" is a rather unusual film in that it talks about a period in American history that you rarely see in films--the American West BEFORE the time of the cowboys. And, in this case, the west isn't really all that far west. It's set around 1830 in the Missouri River region--what's now known as the American Midwest.
The story begins in Kentucky. Two adventurers (Kirk Douglas and Dewey Martin) meet in an EXTREMELY unbelievable and contrived manner. They don't even know each other and start punchin' each other. In fact, although it's a good film, this is a big weakness in the movie--they seem to have too many fistfights and this is a rather limp way to inject comedy into the movie. However, as a result of one of these scraps, the two find Martin's uncle (Arthur Hunnicutt) and the uncle convinces them to join him in a rather dangerous journey into Blackfoot territory in order to trade for furs. Two problems stand in their way--the local trading company that wants a monopoly on furs and hostile tribes, such as the Sioux (who were in real life a fierce and rather warlike tribe). What's next? See the film.
In many ways, this film reminds me of a slightly better film, Clark Gable's "Across the Wide Missouri". I say slightly better because the film's vivid color really made it much more attractive than the black & white in "The Big Sky". Additionally, the Gable film was much less lighthearted and seemed a lot more realistic. However, both are still well worth seeing--particularly because they give a much more realistic view of the West than you find in about 90% of Hollywood's films. Well worth seeing.
By the way, Hunnicutt received a Best Supporting Actor nomination and it was well deserved. He was, to me, the best actor in the film and had a nice opportunity to show more than his usual roles.
The story begins in Kentucky. Two adventurers (Kirk Douglas and Dewey Martin) meet in an EXTREMELY unbelievable and contrived manner. They don't even know each other and start punchin' each other. In fact, although it's a good film, this is a big weakness in the movie--they seem to have too many fistfights and this is a rather limp way to inject comedy into the movie. However, as a result of one of these scraps, the two find Martin's uncle (Arthur Hunnicutt) and the uncle convinces them to join him in a rather dangerous journey into Blackfoot territory in order to trade for furs. Two problems stand in their way--the local trading company that wants a monopoly on furs and hostile tribes, such as the Sioux (who were in real life a fierce and rather warlike tribe). What's next? See the film.
In many ways, this film reminds me of a slightly better film, Clark Gable's "Across the Wide Missouri". I say slightly better because the film's vivid color really made it much more attractive than the black & white in "The Big Sky". Additionally, the Gable film was much less lighthearted and seemed a lot more realistic. However, both are still well worth seeing--particularly because they give a much more realistic view of the West than you find in about 90% of Hollywood's films. Well worth seeing.
By the way, Hunnicutt received a Best Supporting Actor nomination and it was well deserved. He was, to me, the best actor in the film and had a nice opportunity to show more than his usual roles.