User Reviews

This is the sort of educational short we used to see in school auditoriums about various places throughout the world.

The locale here is Alaska, and the Technicolor photography is inviting enough to keep viewer's interested in some colorful glimpses of various seaports and fishing villages, the sparkling blue waters of lakes with snow-capped mountains in the background.

We're told that the actual climate of these villages in the valleys is a lot more normal than one would suspect from what the name Alaska signifies to most people. Far from frigid, it shows people enjoying the warm lake waters in the summer.

With the salmon industry bringing in 5 million a year, we're shown various ports where fishing and the sea food industry are the main activities. We also see some Indian children in an Indian setting where colorful Totem poles are a common sight. Another handsome sight are the ocean liners that carry passengers across the Alaskan seas.

And finally, we leave with a glimpse of Petersburg, a fishing village with quaint picture postcard charm.

Summing up: A rather routine entry in the Traveltalk series.

Inside Passage, The (1941)

** (out of 4)

A rather bland and disappointing entry in James A. FitzPatrick's TravelTalks series. This time out we visit Alaska where we learn that it's not always cold, that not everyone is an Eskimo and that they contain some of the most up-to-date Indian tribes. If that doesn't sound like your typical TravelTalks episode then you'd be correct. I was pretty disappointed that this short didn't take better advantage and show off Alaska better than it did. A lot of the information we're told is rather useless and I'm not sure how many in 1941 would have even been interested. The film kicks off with FitzPatrick telling us that Alaska was being used for WW2 refugees and that's that. As usual, the Technicolor is the main highlight but it's a shame they didn't show us more than they did.