The Big Sky (1952)

“Sure is big country. The only thing bigger is the sky.” – Jim Deacons

Number of Times Seen – 1 (3 Jan 2019)

Brief Synopsis – Two frontier traders attempt to make the journey across the country in order to start trading with the Indians out West.

My Take on it – This is an interesting story about the friendships that can blossom between frontiersmen as they try to explore the uncharted areas of the country during the early part of the 19th Century.

The cats of this film is ok but none of them manage to really stand out among the rest.

Arthur Cunningham was nominated for an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor for his role as the uncle of one of the explorers who also makes the treacherous journey across the land with them using his vast experience to help serve them much better along the way.

What surprised me the most about this film is that even with an actor with the caliber of Kirk Douglas helping things, the story doesn’t manage to find a way of being even more impactful or interesting and feels like it just meanders along most of the way which is quite a pity.

Bottom Line – Interesting story about friendship among traders and explorers in the attempt to expand westward in the early 1800’s. The cast is ok, but none of them really stick out among the others. Cunningham was nominated for an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor for his performance here as one of the main character’s uncle who helps them along their journey. Even Douglas doesn’t manage to do anything that would make this film more interesting or groundbreaking.

MovieRob’s Favorite Trivia – While shooting Red River (1948), there was a scene that director Howard Hawks unsuccessfully urged John Wayne to do. It involved his getting a finger mangled between a saddle horn and a rope, resulting in Walter Brennan’s amputating it. Hawks reportedly told Wayne, “If you’re not good enough, we won’t do it”, but Wayne wouldn’t do it. According to Hawks biographer Todd McCarthy, Hawks did get Kirk Douglas to do that scene in this film, and it came off so funny that Wayne later declared to Hawks, “If you tell me a funeral is funny, I’ll do a funeral.” (From IMDB)

Rating – BAFTA Worthy (5/10)

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