The Vincent Price Blogathon – Brigham Young (1940)

This is my second of 3 reviews for the The Vincent Price Blogathon 2020 taking place this weekend  and being hosted by Gill of WeegieMidget and Barry of Cinema Catharsis

Tnx for letting me partake Guys!

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“Perhaps it’s time to show a different kind of courage… and do something besides being killed for what we believe.” – Joseph Smith

Number of Times Seen – 1 (17 Apr 2020)

Brief Synopsis – Following the assassination of Joseph Smith, Brigham Young takes his Mormon followers westward from Illinois to the promised land in the plains of the United States.

My Take on it – This is a movie that I had never even heard of before coming across it during my quest to find films to watch and review for this blogathon.

The story itself is quite fascinating and they find a nice way to present it to us.

They do a great job keeping a solid balance between the conflicts that these characters faced along with allowing us to get a better understanding of their religious beliefs without things feeling too preachy.

The film has a great cast and Dean Jagger does a wonderful job in the title role of Brigham Young.

Vincent Price is also great here in the role of Smith and find a way to make us understand his beliefs much better while also letting us see why he felt the need to gather a flock of followers who he wished would help him fulfill the prophecy that he envisioned.

This movie also does a nice job of showing us how people who faced religious persecution by their countrymen could seek religious freedom in America just like the Pilgrims, Quakers and others in the wake of persecution in order to find a way o fulfill their religious objectives.

Bottom Line – Fascinating story that works on numerous levels. The film find a way to keep a nice balance between the conflicts that the characters encounter and explaining their religion without sounding as if they are preaching to the viewer. The cast is great with Jagger doing a wonderful job in the lead role of Young. Price stands out in the role of Smith and allows us to get a much better understanding of what he believed and why he felt the need to gather a flock of followers to help fulfill the prophecy that he believes to have had. The film is able to show us how these people faced religious persecution by their fellow countrymen but like the Pilgrims, Quakers and other seeking religious freedom in the United States, they chose to live their lives in a way that would help them fulfill their religious objectives. Recommended!

MovieRob’s Favorite Trivia – According to a MovieTone newsreel, the Salt Lake City premiere of Brigham Young, a month before the New York premiere, was the largest premiere in film history. 215,000 people crowded the streets of Salt Lake City to view a massive parade, complete with floats and racing cars with the stars riding in them. Twentieth Century Fox’s studio head Darryl F. Zanuck, also the producer of the film, had a part in planning the parade. The Salt Lake City Mayor named that August 23rd Brigham Young Day- the first and only. Originally, one theatre in Salt Lake City was to show the film, but the demand for seats became so high that eventually seven theatres in the city showed the film. (From IMDB)

Rating – Globe Worthy (8/10)

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