Tuesday, January 19, 2010

Nanook of the North

Nanook, pakkasen poika / Nanook, köldens son. US/FR (c) 1922 Pathé Exchange. PC: Révillon Frères. D+SC+DP+ED: Robert J. Flaherty. Featuring: Allakariallak (Nanook), Nyla (Nyla, Nanook's wife, the smiling one), Cunayou (Cunayou), Allee (Nanook's son), Allegoo (Nanook's son), Comock.1534 m /20 fps/ 67 min. A 1968 SEA (KAVA) print with Finnish subtitles by Eeva Kurki, source: British Film Institute / National Film Library, duplicated from a 1920s release print. Viewed at Cinema Orion, Helsinki, 19 Jan 2010.

Revisited the first 20 minutes of this immortal film. It is a loving reconstruction of the ancient ways of life of the native people from the North of the Hudson Bay. The whole family and the dog packed into a kayak. The huskies. The inland, the land of death, if there is no catch of deer. Fishing.

The Flahertyan hallmark: a feeling for the joy of life.

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