source: Spawn of the North

Spawn of the North

Some surprisingly violent action scenes are the highlights of this Alaska-set adventure tale of boats and salmon fishermen, which plays like a disguised Western. Unfortunately, they're lost in a sea of footage (almost two hours), and the savvy viewer can see the ending coming from halfway to Skag

Henry Fonda doesn't contribute much to this film, although Dorothy Lamour does put in a good performance. This is really a George Raft film who puts in a strong performance, and there is a lot that you can learn from his acting. Fonda seems to be trying too hard to act. You just don't believe him, and you feel that he was very lucky to get a break in films in the 1930s. Even Akim Tamaroff puts in a better performance than Fonda standing shoulder to shoulder with Raft as an equal. I can see what Cecil B. DeMille saw in Tamaroff to cast him in 'The Buccaneer', although that was not a good film. Despite all this, I fell asleep during the film because it bored me to tears.

None of the other reviews have mentioned that SPAWN OF THE NORTH is in fact a remake of THE VIRGINIAN, with a change in locale from Wyoming to Alaska. There is also one other notable change. While Akim Tamiroff is Trampas and Henry Fonda steps into Gary Cooper's boots as The Virginian, the emphasis has been shifted to the likable but shady Steve character (Richard Arlen in the '29 talkie, George Raft here). SPAWN OF THE NORTH would itself be remade in 1954 as ALASKA SEAS, with a nice cast including Robert Ryan, Brian Keith, and Gene Barry in the roles played by Raft, Fonda, and Tamiroff respectively. On its own terms SPAWN OF THE NORTH is very effective entertainment, thanks to the guiding hand of director Henry Hathaway as well as its cast, not only the aforementioned stars but also experienced scene-stealers John Barrymore and Lynne Overman in support.

"Spawn of the North" turns out to be a really good movie. It gets off to a slow start but after that it's really good. The first half does a nice job establishing the characters and the plot. It's just that the first half spends a lot of the time trying to be funny. It is pretty funny but I just wish they got to the meat and potatoes earlier. The second half is very exciting and quite emotional. The cast is very good but for me the star of the show is the production design. It's terrific. "Spawn of the North" is another solid movie from director Henry Hathaway. Honorable mention: a very dreamy Dorothy Lamour. Man, let me tell you, there's a scene towards the end where I couldn't take my eyes off her sweater.

This is a real good movie. Henry Fonda and George Raft Play the rival fishermen. Near the end of the movie George Raft is shot. While resting in bed he smokes a cigarette and the smoke comes up out of the bullet holes in his chest!? I remember when I was in high school. We were learning about first aid. The teacher told us about never giving a cigarette to an injury victim. Then he told us about a Humphrey Bogart movie where after being shot he smoked a cigarette and the smoke came out of his chest. I searched for years and found out it was the "Spawn of The North", With GEORGE RAFT not Bogart. Watch for this movie on AMC or TCM, just to see this scene. It is well worth watching, with fine acting and great scenery.