Jim Deakins is a frontiersman and Indian trader who is making a perilous journey with a group of other men up the Missouri River to get a large haul of furs from friendly Blackfoot Indians. The problem is that they have to get through hostile Indian territory first and they find that they have seriously underestimated the difficulties they will undergo. The large body of men who started the journey are gradually whittled down until only a hardy few, like Deakins, are left.
Director: Howard Hawks.
Stars: Kirk Douglas, Dewey Martin, Elizabeth Threatt, Arthur Hunnicutt, Buddy Baer, Steven Geray, Henri Letondal, Hank Worden, Hank Worden.
1953 Academy Awards – Nominated for an Oscar for Best Actor in a Supporting Role (Arthur Hunnicutt).
1953 Academy Awards – Nominated for an Oscar for Best Cinematography, Black-and-White (Russell Harlan).
⇒ DOWNLOAD THIS FILM ⇐ (Long version)
⇒ DOWNLOAD THIS FILM ⇐ (Colorized version)
Note: Pre-release prints of THE BIG SKY distributed in 16mm in the Armed Forces network ran about 17 minutes longer than what was subsequently distributed commercially. Unfortunately, only two such prints appear to have survived (plus a much battered third print). Here is one such print, reduced to 2h 13m by the magical intervention of 25 fps.
Many thanks to John for sending me a copy of the rare colorized version.
RIP Kirk Douglas (December 9, 1916 – February 5, 2020).
Awesome!