Nanook of the North (1922)

Director:

Robert J. Flaherty

Writers:

Frances H. Flaherty (idea)
Robert J. Flaherty (writer)

Release Date:

11 June 1922 (USA)

Genre:

Documentary

Tagline:

A story of life and love in the actual Arctic.

Plot:

Documents one year in the life of Nanook, an Eskimo (Inuit) and his family. Describes the trading, hunting...

Plot Keywords:

Inuit | Eskimo | Kayak | Snow | Igloo

Awards:

1 win

Cast

Allakariallak	...	Nanook (as Nanook)
Nyla	...	Herself (Nanook's wife, the smiling one)
Cunayou	...	Herself (Nanook's wife)
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Allee	...	Himself (Nanook's son)
Allegoo	...	Himself (Nanook's son)

Also Known As:

Nanouk l'Esquimau (France)
Nanook do Norte (Brazil) [pt]
Nanook, o Esquimó (Brazil) [pt]
Nanook, pakkasen poika (Finland) [fi]
Nanuk l'esquimese (Italy) [it]
Nanuk, der Eskimo (Germany) [de]
Nanuk, el esquimal (Spain) [es]
Nanuk, o Esquimó (Portugal) [pt]

Runtime:

79 min

Country:

USA | France

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Silent

Certification:

Portugal:17 (original rating) | Portugal:M/6 (DVD rating) | Canada:G (Manitoba/Nova Scotia/Québec) | Canada:PG (Ontario) | Germany:6 | Spain:T | UK:U (re-release) (1947)

Filming Locations:

Hudson Bay, Québec, Canada

Company:

Les Frères Revillon

Trivia:

Rated #6 in 2002 by International Documentary Assn. on its list of Top 20 Documentaries of all time.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in White Christmas (1954)

Tehnically Remarkable for 1922

This is a fascinating documentary from Robert Flaherty, a very prolific director of early documentaries. He follows the adventures of the Eskimo Nanook, and we get to see what life was like for the Eskimo in the early 20th Century as we watch Nanook with his family, hunting for food, and building igloos.

This is really amazing stuff for 1922. It feels like it could have been made long after that. That's probably due to the fact that it relies on real settings and real people. It's not bound by the restrictions of manufactured sets, costumes, etc. of the period. However, though it looks utterly authentic, don't be fooled into thinking that Flaherty gives us a purely realistic snapshot of Eskimo life. He planted the early seeds of reality t.v. with this film, making careful use of editing to create a narrative with all of the melodramatic trappings of any studio picture. Though it's a fascinating film, it's also a reminder that documentary film is just as manipulative as fiction, and that Michael Moore wasn't the first to corner the market on presenting fiction as fact.

Grade: A