Watch The Trail of the Lonesome Pine For Free

People are voting emotionally.

It is a whirlwind of delight --- attractive actors, stunning couture, spectacular sets and outrageous parties.

The acting is good, and the firecracker script has some excellent ideas.

Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable

The movie's an affecting tale of feuding backwoods families, who must also make adjustments to encroaching modern world. I was expecting a Romeo-Juliet situation with the families, but that's surprisingly not the case. Instead June (Sidney) has to decide between her cousin Dave (Fonda) and outsider Hale (MacMurray). Tradition favors Dave, but her heart favors Hale. At the same time, railroad developers are crossing land owned by each family, and neither the Tollivers nor the Falins wants to accommodate their hereditary enemy. They'd rather shoot each other if they get the chance. And who knows how the enmity started, except now it's part of both families' tradition. If the movie's flawed, it's with the use of of popular backwoods stereotypes.Apparently this was the first outdoor Technicolor feature (IMDB), but you'd never know it. Visually the film is quite striking, with a lot of beautiful outdoor compositions. Also, you'd never guess these were filmed just 35-miles east of LA in the San Bernardino mountains. The acting too is first-rate—a soulful Sydney, an ornery Fonda, and an underrated MacMurray. Then there's Sherlock Holmes' favorite Dr. Watson, Nigel Bruce, in a non-comedic role. Needless to say, that took some adjustment for this old Sherlock fan. In fact, there're a couple other unexpected cast members, as well: Little Rascal Spanky McFarland and comedic Fuzzy Knight. And, of course, mustn't forget everyone's favorite hard-scrabble mom, Beulah Bondi, as the long-suffering ma Tolliver.I like the way the movie works the culture clash between tradition and modernity into the plot. The railroad company pays big money for land use, and that along with a railway to service the expected coal deposits, is bringing the backwoods into the modern age, as June's evolution shows. Of course, not everyone's supportive of change, particularly dad Tolliver (Stone). The movie has some uncommonly poignant moments, especially that final sequence, which conveys an extraordinary emotional power. As a kid, I recall bawling at it, and even now as a geezer, it brought a tear to the eye. As I see it, Fuzzy and his dog are mourning not only friends but the passing of a simpler way of life.All in all, the movie is surprisingly good, with a strong story, commanding visuals, and a thoughtful subtext. So don't pass it up because of a relative obscurity.

John Fox Jr.'s novel "The Trail of the Lonesome Pine" was an enormous best seller in the early years of the 20th Century and was made into a movie several times, but I think this was the last version, way back in 1936. The fact that it was made 4 times (I believe) within a little over 25 years of the book's publishing date and hasn't been redone in the almost 80 years since would seem to indicate that the story is dated. Also, that this once very popular novel is not read anymore.Well, actually, I read it and I think it still holds up well. It's an affecting piece of fiction, very well written, but there's one big problem with it for modern audiences. The main relationship in the story is a close friendship between a grown up man and a young hillbilly girl. I'm not quite sure what the girl's age is at the beginning of the story, but I'm guessing it's around 12 years old. You could tell such a story innocently in 1908, but you can't now. It would simply be impossible. And you couldn't film it as it's written in the book. In the book, the relationship is completely innocent, without a hint of anything sinister, but modern audiences would read a sinister motive behind every action of the story's hero.The film, however, is actually nothing like the book. The filmmakers take the names of the characters and the setting and situation of the book and make a completely different story out of it. I'm sure this is highly irritating to those who love the book (if anyone still does), but it doesn't ruin the movie, at least not for me. Maybe because I saw the movie before I read the book. I look at them as two completely different entities that happen to share superficial similarities.In the film, the girl is played by Sylvia Sidney, who is certifiably an adult from the beginning. This not only changes the story, but eliminates anything sinister modern audiences might find in her friendship, and later romance, with the hero, played by Fred MacMurray. Both these roles would seem oddly cast. Sylvia Sidney, a native of the Bronx, is hard to imagine as anything other than the city girl, which she usually played, in films like "Dead End" or "Street Scene" or City Streets". Yet ignoring what you know of her usual roles, and your expectations based on this knowledge, she does a good job in the part. Same goes with MacMurray. This was early in his career, before he had become known as a light comedian and occasional heel. His character actually has a lot less to do in the movie than in the book, and MacMurray does well with what he has.I'm not a Henry Fonda fan, finding him often preachy & whiny, but as this was early in his career, before he made films a political platform, I thought he did very well with his part, and made what was a secondary character in the book really the male lead in the picture. But his character is nothing like the same-named character in the book, who is younger, meaner, ignorant, inarticulate— almost a villain. The supporting cast was very good. Robert Barrat, one of my favorite character actors, who almost always had very small parts but always made them pay off, is terrific in a couple of short scenes. Same goes with Alan Baxter. Spanky, from Our Gang, has a big part in the picture, and it's peculiar to see him playing serious, but he pulls it off OK. Also, from the Our Gang angle, I could swear one of the other hillbilly kids is Mary Ann Jackson. She is in a couple of very brief shots and you'll miss her if you don't look quick. She is not listed in the cast, nor is this film listed in her filmography. if it's not her, it's a girl who looks exactly like her and there couldn't be two faces like that! Also must give a mention to famous vaudevillian Fred Stone as head of one of the feuding hillbilly clans. Stone, on stage, was known as a comedian and eccentric dancer, but in pictures he seemed always cast, as in this film, as a put-upon old man carrying heavy burdens and on the edge of tragedy (for example, Alice Adams). He acts his part well and even gets to do a stunt with a wagon wheel that called on his old time dexterity as a physical comedian.It's sentimental, but without being hokey. The color is fantastic for what was really an experimental film. I recommend it, but don't expect it to be anything like the book.

Just watched this Technicolor Paramount feature (The first of the kind that was shot outdoors) on YouTube. While it had stars like Fred MacMurray, Henry Fonda, and Sylvia Sidney, the main reason I was interested in this movie was because of one Spanky McFarland, who at the time was still a member of "Our Gang". This was a compelling story of a couple of feuding families and one outsider played by MacMurray who's trying to build a railroad around both respective groups' areas. There's also a romantic rivalry between Fonda and MacMurray for Sidney. Also appearing were Beulah Bondi, Nigel Bruce, and Samuel Hinds as the Sheriff. (If anyone is familiar with me, they know my favorite movie is It's a Wonderful Life and I like noting actors in that movie in other films like Bondi and Hinds who were married in the latter) Then there's Fuzzy Knight who's a charmer as something of a Greek chorus singing songs like "Twlight on the Trail" and the Oscar-nominated "A Melody from the Sky". Incidentally, while Knight sings the latter, Fonda whistles and Spanky hums and this was a couple of years before Spanky's "Our Gang" co-star Alfalfa sung part of this tune in the short The Little Ranger (which McFarland doesn't appear in). Anyway, this was a fine showcase for the Technicolor photography as kudos to director Henry Hathaway for making every scene count as this was a most entertaining drama with a couple of touching, though tragic, scenes at the end. So on that note, I highly recommend The Trail of the Lonesome Pine.

`In the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia, on THE TRAIL OF THE LONESOME PINE,' a young woman discovers love, but no respite from the violent feud which has torn apart two families.Full of good performances & boasting excellent production values courtesy of Paramount Studios, this fine drama brings to its viewers a not-so-subtle message of peace & tolerance. The vividly depicted consequences of mindless, violent behavior give the film a real punch.The film's romantic triangle consists of barefoot mountain lass Sylvia Sidney, her decent, uncomplicated cousin Henry Fonda, and mining executive Fred MacMurray, who, as a newcomer to the backwoods, rebels against the traditions of violence & revenge he finds there. All three deliver compelling performances, with a slight advantage going to the gentlemen, as their roles do not require as much shrill, fickle behavior as does Miss Sidney's.The marvelous character actress Beulah Bondi appears as Miss Sidney's mother, one of the first in a decades-long line of stubborn, proud old women she would play; her eyes tell of the world of trouble her character has seen on the mountain. Cuddly Nigel Bruce is MacMurray's associate - gruff & grumbly, but with a heart of gold.Special mention should be made of seven-year-old Spanky McFarland, who plays Miss Sidney's little brother. Already the star of numerous OUR GANG comedies, the tiny tyke here displays the talent that placed him in the front rank of child movie stars. Precocious & poignant, Spanky's character is quite unforgettable.Fred Stone & Robert Barrat play the heads of the two feuding clans, one gentle - the other fierce. Movie mavens will recognize Clara Blandick as a frightened landlady and Samuel S. Hinds as the Gaptown sheriff.The film is stitched together by the evocative, nostalgic singing of Fuzzy Knight, who introduces ‘Twilight On The Trail' & ‘A Melody From The Sky,' (both by Louis Alter and Sidney D. Mitchell). The tune for the chorus of ‘The Trail Of The Lonesome Pine,' by Ballard MacDonald & Harry Carroll, can be briefly heard during the opening credits; viewers will need to watch Laurel & Hardy's WAY OUT WEST (1937) to hear this fine old song actually sung.Famous as the first outdoor film produced in full Technicolor, THE TRAIL OF THE LONESOME PINE benefits greatly from its location filming near Cedar Lake, in California's San Bernardino Mountains.