Nanook of the North - Criterion Collection

Starring:Allakariallak, Nyla, Cunayou, Berry Kroeger, Allee, Allegoo
Director: Robert J. Flaherty
Studio: Criterion
Product Type: DVD

Editorial Review:
Amazon.com essential video
Robert J. Flaherty, who wrote, directed, produced, shot, and edited this landmark picture, will forever be remembered as the godfather of documentary filmmaking. While this landmark 1922 production, shot on the northeastern shore of Hudson Bay, isn't a true documentary by contemporary conventions, it remains the first great nonfiction film. With the help of Nanook and his friends and family, Flaherty undertook the mission of re-creating an Eskimo culture that no longer existed in a series of staged scenes. Nanook ice fishes, harpoons a walrus, catches a seal, traps, builds an igloo, and trades pelts at a trading post, all captured by Flaherty's inquisitive camera. Though he presents a "happy" culture bordering on primitive innocence (Nanook and his family were in reality quite westernized), his loving portrait is anything but condescending. Ultimately Flaherty shares his tremendous respect and awe for a culture that has learned to not just survive but thrive in such an inhospitable environment. On a purely visual level the film is a beautiful work of cinema, an understated drama in an austere, unblemished landscape of snow and ice. With unerring simplicity and directness, Flaherty re-creates the details and rhythms of a culture long gone and gives the world a glimpse. David Shepard's restoration, which is offered by Kino, shows a cleaner, brighter image than has ever been available on video and restores scenes missing for decades, and he has commissioned a new score by Timothy Brock, which incorporates and expands upon elements of the original score. A short interview with Flaherty's widow concludes the tape. --Sean Axmaker
Amazon.com
In 1920, exploring American anthropologist Robert J. Flaherty traveled alone, with camera in hand, to the remote Canadian tundra. There, for over a year, he lived with Eskimos, documenting their daily lives and returning to his editing studio with the raw footage. The result of his rigorous study was groundbreaking; with Nanook of the North, Flaherty pioneered both a new cinematic genre, the narrative documentary, and created a timeless drama of human perseverance under the harshest of conditions. Flaherty obviously understood the charisma of one Eskimo in particular, Nanook, and much of the film's warmth, humor, and charm come from the mutual respect and sympathy between the filmmaker and his subject. Flaherty possessed an acute eye for simple detail and his presentation of the stark climate and unique culture remains breathtaking. Flaherty also had a knack for editing and manipulation, and along with pioneering a new cinematic form, Nanook too raised all of the problematic ethical dilemmas that still face documentarians. Many of the famous sequences--the seal hunt, the building of the igloo--were actually staged for "authenticity" purposes, thus starting debates on whether documentaries could truly capture truth or reality. Then there's the presence of the camera and whether that in itself alters or disrupts the natural behavior of its subjects. Yet, despite Flaherty's tamperings, there's no denying the film's power, its wondrous sense of adventure, and the touching portrait of one of cinema's truly courageous heroes. --Dave McCoy
Description
Robert Flaherty's classic film tells the story of Inuit hunter Nanook and his family as they struggle to survive in the harsh conditions of Canada's Hudson Bay region. Enormously popular when released in 1922, Nanook of the North is a cinematic milestone that continues to enchant audiences. Criterion is proud to present the original director's cut, restored to the proper frame rate and tinted according to Flaherty's personal print.

Nanook of the North - Criterion Collection
Average customer rating:

The beginning of Feature Documentary Filmmakin

How Far We've Come

Robert J. Flaherty's classic staged documentary of the life of the Inuit

groundbreaking

Una historia de amor y lucha en el årtico

Nanook of the North - Criterion Collection
Starring: Allakariallak , Nyla , Cunayou , Allegoo , and Berry Kroeger
Director: Robert J. Flaherty
Manufacturer: Criterion
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: 6305257442
Release Date: 1999-01-26

Amazon.com essential video

Robert J. Flaherty, who wrote, directed, produced, shot, and edited this landmark picture, will forever be remembered as the godfather of documentary filmmaking. While this landmark 1922 production, shot on the northeastern shore of Hudson Bay, isn't a true documentary by contemporary conventions, it remains the first great nonfiction film. With the help of Nanook and his friends and family, Flaherty undertook the mission of re-creating an Eskimo culture that no longer existed in a series of staged scenes. Nanook ice fishes, harpoons a walrus, catches a seal, traps, builds an igloo, and trades pelts at a trading post, all captured by Flaherty's inquisitive camera. Though he presents a "happy" culture bordering on primitive innocence (Nanook and his family were in reality quite westernized), his loving portrait is anything but condescending. Ultimately Flaherty shares his tremendous respect and awe for a culture that has learned to not just survive but thrive in such an inhospitable environment. On a purely visual level the film is a beautiful work of cinema, an understated drama in an austere, unblemished landscape of snow and ice. With unerring simplicity and directness, Flaherty re-creates the details and rhythms of a culture long gone and gives the world a glimpse. David Shepard's restoration, which is offered by Kino, shows a cleaner, brighter image than has ever been available on video and restores scenes missing for decades, and he has commissioned a new score by Timothy Brock, which incorporates and expands upon elements of the original score. A short interview with Flaherty's widow concludes the tape. --Sean Axmaker

Amazon.com

In 1920, exploring American anthropologist Robert J. Flaherty traveled alone, with camera in hand, to the remote Canadian tundra. There, for over a year, he lived with Eskimos, documenting their daily lives and returning to his editing studio with the raw footage. The result of his rigorous study was groundbreaking; with Nanook of the North, Flaherty pioneered both a new cinematic genre, the narrative documentary, and created a timeless drama of human perseverance under the harshest of conditions. Flaherty obviously understood the charisma of one Eskimo in particular, Nanook, and much of the film's warmth, humor, and charm come from the mutual respect and sympathy between the filmmaker and his subject. Flaherty possessed an acute eye for simple detail and his presentation of the stark climate and unique culture remains breathtaking. Flaherty also had a knack for editing and manipulation, and along with pioneering a new cinematic form, Nanook too raised all of the problematic ethical dilemmas that still face documentarians. Many of the famous sequences--the seal hunt, the building of the igloo--were actually staged for "authenticity" purposes, thus starting debates on whether documentaries could truly capture truth or reality. Then there's the presence of the camera and whether that in itself alters or disrupts the natural behavior of its subjects. Yet, despite Flaherty's tamperings, there's no denying the film's power, its wondrous sense of adventure, and the touching portrait of one of cinema's truly courageous heroes. --Dave McCoy

Description

Robert Flaherty's classic film tells the story of Inuit hunter Nanook and his family as they struggle to survive in the harsh conditions of Canada's Hudson Bay region. Enormously popular when released in 1922, Nanook of the North is a cinematic milestone that continues to enchant audiences. Criterion is proud to present the original director's cut, restored to the proper frame rate and tinted according to Flaherty's personal print.

Customer Reviews:

The beginning of Feature Documentary Filmmakin.......2007-04-09

This is a glimpse into an amazing way of life which, for the most part, no longer exists. The Filmmaker was an explorer before he became a filmmaker, so great care is taken to tell these people's story, through the example of one main character: Nanook, the Bear. I was pleased at how well this work has been preserved and transfered to the new medium of DVD. If you are interested in the Arctic region, Anthropology, History, or even great Adventure, you will enjoy Nanook of the North.

How Far We've Come.......2006-11-12

When I watched this classic documentary, I couldn't help but think that if we ever had to get back to the level of living portrayed here, we just wouldn't make it. What it took for Inuits to survive and the almost always smiling faces on them makes me think that despite our modern proclivity for shopping malls, body-piercing, Hummers and rap music, underneath it all is a heritage that is raw, rich and admirable; and thank god somebody was able to capture it to film before it was swallowed up. It would be interesting to produce Nanook II and show what goes on in this remote part of the world now.

Robert J. Flaherty's classic staged documentary of the life of the Inuit.......2006-07-27

"Nanook of the North" has a place in cinematic history as the first feature-length documentary, shot by Robert J. Flaherty near Inukjuaq on Hudson Bay in the arctic part of Quebec, Canada. A former explorer and prospector in that region, Flaherty decided to document the lifestyle of the Inuit, with funds provided by the French fur company Revillion Freres. The result was an early opportunity for people to see a movie that showed that a distant place and a foreign culture, rather than something staged on a set in a studio. Focusing on the title character and his family, "Nanook of the North" showed the traditional Inuit ways of hunting and fishing, building igloos, and other cultural aspects. Consequently, Flaherty's film is considered a prime example of what is called salvage ethnography, which had to do with capturing a record of a culture before it disappeared.

There are questions about the degree to which Flaherty manipulated situations and edited his film. We know that Flaherty picked an Inuit named Allakariallak to be his star because he was the most famous hunter in that area, but we also know that Nyla and Cuanyou, the two Inuit women cast as his wives, were not his wives, any more than Allee and Allegoo were his sons, carried around by their "mothers" in the hoods of their parkas. Anthropologists agree that the way we see Nanook and the other Inuit hunting seals and whales are traditional practices, but there is reason to believe Flaherty would not let his subjects use guns and made them hunt in the manner of their ancestors. Consequently, what we have here could be the recreation of traditional Inuit ways of hunting, which still has to be of some value. Besides, the life of hunting on the ice that Flaherty shows is indeed as dangerous as it looks, where a seal could prove to be as deadly as a walrus, and Allakariallak would die two years later when he was lost in a storm.

We understand that by contemporary standards Flaherty's practices would be considered unethical for someone making a documentary film, but since he was a pioneer in this field he gets the benefit of working at a time when rules did not exist to be broken. Hearing stories of how special igloos had to be constructed so that Flaherty could have his large camera inside to shoot family scenes speaks more to his attempt to show people what it was like than an attempt to just make things up, so overall I am comfortable with the sense of mimesis established here. Only at the end, when we are supposed to believe Nanook's family are desperately searching for shelter, does the documentary really descend into dramatic license that is clearly over the line.

All things considered, "Nanook of the North" might not be true, but for the most part it comes across as being real, which is ultimately more important. I can see elements that might be considered racist, but I have to wonder if that is because the film has the audacity to suggest that the stereotypical view of the Inuit as happy people is more true than false. Then again, lots of people smile a lot more when they know a camera is on them. The 1922 documentary runs 79 minutes and remains in fairly good condition, with a passable chamber music score. There is also a brief interview with Flaherty's widow from the 1950s and a selection of still photographs from both the "Nanook of the North" shoot and some of Flaherty's other trips through the Arctic north. The historic value of "Nanook of the North" might outweigh the artistic, but not by much.

groundbreaking.......2006-07-04

I believe this is known as the first official known documentary film. Like all good documentaries, it was able to make me, the viewer, relate to the subject. I was able to empathize and feel for the plight of Nanook and his family. Such a classic!

Una historia de amor y lucha en el årtico .......2006-07-02

Nanuk, el esquimal no solo fue el primer film de Robert Flaherty sino que fue también el film documental que, junto a El hombre de la cámara de Dziga Vertov, se distinguió del resto de las producciones documentales de la época al abrir un nuevo camino en el entendimiento de lo real mediante las imágenes cinematográficas. Y es que para Flaherty crear una imagen no era asunto de registrar lo que aparecía ante el lente de la cámara; las imágenes tenían que ser descubiertas para ser inventadas y así convertirse en metáforas. De ahí su sorprendente y polémico método de trabajo: años y años de rodaje y revelado, de observación y envolvimiento, de manipulación muchas veces inescrupulosa. Nanuk, el esquimal surgió luego de varias expediciones a la Bahía Hudson en Canadá, realizadas por Flaherty y su esposa y colaboradora Frances Flaherty, bajo la nómina de Sir William Mackenzie con el fin de averiguar el potencial ferroviario y mineral de toda esa vasta región. Conmovido por la experiencia humana de las gentes que habitaban esos parajes, en una de esas expediciones llevó consigo una cámara de fotografía y una de cine. Una vez allí, inventó en el transcurso de varios años la historia de Nanuk, un cazador de la etnia Inuit, y su lucha por la supervivencia en un ambiente hostil. El film fue proyectado con mucha concurrencia en el año 1922 y desde entonces ha sido una de las piedras más sólidas de la corta historia del cine. Con este film Flaherty dio un giro totalmente inédito, incluso hoy día, del quehacer cinematográfico y mostró lo que exige e implica la construcción, mediante imágenes, de un modo particular de observar lo real: un compromiso con lo que se observa que nos hace cómplices de lo que aparece ante los ojos; si bien Robert Flaherty no siempre le hizo justicia a lo real, sí, al menos, nunca le hizo injusticia.

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