Back to God's Country

1919
Unrated
1h 13m

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Charles Arling, Wheeler Oakman, and Nell Shipman in Back to God's Country (1919)

A woman finds herself all alone in a remote harbor with the man responsible for the murder of her father. With seemingly nobody around to protect her, she has to be resourceful.A woman finds herself all alone in a remote harbor with the man responsible for the murder of her father. With seemingly nobody around to protect her, she has to be resourceful.A woman finds herself all alone in a remote harbor with the man responsible for the murder of her father. With seemingly nobody around to protect her, she has to be resourceful.

See production info at IMDbPro

IMDb RATING

6.2/10

995

YOUR RATING

See production info at IMDbPro

Top cast9

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Nell Shipman

Dolores LeBeau

Charles Arling

'Sealskin' Blake

Wheeler Oakman

Peter Burke

Wellington A. Playter

Capt. Rydal
(as Wellington Plater)

Ronald Byram

Peter Burke (original casting)
(uncredited)

William Colvin

Mountie Shot by Rydal
(uncredited)

Roy Laidlaw

Baptiste LeBeau, Dolores' Father
(uncredited)

Kewpie Morgan

Bully in Bar Who Shoots Chinaman
(uncredited)

Charles Murphy

The Half-Breed
(uncredited)

User reviews13

Featured review

1919 Movie Is Of More Than Passing Interest.

BACK TO GOD'S COUNTRY (1919) was one of the major successes of Canadian film pioneer Nell Shipman. It has the distinction of being the oldest surviving Canadian feature film and was also the subject of a great deal of controversy because of Shipman's nude outdoor bathing scene at the beginning. Based on a then well known Canadian story about a heroic dog (think THE CALL OF THE WILD), the movie was shot under extremely harrowing conditions.

Much of the action takes place on ice flows and was shot at temperatures as low as 60 degrees below zero. One of the principal actors developed pneumonia and died during the shooting. Shipman was a virtual one woman show on this project. In addition to starring, she also wrote, co-produced, and co-directed without credit. The film was officially credited to a director named David Hartford.

The second feature SOMETHING NEW (1920) features a novel twist on the old Western theme of kidnapping and rescuing the damsel in distress. The hero, instead of riding a horse, drives a car. The film was primarily financed by the Maxwell Car Company (Jack Benny's car) and serves as a large scale ad for their product.

The car goes over rugged terrain and along cliffs that no vehicle at the time would dream of doing. The result is a delightful spoof of traditional Westerns that manages to be exciting at the same time. This time Nell gets a directing credit. Originally available on VHS as part of Milestone Film's EQUAL TIME: THE WOMEN OF CINEMA - THE FILMMAKERS series. For more reviews visit The Capsule Critic.

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Trivia
Critically ill, lead actor Ronald Byram left the shoot during the first two weeks and was replaced by Wheeler Oakman. It is probable that it is Byram in the close-ups in the sledge in the final chase scenes. Roy Laidlaw is frequently but erroneously referred to as Ralph Laidlaw in the trade press of the time. Edna Shipman did not act in this film as is sometimes claimed. The film opened at the Strand Theater in Owosso, Michigan, where it played for three days. Canadian Photoplays Ltd. was a Calgary-based company incorporated 7 February 1919 under the laws of Alberta. Shipman-Curwood Company was later called Curwood-Carver Productions Inc.