La loi de la forêt

Early (1937) technicolor Western has Brent as the scion of a wealthy lumber family, brought back from an extended European vacation and forced to work for the family concern in Canada. They're literally at "loggerheads" with another lumber family who wants to ship their lumber through the territory without paying anything to its owners. The biggest obstacle for Brent in solving this problem is enemy boss Beverly Roberts, for whom he works until he begins to sympathize with her cause. Roberts is amusingly masculine in a leather jerkin and pants, but of course puts on the frilly dress when she gets a real shine to Mr. Brent. Allan Hale also does some solid character work as the hardy head guy. There are several notable comic performances in the film as well.

Good action, luscious photography, good performances in a funny story produce an exciting film -- one of the best in WB's inexorable line of lumber sagas.

Obviously this film was expected to be a big money maker...a prestige film for Warner Brothers. How else could you explain their using Technicolor for the film? Sadly, despite the color, the film itself is only okay...a lumbering spectacle set in the lumbering country.

When the film begins, Jeff (Robert Barrat) is furious at his brother and partner, Steve (George Brent). After all, Jeff works his butt off while Steve parties in the big city. Well, Jeff is announcing that enough is enough and it's going to end NOW! Well, apparently Steve didn't exactly believe him and soon makes a muck of things. A bit later, when Jeff takes his annoying brother on an airplane trip to the lumber fields, Steve impulsively steals the plane!! It's low on fuel and he's soon forced to land at a nearby lumber camp run by the arch rivals!! Now, he's stuck there and forced to work for a change. Can Steve manage to do a decent days work AND somehow avert an all out war between the two lumber companies?! And, more importantly, will the audience care?

The main problem with this film is that Steve is easy to hate. Sure, he improves over time but this seems very unlikely considering what a jerk he is in the first third of the picture. Another is that the female love interest is about as alluring as a cactus! Overall, despite a few good moments, a nice sea plane and a cool explosion, it's a thoroughly mediocre film and nothing more...so don't let the color fool you!

A year after Paramount did its first outdoor color feature, The Trail Of The Lonesome Pine, Warner Brothers shot this film entirely on location in the timber country of the State of Washington. God's Country And The Woman is about two feuding timber families and the head of one family trying to crush the other.

But Robert Barrat has more than getting rid of Beverly Roberts and her holdings on his mind. He's got a lazy irresponsible playboy brother in the person of George Brent who spends the money as fast as Bob can cut down the trees to make it.

Through a combination of circumstances that you have to watch God's Country And The Woman for, Brent winds up working for the opposition and wooing Beverly Roberts. I don't think I have to tell you how all this turn's out.

Brent's playing a part that probably was originally written with Errol Flynn in mind, in fact I think the project was conceived for Errol Flynn and Olivia DeHavilland. Bette Davis turned this one down also and went on suspension. So the B team of George Brent and Beverly Roberts was brought in.

On the plus side the camera work in this film is superb. The footage was used many times over by Warner Brothers. Though not credited here, I recognize some of it from their later logging story from the Fifties, The Big Trees.

The story however may have been a little too overplotted and Robert Barrat does an about face in character and motivation that one does not see coming in any way.

Good scenery of the great Pacific Northwest and excellent background shooting of the work of the lumberjacks. Sad though that it's tied to a rather pedestrian tale.