First Comes Courage

Merle Oberon ("Nicole") is quite effective in this tale of the Norwegian resistance to the occupying Nazis. She earns the disdain of her fellow countrymen by fraternising with "Maj. Dichter" (Carl Esmond) but is really milking him for information which she has passed on to the British. When a few commandos are parachuted in - including "Lowell" (Brian Aherne), the true love of "Nicole" - things really start to heat up and just about everybody's life is on the line. "Dichter" is also now really starting to smell rat very close to home. It's a good, solid adventure story this with plenty of stirring music from Ernest Tock that builds to quite a fitting, exciting and touching denouement. The sentiment of courage and bravery is well delivered. The strength of character from this young woman determined to do her bit for her nation, regardless of the risk to herself, is well captured by Dorothy Arzner here. There is plenty going on for 90 minutes and it is well worth watching.

Merle Oberon plays Nicole Larsen, a Norwegian who is playing a VERY high stakes spy game. She is working for the Resistance AND at the same time dating* the local Nazi commander. However, the plan has always been that the commander gets too close to discovering her true identity that the British would send in commandos to kill him. They don't want to use local talent because the murder would lead to serious retribution towards the local populace. So, the plan is to have an agent specifically target this Nazi during a raid to hide the true purpose of the attack. Now this is a pretty simple plan...perhaps too simple. So the writer throws in a monkey wrench. The commando who is sent in to kill the man is also Nicole's former lover, Captain Lowell (Brian Aherne). And then, to further muddle things, the Nazi wants to marry Nicole and Nicole wants to go through with it and NOT have the man killed. Why? Well, see the film.

This is a very nice espionage film that strongly emphasizes self- sacrifice and patriotism. I am sure the message was being pounded hard in order to bolster the war effort at home, but it was done deftly enough that it did not come off as preachy of obvious like many propaganda films. Overall, well acted and worth seeing...so good I almost gave this one an 8.

The film is so much better than the book. You can better understand the motivations and limitations of the characters. This movie has been quite a favorite of mine.

Dismissed by the late David Shipman as 'idiotic' and given short shrift by the eminent female critic C. A. Lejeune, 'First Comes Courage' is familiar today largely as the final title in Dorothy Arzner's filmography. Seemingly marking a striking departure with the romantic dramas she was associated with during the twenties & thirties since it comprises one of the fast-growing genre of dramas depicting the resistance in Europe, it's not quite the radical break with her earlier work it might initially seem since Arzner subsequently made training films for the Womens Army Corps before leaving Hollywood for good.

Those studying this film for evidence of female empowerment will be gratified to notice that it was edited like many of her previous films by a woman, while Merle Oberon's dismissal of Nazis as "All of you are weak, cowardly, little people!" evokes the scene where Maureen O'Hara turns on the men in her audience in 'Dance, Girl, Dance'. An interesting subtext is further provided by the presence of Isobel Elsom as a doctor also shown as connected to the resistance; while the disapproving looks Oberon receives from other Norwegian women eloquently demonstrates what the locals thought of horizontal collaboration.

One of the users said s/he almost gave this film an 8. That was my exact opinion, until I watched "The Mortal Storm". In my opinion, this is a better film with an equally impressive and handsome hero and a more impressive (albeit more glamorous looking) heroine - less romance, more sacrifices, which seemingly best suited during wartime.