L'empereur du Nord

When I first saw this movie, it was released as "Emperor of the North", although some of the early promos added "Pole' to the title. Since the top hobo of the old days was "Emperor of the North Pole", I assumed the studio wasn't sure if the average viewer would get the title. The literary character of A-number One, is based on a legendary hobo from the turn of the century, who was possibly real, as his graffiti 'A-1', or A-No-1, appeared regularly on water towers and bridges along the rails all over the USA. This film really gets the feel of a depression-era USA, and the conflict between Marvin and Borgnine is visceral and cunning, and the scene with the near-miss of the oncoming train has great tension. Carridine is great as a blowhard punk who might grow up to be something. This flick has an almost religious overtone of good versus evil. It also has a good feel for railroading, kinda like ""The Train"

Robert Aldrich was one of the most interesting American directors of the last 40 years. He moved with relative ease between genres and told his stories in a direct, honest style. This film is one of the unsung gems of the seventies, part adventure film, part social drama, part road movie.

Set during the depression when riding the rails was a way of life for desperate men (and women), the film follows three characters - Lee Marvin, as Number One, a legend among the grizzled hobos congregating along the rail lines; Ernest Borgnine as Shack, the sadistic conductor perfectly willing to do whatever necessary to keep free loaders off his trains; and a young Keith Carradine as Two-Bit, a novice full of bluster and false bravado out to make a name for himself. Marvin takes the kid under his wing; their relationship is part adversarial, as the weary elder tries to educate the fool how to survive on the line. Looming in the background is Borgnine, out to do his job at any cost. Ultimately a wager is made, and Marvin will put his life on the line to best Borgnine and show he is the Emperor of the North.

At times it's a very brutal film - the final confrontation between Marvin & Borgnine is one of the toughest, nastiest fights ever photographed - but it is splendidly made and endlessly fascinating.

Ernest Borgnine was superb as the murderous railroad agent intent on keeping a legendary hobo off his train. Lee Marvin gave one of his best performances as A#1, the hobo's hobo, who is equally set on riding the rails on Borgnine's unrideable #19. Keith Carradine almost stole the show as a useless, me first punk out to prove his manhood in the harsh hobo camps. Very realistic looking sets and the entire film captured the flavor of the depression era perfectly. 4 stars.

Very good picture and efficiently made by Robert Aldrich ; however , this was originally a project for Sam Peckinpah . The title ¨ Emperor of the North¨ refers to a joke among hobos during the Great Depression that the world's best hobo was Emperor of the North Pole, a way of poking fun at their own desperate situation since somebody ruling over the North Pole would be ruling over a wasteland . This film was made and originally released as "Emperor of the North Pole" after initial screenings , Twentieth Century Fox executives feared that audiences might think the title indicated a Christmas movie or an Arctic exploration story and so shortened the title to "Emperor of the North" . 1933 during the height of great depression in the US, and the land is full of people who are now homeless . Driven to desperation by the economic depression of 1930s America , a subculture of hobos hopped freight trains to get from place to place in search of jobs , handouts, or even to take it easy sometimes . Those people, commonly called "hobos", are truly hated by Shack (Ernest Borgnine), a sadistical railway conductor who announces he will kill any tramp who attempts to cop his train and swore that no hobo will ride his locomotive for free . Well, no-one but the legendary Number One (Lee Marvin) and a young hobo named Cigaret (Keith Carradine's character Cigaret is named after the moniker that Jack London adopted on the road) are ready to put their lives at wager to become national legends , as the first persons who survived the trip on Shack's known train .

Tough hobo Lee Marvin & sadistic conductor Ernest Borgnine meet in the fight of the century , both of whom give excellent performances . Emperor of the North Pole depicts a microcosm of this subculture set in Oregon, and actually used the Oregon, Pacific & Eastern railroad which was taken up in 1994 like so much other trackage around the country. Thus, this motion picture serves as not only a look into an important aspect of American history, but into a specific piece of it in the Pacific Northwest . Interesting and tense screenplay is based in part on the books 'The Road' by Jack London and 'From Coast to Coast with Jack London' . It was Robert Aldrich's intention that the characters played by Ernest Borgnine, Lee Marvin and Keith Carradine represented the Establishment, the Anti-Establishment and the Youth of Today respectively . Nice cinematography by Joseph Biroc reflecting appropriately the 3os and Great Depression , being stunningly filmed in Oregon. Lively and evocative musical score by Frank De Vol , Aldrich's usual, including a wonderful song by Marty Robbins .

Martin Ritt was originally slated to direct but was fired from the production , then Sam Peckinpah was approached next but he couldn't agree with the producers on money. The project was then offered to, and accepted by, Robert Aldrich who gave a tense and brilliant direction . Aldrich began writing and directing for TV series in the early 1950s, and directed his first feature in 1953 (Big Leaguer ,1953). Soon thereafter he established his own production company and produced most of his own films, collaborating in the writing of many of them . Directed in a considerable plethora of genres but almost all of his films contained a subversive undertone . He was an expert on warlike (Dirty Dozen , The Angry Hills , Attack , Ten seconds to hell) and Western (The Frisko kid , Ulzana's raid, Apache , Veracruz , The last sunset) . Raing : Above average , it's a must see and a standout in its genre

There were just so many great B movies made in the 70s and this is one of the best. Stark and cruel but completely watchable and with two excellent male leads, this brutal hobo railroad drama remains fixed in most viewers minds forever. It is also part of two great sub genres...the depression years drama and the railroad thriller. So many films to choose from in either genre and practically all watchable and enjoyable. EMPEROR was released for about 10 days and never surfaced again. I used to add it in as a double feature in my cinema right up until about 1980 and it always commanded major discovery status. The problem is the title: and like DAY OF THE LOCUST or EMPIRE OF THE SUN or other confusing titles the pubic never found it themselves. It failed on first release and was only repeatedly discovered when the public went to a double feature as described above. In Oz it was released only as EMPEROR OF THE NORTH. You could almost mix'n'match films in those days; THE STREETFIGHTER, BUSTER AND BILLIE, THE SPIKES GANG, FROM NOON TILL THREE, WHATS THE MATTER WITH HELEN, BLOODY MAMA, all interchangeable in any programme. Others here can tell you the story, but I will tell you to find it yourself and have a major discovery film enter your library.