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Reading the other IMDb reviews of Northern Pursuit, I began to wonder if the monkey-see-monkey-do reviewers trashing it watched the same movie I did! Or if they watched it at all. This Mounties versus Nazis picture bears little resemblance, as claimed, to The 49th Parallel and even less to Across The Pacific.

From the opening scene with a German submarine breaking through the ice in Hudson Bay to the climatic showdown in a bomber aloft, Northern Pursuit is high-powered excitement all the way. Not surprisingly, with all the high-powered talent Warner Brothers threw into this enjoyable World War II action picture. Top action director Raoul Walsh directs top action star Errol Flynn with a script by popular western writer Frank Gruber and high class novelist William Faulkner. Solid support is provided by Helmut Dantine, reprising his ruthless Nazi officer from Edge Of Darkness (see my review), perky Julie Bishop, Tom Tully, John Ridgely, and Gene Lockhart in another of what was becoming his stock sneaky, Nazi sympathizer role. First rate camera work by Sid Hickox and the smooth editing typical in movies of this era blends studio sets and Idaho ski resort locations with skillfully dovetailed backdrop matting to so successfully convince us we were above the Artic Circle, it gave me a chill at times. The action is propelled along by one Adolphe Deutsch's better scores, enlivened by some input by the great Max Steiner. The story of German descent Mountie Flynn penetrating a Nazi-sympathizing Canadian spy organization co-operating with escaped German prisoners of war maintains suspense and interest throughout. The sharply directed action includes an avalanche, a prison camp breakout, a hair-raising ski chase, and a shoot-out in a mine shaft. Characterization and acting are top notch. Dantine's Nazi Colonel is particularly well realized. This Austrian refugee actor no doubt knew what real-life Nazis were like. He had had to flee his home country because because of his anti-Nazi activities.

While not a classic of the genre like Edge Of Darkness, Nothern Pursuit is a top "A" production war/intrigue thriller, effective WWII propaganda yet enjoyable, exciting, smooth entertainment from Warner Brothers' and Old Hollywood's Golden years.

Errol Flynn was a fascinating screen presence. Just look at how many books have been written about him including a couple he wrote himself. I found a good dozen on Amazon before I stopped counting. Some well-known actors and filmmakers often have only one biography or even none at all.

"Northern Pursuit" isn't the best of his movies, but it is Flynn at his best. He looks in great shape despite the fact that he had a dicky ticker, a bad back, tuberculosis, a couple of exotic diseases picked up along the way and a liver that was in more danger of destruction than any target of the Nazis in the film.

Set in Canada during WW2, Errol plays Steve Wagner, a Royal Canadian Mountie of German Ancestry whose loyalty is questioned when he comes across Nazi secret agents who are planning to bomb a canal that is critical to the Allied war effort.

Although the story feels cobbled together, the film looks good. Most of it was shot on the sound stage and no doubt a great deal of talcum powder and papier mache was employed, but the sequence where a U-Boat breaks through the ice and scenes such as the avalanche are brilliantly staged.

However the stars make the film. Although Errol was rarely upstaged, Helmut Dantine was Warner's go-to Nazi guy during the war years. He plays Colonel Hugo von Keller in this film. The reason why Dantine was more effective than many screen Nazis at the time was the degree of intelligence with which he approached his roles. He was no off-the-rack, monocled Nazi stereotype, he came across as vigorous, smart and fanatical; a formidable enemy, he was also good looking and often got the best lines.

If you like the stars, and Flynn was absolutely unique, then there is much to enjoy here. In fact the film was a bit of a turning point for him- he even got a laugh with an in-joke at the end alluding to his recent acquittal on rape charges. From that point on he went along with the joke about his sexual prowess although those who knew him felt that it hurt his desire to be taken seriously as an actor.

Finally, for anyone with a sense of history, "Northern Pursuit" is a fascinating insight into what audiences were watching during the war even if they took it all with a generous pinch of salt.

This is not a great movie, not Robin Hood or The Sea Hawk. But neither is it the bad movie some of the previous reviewers suggest.

I found it very suspenseful.

If you try viewing it as the original, intended audience did back in 1943, when the U.S. was not winning the war in Europe and there were fears of German infiltration everywhere, you can imagine how relevant this story would have been to audiences.

Tension is maintained for much of the movie by keeping us in suspense regarding Flynn's character's allegiances. No, of course we can't believe he's really a Nazi, but for the first half of the movie, it certainly seems as if he might be.

I was surprised, and thrown off guard, by the number of "good guys" who got killed in this movie. That made it seem more real to me.

The last scene is pure Hollywood, and pure corn. But up until then, there is a lot to admire and enjoy in this movie.

Northern Pursuit (1943)

A solid, serious film that shouts its political message too loudly, but is so unusual, and potentially scary it remains interesting for anyone into WWII films. Truly fascinating is the setting—the north woods of Canada in winter—and the involvement of Native Americans, who side with the Nazis for the simple reason that that means siding against Canada. (This is addressed in some brutal killings partway through.) The key plot idea is that a group of expert Nazis might actually sneak into remote areas of the country to perform acts of sabotage.

The movie audience here is mostly in the United States, to be sure (Canada's population is so small it is always a secondary concern from the studio's point of view). And the leading actor, Errol Flynn, takes on the larger issues well. That is: devotion to good, personal sacrifice to defeat the enemy, and providing an example of moral uncertainty resolving itself as the circumstances become clear. The issues he faces (in Canada) applied to the U.S. equally.

Canada, to be sure, entered the war officially with Great Britain in 1939. But by 1943 the U.S. was also officially fighting. Cooperation between the two neighbors was a given, overall, but they had different national priorities to smooth out. Flynn was so famous at the time, despite (or because of) some personal scandal, he carried the movie.

But it's cobbled together stuff, quasi-propaganda. None of it was shot in Canada, though it's convincing enough. The romance is really almost superfluous, but it gives of course the audience that extra layer to swoon about, briefly. Most viewers will find a lot of this formulaic and rough sledding, but it isn't terrible, and the themes have lasting power.

An Errol Flynn adventure from 1943 directed by Raoul Walsh. Flynn plays a Canadian Mountie who comes across a German air officer in the snowy hinterlands. Sending his partner ahead, Flynn's higher-ups fear his German lineage may compromise his standing w/his prisoner who may use undue influence to corrupt him. Seizing upon this notion, Flynn pretends to be a friend to Germany as he befriends the Nazi (who has broken out from an internment camp w/some other Hessians) so he can upset their plans to construct an airplane to make their escape from Canada. That's a lot of dunderheaded plotting for something that should be as light & airy as a paper plane but the crackerjack direction & the effortless charisma by Flynn is enough to keep even the most jaded viewer firmly planted in their seat for the duration.

Although not quite as gripping as "Desperate Journey", or as marvelously sprawling as "49th Parallel", this slick film is everything you could ask for in a WWII actioner--even more, with Errol Flynn teaming up with Raoul Walsh. The acting is good, and the direction is taut and entertaining, with writers Bessie and Gruber providing a suspenseful story line concerning a nazi spy(Dantine) captured in Canada by a Royal Mountie(Flynn), the spy's escape from prison camp, and Flynn's efforts to thwart Dantine's nefarious mission in the great white north(and a dastardly mission it is, too--those dirty Nazis!).

Adolph Deutsch scores a cleverly subtle soundtrack to raise the suspense quotient, as he did for "High Sierra" and "The Maltese Falcon". Just the "Kick 'em in the Axis" kind of movie to watch, if you've already seen and liked "Tartu" and "The Commandos Strike At Dawn".

Attractive Canadian setting and interesting plot start-up degenerates into standard action flick with shootouts between bad guys and good guys. Well done and acted, but little plot interest the second half.

This is a real bow-wow.

Errol Flynn stars in "Northern Pursuit," a 1943 propaganda film directed by Raoul Walsh. It also stars Helmut Dantine, Gene Lockhart, and Julie Bishop.

Walsh told a story of how Jack Warner used to call him up to his office and tell him he had to direct a script for him. Warner would have no details, not even the cast. "Some bum," he would say, when Walsh asked him who was in it. This scenario might have been the case for "Northern Pursuit." Flynn and Walsh were very close friends, but they both might have been blind-sided into this one by dear old Jack.

The premise story concerns Nazis in Canada who are trying to get way into the Canadian wilderness, where parts of a bomber have been hidden. Once assembled, it's going to take out the St. Lawrence Seaway. More than a little preposterous. Flynn is a mountie whose character is of German descent, so he goes undercover and, knowing the area, helps the Nazis on their journey.

Even if you ignore this plot, and you have to in order to get through the movie, it's pretty slow going. There are some exciting scenes, but this isn't your usual Flynn adventure film. Helmut Dantine and Gene Lockhart give excellent performances, though, and handsome, charismatic Flynn does as well as he can given the circumstances.

A youngster on this board trashed this movie, the 1940s audiences, and propaganda films in general, making mention of the "special effects." Given that this was filmed on a Warner sound stage without benefit of CGI and a computer, the film looks pretty good, with some very effective effects. I don't think the 1940s audiences were stupid -rather, I think the audiences today have been dumbed down. Propaganda movies weren't so that audiences would hate the enemy. I have a feeling they already did. They were done to keep up the morale during a very difficult time in this country. "Northern Pursuit" isn't particularly representative of the genre. When you consider the number of films the studios put out, they had a very high number of excellent ones. Okay, so this isn't one of them.

Basically 'Errol Flynn vs. the Nazis, Round 3' Battleground: Canada

Being myself a Canadian, I was thrilled to find in my 'TCM Spotlight: Errol Flynn Adventures' (five films made during WWII in which Errol Flynn battles the Nazis) a film helmed by one of my favourite American directors of the period, in Raoul Walsh, with Flynn starring as a RCMP officer (typically called 'Mountie') making sure the Nazis can't succeed in their quest to sneak into Canada and, there, create another front in their quest to bring hell on Earth. As a child, I loved his rendition of one of my very favourite heroes (Robin Hood), and lately I quite enjoyed seeing the ill-starred (dying at 50--again in Canada--from a heart attack brought on by chronic alcoholism) native Australian who was perhaps the second-most alluring male thespian of all-time, behind the equally ill-fated Rudolph Valentino, in an audacious TCM 4-pack of outstanding adventure movies, such as 'Captain Blood' and 'The Sea Hawk', and an equally intriguing 4-pack of Westerns he made as his star began to wane.

This doesn't disappoint, as Walsh directs, just like he always does, with an appealing eye and a talent for setting up suspense and excitement. Highly recommended to either fans of Flynn, war films or of cinema from the period.

Raoul Walsh, the director of "Northern Pursuit", was a man with impressive credentials during his days in Hollywood. Unfortunately, this film, which kept reminding this viewer of Michael Powell's "49th Parallel", has its moments and will reward the viewer that sticks with it, in some ways.

The plot was typical of the films turned by the big studios during the days of WWII. Although the propaganda in "Northern Pursuit" doesn't strike the viewer as too obvious, it's there all along. The idea of a Royal Mountie, in this case, the dashing Errol Flynn, going after the bad guys have all the elements for a good adventure.

The screen play is ultimately the downfall of the film, although there are hints of greatness, especially on the last part of the film which involves a daring attempt from the head Nazi infiltrator to fly an aircraft with a bomb on board. The locations appear to be real, but we can see the scenes shot in the studio.

Errol Flynn does his job well. Helmut Dantine, playing Keller, the Nazi bad guy, is even better. Gene Lockhart has a pivotal role in the film. Julie Bishop is Errol Flynn's love interest, although there's no obvious chemistry between them.

Raoul Walsh's fans will probably enjoy this film a lot more than the casual viewer.

In Northern Pursuit, the brothers Warner tried to adapt the earlier Humphrey Bogart film, Across the Pacific to a story about our neighbors to the north. What I think they were trying for was a repeat of the critical and popular success the British film, the 49th Parallel enjoyed. I'm sure Errol Flynn's name above the title sold a few tickets back in the day, but as for drama Northern Pursuit is one of the more laughable examples of wartime propaganda zeal.

Like in 49th Parallel a group of Nazis get over to Canada, but they're going to the great frozen north instead of away from it. And they nearly all get killed in an landslide, mistakenly called an avalanche in the script. All, but Helmut Dantine.

Errol Flynn finds him and he's a Mountie of German ancestry, a fact that Dantine tries to exploit. Later on when Dantine escapes to try and complete his original mission, Flynn joins him and this is where the plot of the film looks just like Across the Pacific. If you've seen that film, you know exactly what happens here.

If Flynn looks a little disinterested in the whole business, it's probably not just the story that's doing it. Errol was fresh from his acquittal in that rape trial so I'm sure he had other things on his mind.

Seen today, Northern Pursuit is unintentionally funny in many spots, it's one of the low points of Flynn's career at Warner Brothers.

Some might dismiss this film as typical Hollywood propaganda...and they may be right, to a certain extent. But I dig old movies because they do not often cloud the issues, and the good guys and bad guys are not hard to pinpoint, unless you are watching a real mystery of some sort. There is some mystery here, though not the type Ellery Queen would flaunt. Nazis came through to the American continent during WWII in numbers that would make us all more uncomfortable than we would admit. Canada had its share, for sure, and the RCMP had its work cut out for it. People often forget that prior to the hostilities of that war, there existed something called the "German/American" Bund, and that the majority of immigrants to this nation are of Germanic descent. To the Germans, this made the pickings good if they could get a smooth talking German to make the point and gain converts. That is the premise here, with Flynn and his Mountie buddy making a bust of these interlopers. But Flynn blows it, does not make an arrest, and things start to look as if he is a traitor to the Crown. Turns out, it is an orchestration to merely find out what these Nazi chumps are up to...but the price is an horrific one. Lives are lost along the way, some needlessly and even a few Nazis are thrown to the wolves by their own kith and kin. Flynn's WWII efforts are particularly appealing because of his suavete, his accent, and his general bearing. These may seem un-American to some, but he was, actually, quite Patriotic for the times. WWII movies are very entertaining because WWII can be viewed as more if a "just war", if anything can be imagined...and a lot of heart and passion went into many of the films, which were manned by the best directors and crews, and populated by some of the greatest of actors. This one does not approach the thresh-hold of 'great' by any means, but it is very entertaining. A worthy watch if you care to view it.

NORTHERN PURSUIT has some well photographed chase scenes, supposedly through the snow of the Canadian wilderness, although many of the matching shots are clearly studio-bound. Nevertheless, the weak script and cardboard characters contribute toward reducing it to a standard and slick wartime adventure.

Flynn is a Mountie of German descent, pretending Nazi sympathies in order to spy against Nazis operating in Canada. Helmut Dantine is a force to be reckoned with as the head Nazi--but at times is reduced to a standard "dumb" Nazi who falls too easily for Flynn's deception.

It's all supposed to be taken seriously--unlike DESPERATE JOURNEY which injected a great deal of humor into the Flynn-against-Nazis theme. But with cardboard supporting characters adding nothing to the film's credibility--and a weak script--this is strictly for Flynn fans. Julie Bishop makes no impression whatsoever in the feminine lead.

This was hot stuff back in the 1940s, entertaining as a Saturday afternoon diversion. Now it's simply a non-involving Flynn adventure with some nicely photographed snow chase scenes and nothing else that really matters.

I really enjoyed watching This movie. Errol Flynn is acting well and the movie is exciting from the beginning until the end. Its worth watching . In war and in other difficult situations you have to make difficult decisions and you have to be brave and have courage.This movie got the most of the ingredients of an exciting movie and it is difficult to guess what happens next in This movie. I really recommend This movie.

First of all "Northwest Pursuit" is a propaganda film, although unlike "Saving Private Ryan" it at least has the excuse of having been made "during" the war. WWII propaganda films were painful viewing for anyone of even modest intelligence because their intent was to demonize the enemy and frighten the viewer, who ideally would rush out of the theater and begin manically buying war bonds.

Second it is a screenplay by Frank Gruber who wrote very bad western novels and detective fiction before inflicting himself on motion pictures and television. Which means that the target intelligence level is low even by the subterranean standards of propaganda films. Third it is over 60 years old so the moronic premise is even shakier than it would have been in 1943. Actually this might work in its favor if you just want a few laughs but my reaction was mostly embarrassment.

The premise is that prior to the outbreak of WWII the ever methodical Germans had the foresight to ship crates of airplane parts and a bunch of bombs to Canada and to hide all this stuff in a abandoned mine deep in the wilderness (the location shooting actually took place in Sun Valley, Idaho). Captured Nazi airmen are set free and cross-country ski to the mine. Once there they unpack the parts and in a couple days assemble a large "bomber" with which they intend to bomb the locks on the St. Lawrence Seaway. If your plausibility meter has just jumped off the scale remember that this was intended for an audience raised on "The Adventures of Tom Swift".

Errol Flynn plays a RCMP agent who infiltrates the Nazi network and is later forced to help with their scheme because they are holding his girlfriend (played by Julie Bishop) as a hostage. Helmut Dantine plays a fanatical Luftwaffe pilot and Gene Lockhart (June Lockhart's father) plays an undercover Nazi agent.

Unfortunately Gruber's goal was to induce hysteria rather than to script characters with logical motivations. This means that most of the actions of Dantine's logical and mission focused leader defy all logic (and mission focus for that matter), serving only dehumanize him. Lockhart's character does not come off much better, starting off as a sneaky murderer and then reduced to a sniveling coward. Propaganda films do not portray the enemy as a worthy opponent but as either a craven coward or a mad dog.

Lockhart's performance is the best thing about the film. Flynn can be excused for sleepwalking through this thing, as it would be difficult for anyone saddled with a script this bad to summon up much energy.

If you don't get some laughs from the premise or the dialogue you might still get some entertainment from the scene of the Indian Guide (played by Joe Herrera) trying to escape. These fake snow chase scenes should be pulled out whenever somebody complains about the quality of today's digital effects.

Then again, what do I know? I'm only a child.

Errol Flynn made a handful of good WW2 movies. This is probably the least of them but it's still an entertaining watch. Directed by the great Raoul Walsh, here we have Errol playing a Canadian Mountie of German descent who tries to infiltrate a group of Nazi saboteurs led by Helmut Dantine. Flynn does fine here but it's a part that requires very little of his strengths. About the only time you really see that Flynn charm is in the film's final line, which is probably the most memorable part of this besides the curiosity of the "Mounties vs Nazis" plot. Helmut Dantine plays the icy villain quite well. Gene Lockhart's a particularly slimy Nazi agent. I couldn't wait to see someone wipe that smug grin off his face. Julie Bishop is a bland love interest but that's probably more the script's fault than hers. Alec Craig is a little annoying as walking stereotype Angus McBain. As I said, not the best of Flynn's WW2 movies but anything starring Errol and directed by Raoul Walsh is going to be worth a look. It's not a bad film by any stretch, just not as good as I hoped it would be.

Okay, so the British film 49th Parallel has a similar basic premise and is much better. But this one isn't bad. It definitely is an American film in that it focuses more on the action and romance than the integrity of the story. Flynn playing a Mountie is essentially just any typical American western hero except with the whole snow and funny hats thing.

Now, no offense to our Canadian neighbors, with their beady eyes and flapping heads, but the average American couldn't pinpoint Toronto or Vancouver on a map. So, it doesn't really matter to them if the geography or the seasonal months are wrong. The movie could be set at the North Pole for all anyone in the middle of North America cares. I know that's insulting and demonstrates our ignorance, but it also means the filmmakers aren't going to be worried.

Take those elements away, and you basically have a fairly standard WW2 saboteur thriller. Because it's made by Raoul Walsh, it suffers from his strange combination of sometimes getting scenes just eerily right with atmosphere and camerawork and then others just completely wrong, especially with the editing. I'm not sure why, but pretty much every Walsh film is uneven, as though he just shot each scene individually, sometimes without enough takes and no concern for how it was going to fit together in the end.

The parts of this movie that drag the most involve the romance. I don't know what it is about movies in the 30s and 40s, but if someone isn't breaking out into song they're romancing someone in the most inappropriate moments. If this movie had just stuck to the spy stuff, it might have been considerably better.

There's some nice model work at the beginning with the U-boat, and the settings have that fun studio set look that was common while also being scenic and interesting. There's some good lighting and chases, and Flynn gives no worse a performance than anything else he'd done. So this is a serviceable film. No, not brilliant, but a notch above a TV show episode.