La forêt interdite

Taken in the context of the 'feather' craze that almost decimated the birds of the Everglades at the turn of the 20th Century, this movie -almost- presaged Rachel Carson and Marjorie Stoneman Douglas. A moving depiction of the River Of Grass, those who lived WITH it and those who tried to DESTROY it. Christopher Plummer and Burl Ives gave this movie a depth that seemed effortless It deserved a wider release and I can only hope it will be issued as a DVD. It was based upon a true story of a federal wildlife ranger. The Manchineal trees have been displaced by Malelucas, what a pity, I would rope all the inhabitants of South Florida to the formers caustic trunks and enjoy he howls of pain

And in Nicholas Ray's canon,it's not the only one.Few directors (if there were any) displayed ecological concern fifty years ago.Maybe John Huston did when he filmed the plight of the elephants in "roots of Heaven" at the time.But it was not as successful as "wind across the everglades.

They say Ray did not finish the film (once again it was not the only one;see also "55 days at Peking" )but ,apart from his plea for the everglades wildlife,we find one of his permanent features:the Walt/Cottonmouth relationship is very complex and verges on a father and son one (for that matter ,see also " knock on any door" "the lusty men" " run for cover" ..) The picture with these birds flying away is sublime.

It's the turn of the century. Ornithologist Walt Murdock (Christopher Plummer) arrives in the Florida Everglades to photograph local birds and to enforce the newly declared bird/animal sanctuary. Walt finds himself confronted by a family of poachers led by Cottonmouth (Burl Ives) and the local trade in feather plumage.

This apparently had a troubled production. The swamp people has shades of Deliverance with shocks of bright colors. There are some great natural views but the production can get stuck in the mud. The ecological and native themes are a bit ahead of its time. On the other hand, the melodrama and old costumes feel old. Most of this is a bit of a mess until the last section. It's as if the film figured out that it has two great actors in the cast. It becomes a mano-a-mano film and it's so good. The first two thirds is an interesting fail but it becomes almost electric in the last act.

I love this movie and the important message to brings!

Burl Ives and his band of lowlife bird poachers are the equivalent of the "rednecks" in "Deliverance". Christopher Plummer on the other hand is their Audobon Society adversary, trying to protect the tropical birds and their valuable feathers. When the movie is in the Everglades, it moves along at a pretty good pace, while the Miami scenes feel padded. I'd imagine there has to be at least a bunch of fashionable ladies parading around in their feathered hats to make a point, but the scene on the beach and Gypsy Rose Lee's ladies of the evening are somewhat overplayed. The film is strongest when Ives and Plummer are on screen, almost everyone else is forgettable. I would rate this only slightly above average, but definitely watchable. - MERK