The Moon Is Down (film)
The Moon Is Down is a 1943 American war film starring Cedric Hardwicke and Henry Travers and directed by Irving Pichel. It is based on the 1942 novel of the same name by John Steinbeck. During World War II, German soldiers occupy a small Norwegian town.
| The Moon Is Down | |
|---|---|
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| Directed by | Irving Pichel |
| Written by | Nunnally Johnson |
| Based on | the novel The Moon Is Down by John Steinbeck |
| Produced by | Nunnally Johnson |
| Starring | Cedric Hardwicke Henry Travers |
| Cinematography | Arthur Miller |
| Edited by | Louis Loeffler |
| Music by | Alfred Newman |
Production company | |
| Distributed by | Twentieth Century-Fox |
Release dates |
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Running time | 90 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $1.7 million[1] |
| Box office | $1.2 million (US rentals)[2] |
Cast
- Sir Cedric Hardwicke as Col. Lanser
- Henry Travers as Mayor Orden
- Lee J. Cobb as Dr. Albert Winter
- Dorris Bowdon as Molly Morden
- Margaret Wycherly as Sarah Orden
- Peter van Eyck as Lt. Tonder
- William Post, Jr. as Alex Morden
- Henry Rowland as Capt. Loft
- E. J. Ballantine as George Corell
- Hans Schumm as Capt. Bentick
- Frederic Brunn as German Soldier (as Frederick Brunn)
- Ernst Deutsch as Maj. Hunter (as Ernest Dorian)
- Ludwig Donath as Hitler's Voice (as Louis Donath)
- John Banner as Lt. Prackle (uncredited)
- Jeff Corey as Albert (uncredited)
- Ludwig Hardt as Elderly Man (uncredited)
Production
The set of How Green Was My Valley was reused for this film.[3]
Reception
Bosley Crowther, the film reviewer for The New York Times, gave The Moon Is Down a mixed verdict. He lauded screenwriter Nunnally Johnson for creating a "clear and incisive screen version" of the book, resulting in "a picture which is the finest on captured Norway yet and a powerful expression of faith in the enduring qualities of a people whose hearts are strong." He also praised "Irving Pichel's superlative direction and a generally excellent cast". However, Crowther also observed that "the intellectual nature of this picture—its very clear and dispassionate reasoning—drain it of much of the emotion that one expects in such a story at this time."[3]
References
- "Top Coin Pix Minus Stars". Variety. March 1943. p. 3.
- "Top Grossers of the Season", Variety, 5 January 1944 p 54
- Bosley Crowther (March 27, 1943). "'The Moon Is Down,' the Film Version of Steinbeck's Novel and Play, Starring Sir Cedric Hardwicke, Opens at Rivoli". The New York Times.
External links
- The Moon Is Down at IMDb
- The Moon Is Down at the American Film Institute Catalog
- The Moon Is Down at the TCM Movie Database
- The Moon Is Down at AllMovie