IMDb RATING
7.7/10
3.7K
YOUR RATING
A Chicago waitress falls in love with a Minnesota farmer, and decides to face a life in the country.A Chicago waitress falls in love with a Minnesota farmer, and decides to face a life in the country.A Chicago waitress falls in love with a Minnesota farmer, and decides to face a life in the country.
Guinn 'Big Boy' Williams
- Reaper
- (as Guinn Williams)
Anne Shirley
- Marie Tustine
- (as Dawn O'Day)
Patrick Rooney
- Butch
- (as Pat Rooney)
Marjorie Beebe
- Waitress
- (uncredited)
Eddie Boland
- Reaper
- (uncredited)
Joe Brown
- Cafe Patron
- (uncredited)
Harry Gripp
- Reaper
- (uncredited)
Mark Hamilton
- Greasy the Reaper
- (uncredited)
Werner Klingler
- Reaper
- (uncredited)
Charles Lane
- Man at Train Station
- (uncredited)
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaDirector F.W. Murnau wanted the title of the film to be "Our Daily Bread", but the studio refused. Murnau's working title was the title used in several European countries' distribution.
- GoofsEach time Lem's father, Kate, and Mac storm out of the farmhouse after Kate bandages Mac's hand, the shadow of the screen door moves across the "sky" backdrop.
- Alternate versionsThere is a silent version, shot by F.W. Murnau, and a part-talkie sound version, with music and parts re-shot by two directors hired by the studio, after Murnau's refusal to do so. The sound version is now considered lost. The silent version was restored and edited in DVD and Blu-Ray with an original score added in August 2008.
- ConnectionsFeatured in Murnau, Borzage and Fox (2008)
Featured review
Romantic drama from Fox and director F.W. Murnau
Minnesota farm boy Lem (Charles Ferrell) travels to the big city of Chicago for the first time to sell his family's annual wheat harvest. He meets tough-cookie waitress Kate (Mary Duncan) who dreams of a simpler life. The two fall for each other and get married, but they receive a less-than-warm reception back home from Lem's angry, tyrannical father (David Torrence). Kate is disappointed when Lem won't stand up to his father's violent ways, and things get more complicated when a work team arrives for the harvest, and the men start making advances on Kate.
Although less artistically flashy than many of Murnau's films, this is stronger narratively. While Murnau was said to be disappointed that producer William Fox insisted on the casting of Duncan in the female lead (Murnau wanted to cast Janet Gaynor), I have to say that I was very impressed with Duncan's performance, and I consider it the highlight of the film. Torrence is also good as the mean father, and I like that he's given a nuanced background, showing that his ill-temper is a result of his worries over making ends meet and paying the bills, a source of stress for most farmers. The only drawback for me with this movie was that the end tied everything up a little too neatly to be believable. Recommended.
Although less artistically flashy than many of Murnau's films, this is stronger narratively. While Murnau was said to be disappointed that producer William Fox insisted on the casting of Duncan in the female lead (Murnau wanted to cast Janet Gaynor), I have to say that I was very impressed with Duncan's performance, and I consider it the highlight of the film. Torrence is also good as the mean father, and I like that he's given a nuanced background, showing that his ill-temper is a result of his worries over making ends meet and paying the bills, a source of stress for most farmers. The only drawback for me with this movie was that the end tied everything up a little too neatly to be believable. Recommended.
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- AlsExGal
- May 4, 2023
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Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Language
- Also known as
- Our Daily Bread
- Filming locations
- Athena, Oregon, USA(Verified via newspaper article published August 1928- THE ATHENA PRESS)
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
- Runtime1 hour 30 minutes
- Color
- Sound mix
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