North to Alaska (1960) User Reviews

Way Up North.....

[bsmith5552 · 8/10 · 10 September 2006]

"North To Alaska" is a rollicking action filled comedy western from Director Henry Hathaway and a departure by star John Wayne from his usual westerns.

Sam McCord (Wayne), George Pratt (Stewart Granger) and Billy Pratt (Fabian) are partners in a rich Alaskan gold mine in 1900. They have just struck it rich and go to the local saloon to celebrate. There, a raucous saloon brawl breaks out, played more for its comedy aspects than for real. Now that he has struck it rich, George can finally send for his long suffering fiancé Jenny who lives in Seattle. Before he leaves he meets scheming gambler Frankie Cannon (Ernie Kovacs) with whom he will tangle at a later date.

Since Sam has to go to Seattle to buy new mining machinery anyway, George charges him with the task of fetching Jenny back to him. In Seattle, Sam finds that Jenny has, much to her regret, since married. Sam goes to a local brothel called "The Hen House" where he happens to meet Angel (Capucine) who is French like Jenny. Sam decides to substitute Angel for Jenny and asks her to accompany him to Alaska. Angel as luck would have it, falls in love with Sam.

Before leaving for Alaska, Sam goes to a logger's picnic at the request of his old friends Lars and Lena Nordqvist (Karl Swenson and Kathleen Freeman). There he protects Angel's honor to the point that she believes he is taking her back to Alaska as his girl.

Back in Alaska, Sam brings her to his camp to find that George is away fighting claim jumpers at another camp. Sam leaves Angel in the "care" of George's young brother Billy who tries to woo her for himself with comedic results.

When George and Sam return, George is presented with Angel as a replacement for his beloved Jenny. Reluctant at first, he becomes attracted to her until he realizes that she is in love with Sam. The two then plot to make Sam jealous and well you know.

Meanwhile Cannon has cross-filed on Sam and George's claim under the name of town drunk Boggs (Mickey Shaughnessy), and then the fun begins.

Director Hathaway keeps the story moving and entertaining. Wayne proves to be quite adept at light comedy in his role. Fabian surprises as the horny kid brother in perhaps the best role of his movie career. Granger, long an action star in his own right, is equal to the task as George. Ernie Kovacs who was an innovative TV comedian at this time, is wasted as the the slimy chief villain. He hardly has a chance to display his comedic talents. Capucine is lovely and captivating as Angel. Her scenes with Fabian are hilarious.

There is plenty of action from the opening saloon brawl to the logger's picnic to the fight with the claim jumpers to the final street fight. And who can ever forget the great Johnny Horton's singing of the title song over the opening credits.

One of Wayne's most entertaining pictures.

Entertaining

[TheLittleSongbird · 8/10 · 6 February 2011]

The story is rather minimal, also there is little substance to the characters. However, I can overlook these in a way, but this was entertaining and was never meant to be complex and all that. It has beautiful cinematography and scenery. It has great music and a truly terrific title song. It has a sparkling script. It has skilled direction. It goes along at a decent pace. It has two fun performances from John Wayne and underrated Stewart Granger. And North to Alaska has one of the wildest and wackiest bar-room brawls I have seen in any movie. Overall, I liked North to Alaska, it was entertaining. 8/10 Bethany Cox

What did I did?

[hitchcockthelegend · 8/10 · 5 July 2010]

Out of 20th Century Fox, North to Alaska is directed by Henry Hathaway (& uncredited input from John Wayne) and stars John Wayne, Stewart Granger, Ernie Kovacs, Fabian & Capucine. The film script is based on the play Birthday Gift by Ladislas Fodor, and it's a CinemaScope/Deluxe Color production with Leon Shamroy's cinematography mainly on location at Point Mugu in California. Lionel Newman scores the music and the film also features a hit song of the same name song by Johnny Horton.

The plot sees George Pratt (Granger) & Sam McCord (Wayne) strike gold in Alaska. Nicely set up, George sends Sam to Seattle to bring back his fiancée. However, upon finding the girl, Sam learns that she has married another man and Sam makes the decision to bring back a pretty working girl called Angel (Capucine) as a substitute. Trouble is, is that Angel misunderstands and thinks Sam wants her for himself and begins to fall in love with him. Things are further complicated back in Nome when con man Frankie Canon (Ernie Kovacs) tries to steal their claim. Not only that but Angel has to contend with George's mood swings and the puppy dog like attentions of George's younger brother, Billy (Fabian).

It often gets forgotten just what a good comedy actor John Wayne was. His icon status, and the genre he's most famous for, tends to keep his comedy pieces from being discovered by the casual movie fan. Which is a shame because with films like Donovan's Reef, McLintock! and this here Hathaway treasure, there's enough fun and adventure to blow away the blues. The story in truth is nothing to write home about, it's a standard love triangle piece surrounded by gold rush conning and conniving. While teenage singer Fabian is out of his depth as his hyperactive hormone act quickly loses impetus. Also problematic is that Capucine, though regally pretty, gives a one note and lacklustre performance that needs Wayne & Granger to offset it in the scenes they share with her. And yet the film still works incredibly well as a romantic comedy adventure.

There's as many fists thrown here as there is in a championship boxing bout, with three hilariously staged free for all punch ups within the movie. The chemistry between Wayne & Granger is spot on as they do macho in a comedy stylie, and Kovacs revels in being the moustache twirling con man. Hathaway (stepping in when Richard Fleischer bailed out of the project) was a dab hand at action scenes, with a rolling wagon cart-come-shoot out-punch up sequence as rip roaring as it is funny. Hell! even the animals get in on the act, be it a shaggy loyal dog or head butting goats, they too are filling out the comedy.

There's also a lot of beauty on offer as Shamroy (Cleopatra/Leave Her to Heaven/The Black Swan) turns parts of California into Nome, Alaska. The scenes set around the twin cabin site of Sam & George are filmed at Hot Creek near Mammoth Mountain are simply gorgeous, while Mt. Morrison, a magnificent piece of nature, is featured in the background of many shots. Dorothy Spencer's editing is tight and on the money and Newman's score is brisk and bouncy. This is a far from flawless picture for sure, but what flaws are here are easily forgiven if the viewer is in the right spirit to take the film as it should and was meant to be taken. 8/10

My favorite movie of all time!

[Capucine · 5 May 2002]

This movie is too funny! And too heartwarming! I can watch this movie over and over and still laugh! And it is not slapstick! Just good ole wholesome American comedy! My favorite! Three men, (well, two men and a teen) and a French woman! What a combo!! John Wayne is his usual macho self. That is always fun to watch. And Stewart Granger is soooo good here! I have seen him in many things, but I think he out-did himself here! He's too funny! And poor Fabian. He breaks my heart with his love-sick adoration of Michelle! If you haven't seen this, you must rent it. You will be glad you did. And you WILL end up watching it again. It's that type of movie.

Lumber jacks become gold miners in Nome, Alaska.

[michaelRokeefe · 7/10 · 18 May 2000]

John Wayne plays Sam McCord, who teams up with George Pratt, played by Stewart Granger, striking it rich with a gold mine around the turn of the century in Alaska. Fabian plays George's younger brother, Billy. George sends Sam back to Seattle to bring back his bride to be; instead, Sam brings back a chorus girl played by Capucine.

Henry Hathaway directs this fist swinging comedy. Of course, Mr. Wayne is in charge of the fist fights and Fabian is the butt of and source of most of the comedy. Comic Ernie Kovacs plays a snide claim jumper. Fast paced frolic of a picture. An enjoyable lighter side of 'Duke' Wayne.

"What's your pleasure folks, we hit it big and we're buyin'!"

[classicsoncall · 7/10 · 29 August 2009]

Right out of the gate, this picture has the feel of one of those old Warner Brothers cartoons, complete with sight gags and boisterous sound effects. At first, it's a little disorienting, because after all, this is a John Wayne picture. But once you get into it, you realize that the Duke is having just a grand time of it all, and his enthusiasm infects the rest of the principal players. It all gets started with that great "North to Alaska" theme song from Johnny Horton, which pretty much sets the tone for everything to follow.

The first thing that struck me about Sam McCord's (Wayne) partner George Pratt (Stewart Granger) was holy cow, where did he get that tan? The next was holy cow, why is Fabian in this thing? And finally, there's Capucine - holy cow! Her presence in this flick might have been totally mis-cast, but who cares? If only Clancy had made a bigger splash!

You know, I got a kick out of that time Capucine called Sam 'Mess-soor'. Wayne must have liked it so much they wound up using it at least a half dozen times in his next picture "The Comancheros". Stuart Whitman gave it a different inflection in that picture though, and Wayne would repeatedly call him 'Mon-soor'.

I guess with all the fun they were having, it was easy for the film makers to break stride with continuity in the shooting. Right after Sam's shoot-out with the claim jumpers and his tussle with George in the sluice stream, he returns to the cabin and is completely dry. There's lots of stuff like that going on, including Sam losing his hair during one of his scuffles. I'm still wondering though, if it was really John Wayne or a stunt man who took that spill under the mule. If it was Wayne, I give him credit for bravery in the line of duty.

For all concerned, this is not your typical John Wayne fare. It's played in a much lighter, almost slapstick style that will catch you off guard at the outset. In his own way though, John Wayne gets to re-create the play book from his Lone Star Western days of the early 1930's - by the end of the picture, the hero gets the girl, and this one was the top chick from the Hen-House!

A pretty funny western-farce!

[anton-6 · 7/10 · 31 March 2002]

It's mostly romance and fights in this old western-comedy. Which is pretty funny, John Wayne with the cast is good and overall this is entertaining. If you like old western film that includes romance and comedy twisted with big fights you will like this one.

7/10

All Kinds of Claim Jumping

[bkoganbing · 9/10 · 21 May 2005]

Stewart Granger in his memoirs said he was very glad to receive the role of George Pratt when he did and was always grateful to John Wayne who got him cast in the part. He had just left MGM and offers were not piling up. Granger's career was in a transitional stage and he would soon take off for Europe and all kinds of spaghetti westerns. Right at that point he needed a paycheck.

Granger and Fabian play the brothers Pratt, George and Billy and John Wayne is their partner Sam McCord in a gold claim that's just hit it big. He's got to buy mining equipment in Seattle and Pratt's fiancé Jennie is there too. Wayne's to bring back both the equipment and Jennie.

But Jennie has off and got herself married. So Wayne in a moment of alcoholic brilliance spots another girl with a French accent in a pleasure palace called the Birdcage and decided to take her back to Alaska for Granger. She's played by Capucine. But things don't quite work out.

Of course there's another kind of claim jumping going on led by no-good cynical gambler Ernie Kovacs. All kinds of problems for the McCord-Pratt partnership.

If you like your comedy broad and unsophisticated North to Alaska is your kind of film. The Duke has some of his funniest screen moments in this film. There's a whole routine with Granger and Capucine trying to make Wayne jealous and with Fabian serving as a straight man to Wayne, it's a pretty funny bit of business. Wayne's facial expressions are alone worth seeing the movie.

John Wayne was always shrewd in marketing his films and he sought to woo a younger audience by having current teenage idols in his films around that time. He had Ricky Nelson in Rio Bravo and Frankie Avalon in The Alamo and now Fabian in North to Alaska.

I saw an interview with Fabian some years ago where he said Wayne was a formidable presence on the set of his film. He was great when you got to know him and he accepted you. But you did things his way or it was the highway, no questions asked.

Fabian has some moments too as a 17 year old whose hormones get going at the sight of Capucine. He sings a song in the film, If You Only Knew. But the real song hit is the title tune sung by Johnny Horton over the title. It was a big hit for Horton in his short and tragic career. Frankie Laine also sold a few platters with this song.

If your taste is sophisticated drawing room comedy, this ain't your film. But fans of the eternal Duke will love it.

Entertaining John Wayne comedy western

[Tweekums · 7/10 · 5 July 2012]

When partners Sam McCord and George Pratt strike it rich in Alaska Sam heads down to Seattle to bring back George's French fiancée... there is a problem though; she has married somebody else! Sam comes up with a solution though; he'll take back another French girl instead; prostitute Michelle 'Angel' Bonet. His intention is that George will be just as pleased with Michelle; Michelle misunderstands though and thinks Sam wants her himself; understandably she is a little put out when she discovers the truth. When they reach Alaska they find out that George it no longer in town; he had to head up to the mine with his younger brother Billy. Needless to say things don't go as Sam expected; Billy falls in love with Michelle and when he finally gets George to meet her he isn't happy about being sent a 'replacement'... the biggest surprise for confirmed bachelor Sam is that he falls for her... but thinks she is with George!! If all that romantic confusion wasn't enough conman Frankie Canon keeps trying to swindle them; first out of a few hundred dollars then out of the mine.

I thought I might not enjoy this after an early barroom brawl was full of over the top slapstick and comedy sound effects one would expect in a Loony Tunes cartoon. I soon found myself enjoying it however as it got more sensible; and funnier after that. John Wayne did a good job as Sam; playing him fairly straight rather than going for cheap laughs. French actress Capucine was a delight as Michelle; one can see why the men in the film took a shine to her! The rest of the cast were pretty good too. The 'Alaskan' scenery looks good even if it is really California. One might think that having a prostitute as a main character would make this unsuitable for children but what she does isn't spelt so youngsters are likely to think that she is just a dancer, the action scenes are child friendly too with slapstick brawls and no fatalities despite there being a shootout. At two hours this is a little on the long side but not excessively so. Overall I'd say this is worth watching if you like John Wayne westerns and want a chuckle.

entertaining and historically correct movie

[martinbijkerk · 9/10 · 7 February 2006]

North to Alaska is one of the most northerly western to be brought out, playing mostly in Nome. The movie is complete fiction, but the location and how it looked there during the gold rush are surprisingly correct. After Klondyke, Nome had a kind of second rush, but since most people searched for gold in/near the rivers - like Sam (Wayne) and his companions did - the real rush came to Nome after a local was chased away from his claim and as he started to wash at the beach(!) he found a real bonanza! Nome had no haven, which is shown in the movie: ships (mostly arriving from Seattle) had to anchor before the coast and freight and passengers had to be brought aland by smaller vessels. Also characters like Frankie are realistic, for crooks where indeed not hesitating to kill people or steal claims (as I mentioned above). How it looks in Nome is also realistic: however most of the year frozen, in the short period the ice melts, the streets were one ditch of thighhigh mud; Frankie is made aware of that fact very firsthand.

Humanity note: After Sam brought a girl from Seattle to Nome, which was an silly alcohol decision, he regrets it and leaves her in town so she could take the next boat back. Also in this movie there are people offering apologies, even Sam himself; try to find regret and apologies in other westerns!

Music: The title song by Johnnie Horton is a real C&W hit.

Totally: The movie is very entertaining, funny, human and realistic in historical context. A good film for the whole family!

North to Alaska

[Prismark10 · 6/10 · 18 August 2021]

North to Alaska is a knockabout screwball western starring John Wayne and Stewart Granger.

Set during the Alaskan gold rush of the early 1900s. Sam McCord (John Wayne) and George Pratt (Stewart Granger) have struck gold and have become rich.

Sam is off to Seattle for some machinery and is meant to bring back George's French fiancee. Only to find that she has married another man.

A drunken Sam has a brainwave when he finds another French woman called Michelle (Capucine) in a bordello called the Hen House. Sam hopes she might make a good substitute for George.

However Michelle has fallen for Sam. When he returns to Alaska, he finds that someone has filed a rival claim on his mine. Everyone is crazy about Michelle including George's younger brother Billy (Fabian.)

Sam gets grumpy as George romances Michelle. Only later realising that he has fallen for Michelle.

The film is bookended with two slapstick fights. Both are over the top but works as mindless fun.

Wayne looks comfortable with the mixture of action and comedy.

This rather racy film is too long and the thin material feels stretched. Granger is missing for a lot of the picture but he and Wayne do make for a good team even though the story is silly and contrived.

John Wayne's best "humorous" movie.

[gbechtel-1 · 10/10 · 2 February 2006]

This is an extremely funny movie. It is well written. I feel it is John Wayne's best "humor" movie. It keeps your attention by moving from scene to scene. My wife and I have watched this a dozen times and never grow tired of it.

John Wayne and his partner strike gold in Alaska. A con man tries to steal it from them. In the meantime John has to pick up his partner's fiancé in Seattle. She's now married so he gets a substitute (a prostitute). Who misunderstands Johns's intentions and falls in love with him while they attend a hilarious logger's picnic in Seattle. And this is only a brief description of the 1st half.

This is a must see.

Knockabout and entertaining western , Alaska setting in the 1890s , with John Wayne and Stewart Granger as sympathetic partners

[ma-cortes · 6/10 · 3 July 2020]

During the Alaska gold rush, prospector George (Stewart Granger) and his colleague Sam (John Wayne) strike gold in Alaska , then George asks for Sam to go Seattle to pick up his fiancée . But he encounters many problems when it turns out that she married another man , Sam goes back with a pretty substitute (Capucine) , the hostess of the Henhouse dance hall . In the meantime, Sam is busy fighting off the advances of George's younger brother, Billy (Fabian) . Along the way , there appears the swindler Frankie (Ernie Kovacs) , a con man attempting to steal the partners' gold claim. These were the adventures . Fighting, laughing and brawling their way from Seattle to Nome! In all the 50 states you won't find a fun-filled adventure like it! It's fun-filled adventure all the way from Seattle to Nome!From Seattle to Nome...it's fun-filled adventure - and riotous comedy! Big Sam and the Big Adventure! When Big Sam wanted somethin', he got it - the best! When he did somethin', he did it big... Like taming a woman the way you tame the land! Or fighting until the last man was down! Now Big Sam was set. He and the Seattle pleasure palace doll were on their way -- to the top of the world!

A rumbustious comedy western with John Wayne and Stewart Granger as intimate partners along with the young Fabian in Gold Rush days . Packing a lot of loving mess in which Sam going to Seattle to bring George's fiancée back to Nome , Alaska , returning instead with Angel and after attempting to get George and Angel together, he ultimately falls for Angel . It contains action , shootouts , hilarious scenes , bar-room brawls , and a memorable theme song by Johnny Horton and another song by Fabian himself . Overly slapstick at times , but great fun and enjoyable nonetheless . That's why it seems in retrospect an overlong fist fight , it certainly does have a long saloon brawl . Being loosely based on Laszlo Todor's play ¨The birthday gift¨. Along with the main actors here shows up stout support cast from a whole saloon-full of western character players and other important roles such as : Mickey Shaughnessy, Karl Swenson, John Qualen , Joe Sawyer , Pat Hogan, Stanley Adams and Kathleen Freeman.

In addition , rich colour cinematography by Leon Shamroy . Plus , moving and thrilling musical score by Lionel Newman and uncredited Cyril J. Mockridge . The motion picture was professionally directed by Henry Hathaway , including strong screen presence by John Wayne , both of whom collaborated in various Westerns , they included ¨Five Card Stud¨ , ¨The sons of Katie Elder¨, ¨North to Alaska¨ and Wayne's Academy Award-winning ¨True grit¨. Hathaway himself was only even nominated for an Oscar , but his movies themselves are testimony to his skills to heighten narrative tension and shoot action so exhilarating it made adrenalin run . Henry was a craftsman who had a long career from the 30s with successful films , and especially Westerns , as ¨Brigham Young¨ and ¨Raw Hide¨ . In his 60s Hathaway still got the vigour to make some fiery movies as ¨From Hell to Texas¨, ¨How the West was won¨, ¨Nevada Smith¨, and ¨Shoot out¨ . He was an expert on Western genre as he proved in ¨True grit , Five card stud , Nevada Smith ,How the West was won , Rawhide , Brigham Young , Buffalo Stampede, Garden of evil¨ and of course ¨North to Alaska¨. Rating : nice Western that will appeal to John Wayne fans.

Enjoyable if insubstantial

[MOscarbradley · 5/10 · 2 October 2009]

A likable, very broad comedy-western with no substance whatsoever. Henry Hathaway produced and directed and it all looks like an excuse for Hathaway, the Duke and some friends to get together way up North and have a bit of a ball. Plot is minimal despite being taken from a play by Ladislas Fodor, (God knows what it would have looked like on stage), and it's very handsome courtesy of Leon Shamroy's photography and the utterly gorgeous Capucine. (Whatever became of her; she couldn't act but she could light up the screen).

Wayne's mugging begins to grate after awhile and not even the brilliant Ernie Kovacs can save it from lapsing into silliness, (there isn't a hint of danger anywhere). It's not often revived and by Hathaway's standards it's pretty poor. Fabian's in it, too, and gets to sing a fairly mediocre ballad while the excellent title song went to Johnny Horton.

The Duke up north. A hoot!

[eaglejet98 · 23 May 2002]

This is a great movie. Funny and entertaining.

Each of the characters could fill up a movie by themselves. Ernie Kovaks steals the show as the ultimate cheat and chiseler. John Wayne knows he is doing a parody of himself, plays it to the hilt and pulls it off brilliantly. Capucine is a classy lady. Even though she works in a bordello, you somehow know she's a nice girl. Even Clancy the shaggy dog has a great role. Johnny Horton's title hit, North to Alaska, is his best song ever. Classic cowboy movie fight scenes at the beginning and end.

A total hoot.

Raucous John Wayne Western.

[rmax304823 · 6/10 · 1 July 2009]

The idea for this movie was born in the mind of a writer with the improbable name of Kafka. Wait. What was that slight thud? Oh, only Franz rolling over a bit. But it was directed by Henry Hathaway, known as "a man's director" for his impatience, vulgarity, and fondness for drink.

It's not badly done either, for what it intends to be. Wayne and Stewart Granger are partners in a successful gold mine near Nome, Alaska. Wayne takes a ship to Seattle, partly to pick up Granger's French girl friend and bring her back with him. Alas, the feckless Jennie has married a bald butler in Granger's absence, not knowing he has struck it rich. Wayne's original mission having failed, he meets the stunning Capucine and decides to bring her back as a substitute for Granger's lost love, Lenore. Wayne shows more than his usual insight into the nature of femininity.

"Women -- peculiar," he mutters at one point. And then, "A Frenchie broke George's heart, a Frenchie can FIX it." Capucine misunderstands, thinks that Wayne himself is interested in her, and therein lie the grounds for later contretemps that are finally solved to everyone's satisfaction.

The movie was clearly influenced by the success of Wayne's previous Western, "Rio Bravo." "Rio Bravo" had one dud in the casting of the principles but it was overcome by craftsmanlike direction and a solid script. The problem is that Hathaway is no Howard Hawks and the script itself is deliberately loony, so the dud stands out.

"Rio Bravo" had Ricky Nelson, a reigning heart throb of the late 1950s. "North to Alaska" has Fabian, captured here in the final seconds of his fifteen minutes. Everyone has been told to overact. You can see it in Wayne's shouting and Granger's wild un-English gesticulations. But you can't tell it with Fabian because acting and overacting are the same to him. He drools with lust. His face turns into that of a chubby, pop-eyed gargoyle. And when he croons a tender love song to Capucine, well -- you know how YOU sound when you sing? Not at your best, but at your most mediocre? Well, that's better than Fabian.

There are too many fist fights to count. They take place among dozens of rolling beer barrels spouting shifting cones of foam, among vast seas of mud, among drenching waterfalls from demolished sluices. When a bar tender is punched in the face, his hat pops up a foot in the air and settles quickly back on his head. When Ernie Kovacs punches Wayne, Wayne's toupee flies off and no one bothers to correct the error. At times it all feels too forced, leaving the viewer feeling like a Strasbourg goose.

Yet, it's kind of fun too. Everyone seems to be on vacation. Nothing is held back. And if you're in the right mood, you'll get a kick out of it. Capucine is exquisite and a fine actress. Wayne gets to climb a tall tree, and when punched in the nose he gets to look cross-eyed before falling flat on his back. Nobody gets killed. It's a movie in which a Donneybrook can flatten a saloon but from which all blood is banished.

Of course, if you're NOT in the right mood, you may feel like the only sober guest at the party.

"You just can't trust women. No matter how honest they act, they all want to be wives!"

[utgard14 · 6/10 · 25 April 2014]

John Wayne and Stewart Granger play gold miners in Alaska. Wayne goes to Seattle to bring back Granger's fiancée. But when he gets there he finds out she's already married. Not wanting his friend to be disappointed, he brings back French dance hall girl Capucine. The rest of the movie is everybody trying to get with Capucine. Fabian plays Granger's brother. Ernie Kovacs plays a con man. Both are definitely products of this era and I don't mean that as a compliment. Wayne is good in a role he could play in his sleep. It's a light-hearted comedy with some cartoonish action. It's dumb but all in good fun and hard to dislike.

Lighthearted

[skallisjr · 7/10 · 18 May 2008]

The story's a simple one: a team strikes gold in Alaska, and one partner goes South to tie up loose ends, including bringing back a girl who Promised To Wait for the other partner, but didn't! So what does the partner (Wayne) do? Why, he finds another girl to bring back.

The comedic situation has been used before, but it works here, as well. John Wayne comedies are relatively rare, but this is a good one. It's in my collection.

(Spoiler) In the great free-for-all fight in the mud, anyone with sharp eyes and who's really paying attention will notice that a certain major star shows that he's wearing a rug. One has to look quickly, but why it wasn't edited out is beyond me!

the duke in love

[tracyfigueira · 9/10 · 4 April 2009]

John Wayne was always a fighter, never a lover, so on the surface it seems strange to see him cast opposite ultrachic French supermodel Capucine (real name Germaine Lefevre) in this bawdy action comedy. In fact they had great chemistry: aside from the great Maureen O'Hara, the lovely Frenchwoman (who went on to star in such swinging sixties classics as the original "Pink Panther") was one of the few leading ladies to hold her own against the Duke. The plot bears an odd resemblance to "Pretty Woman": after his best friend George (a surprisingly funny Stewart Granger) is jilted by his fiancée, Alaska prospector Sam McCord (Wayne) seeks to cheer him up by hiring a high class call girl (Capucine) to take her place. Not surprisingly, Sam falls in love with her and, after about three dozen expertly choreographed fight scenes--all played strictly for laughs, with little real peril involved--Wayne gets the girl! Expertly directed by the legendary Henry Hathaway, who directed Wayne in his Oscar-winning vehicle "True Grit," "North to Alaska" has everything: action, laughter, romance, gun fights, barroom brawls, a classic knock-down drag-out in a muddy street, and even a song by Fabian (George's brother Billy!) As often in his career, Wayne plays a character with a streak of paranoia, though in this case it's halfway justified--a smarmy confidence trickster (a brilliant Ernie Kovacs) is out to jump his claims, and there are the usual shenanigans before right--and might--triumph. Oh, and there's an Old English Sheepdog named Clancey, who jumps into bed with Capucine. The whole cast is excellent, even Fabian's not too annoying, and there are amusing cameos by Keenan Wynn, Mickey Shaughnessy, Kathleen Freeman, and Richard Deacon. Country great Johnny Horton sings the theme song. An excellent choice.

Uneven but enjoyable

[pmtelefon · 7/10 · 19 March 2019]

"North to Alaska" may be the cleanest "adult" comedy ever made. It does have a lot of big laughs but too often it tries too hard. It goes into slapstick mode way too much. The rest of it is funny but those slapstick moments are too broad and upset the rhythm of the movie. Another weakness of the movie is the casting. My mother loved Stewart Granger but he never did anything for me. Neither of my parents liked Ernie Kovacs and I can see why. I don't know much about this early tv comedy "genius" but he's not very good in this movie. On the plus side, Kathleen Freeman is terrific and Capucine is very pretty. "North to Alaska" is a great looking movie and has muddy streets. I always enjoy seeing a western with muddy streets.

Chemistry Rules

[jbix909 · 8/10 · 10 June 2012]

This was a great story and great movie. I saw this back when I was a kid and again the other night.

I couldn't help but fall in love with Capucine, she's wonderful in this and she was a fabulous Actress. She appears in the Pink Panther Movie. Her beauty is second to none. John Wayne, Fabian, and Stuart Granger are also really great in this. Great Direction, it was also filmed so that you think the characters are really in Nome, and great cinematography. The Director Hathaway also did True Grit and Son's of Katy Elder. There is no relation to the actress Anne (Hathaway).

Fabian is notably really funny, he turned out to be a pretty good actor in other movies as well.

The script was reportedly turned down by another director but I thought the script was really well done for this action, romantic comedy.

I really believed the chemistry between Capucine and John Wayne although with a beauty like that it's hard not to have any chemistry with everyone she would meet, including William Holden whom she reportedly had an affair with in the 80's. She committed suicide reportedly over health problems in 1990. Chemistry between the leads is so important in the believability of films.

I give this movie 8 out of 10 stars.

Generally fun, but the film definitely had some DUMB moments

[planktonrules · 7/10 · 21 May 2008]

Like many of John Wayne's films in the 1960s, this one had a lot of self-parody--some which worked very well and some which didn't. When the movie first began, I groaned because of the awful and awfully stupid bar fight scene. Why? Well, because in this and a later fight, such supposedly funny things were added such as the sounds of tweeting birds when someone was knocked out and another guy whose hat flew up in the air when he was punched (like a cartoon character). These funny moments were painful--NOT funny. Fortunately, the film only did this a few times and the rather light spirit of the film (aside from these scenes) was enjoyable and welcome.

John Wayne, of all things, plays a romantic lead--or at least as romantic as his tough persona would allow. It seems that he is leaving his gold mine in Alaska to fetch more equipment AND his partner's (Stewart Granger) fiancée. Unfortunately, when he goes to get her, she'a already married. On a lark, he asks a prostitute (Capucine) to return with him for Granger, but naturally his plans go awry.

A cute script, some BAD action scenes and decent acting--while NOT one of Wayne's better films, it's still very satisfying and will no doubt please his fans.

North to Alaska

[Kerbob · 10/10 · 8 February 1999]

North to Alaska is by far the funniest John Wayne movie I've seen. He plays Sam McCord a Seattle lumberjack turned Alaskan gold miner. He and two brothers George and Billy Pratt, played by Stewart Granger and Fabian, have just discovered what promises to be a very successful gold-strike.

Fabian is especially funny as George's younger brother Billy, and Ernie Kovacs plays a sneaky villain named Frankie Canon who has had past dealings with Angel.

A Strange Blend of Romance and Comedy

[gavin6942 · 7/10 · 8 September 2015]

Sam (John Wayne) and George strike gold in Alaska. George sends Sam to Seattle to bring George's fiancée back to Alaska. Sam finds she is already married, and returns instead with Angel.

This is a strange film in the John Wayne list of credits. Much of it makes sense for him. He is rugged, lives in Alaska while still a territory, and likes to drink more than just a little. Even the romance is sort of rugged, which fits his style.

But then you add the humor, and it is pretty strange. The sound effects and slapstick elements, not to mention the fighting goats and clapping seals... such a strange film. But this only made it better. The whole subplot with the Frankie the Con Man character makes it even better, adding a whole other layer.

North to Alaska (1960)

[WandrinStar · 5/10 · 2 February 2012]

(5.5/10) Didn't work for me as much as it has for many other Wayne enthusiasts. I found the movie to be overlong, overloaded on campy humor, and predictable. When it came out in 1960, it was a fresh film that showcased Wayne in unfamiliar roles of comedian and repressed lover. But succeeding films McLintock! and to a lesser extent War Wagon not only added on but improved on the comedic elements in Wayne Westerns. In this flick, you could tell the Duke was somewhat out of place, although you could definitely see flashes of John Wayne's underrated comedic ability. Capucine does a great job as Wayne's equal despite what some reviewers have expressed while Stewart Granger maintains good chemistry with both the male and female leads. Fabian surprisingly has good acting and comedy talent and did a much better job than fellow pop star Ricky Nelson did in Wayne's film a year before "Rio Bravo". Opening and ending brawl sequences were way too watered down with camp; the various lame sound effects made the fights more suitable for the Three Stooges or a Warner Brother's cartoon.

I would have given this an even lower rating if this was set in say Texas, but I was won over by the Alaskan scenery and terrific chemistry between Wayne and Capucine. Highlights of the movie were just about every scene between Capucine and Fabian.