The Savage Innocents

A film set in the Arctic. Inuk is a hunter. He lives on the ice, gets by on seals and polar bear and acts by the rules of his own community. He marries, has a child, and his life is tied to the order of the seasons. The first half describes that life in detail: cutting holes in the ice, building an igloo, sharing a kill, the rules of hospitality and how a winter is passed. Then someone comes from outside. A missionary stays in Inuk's house. By custom the host makes an offer, the missionary takes it as an insult, the argument grows and the man dies. After that the police come. Inuk runs and two troopers go after him. What the narrative is interested in is not the crime but two systems of law meeting: by his own rules Inuk did nothing wrong and does not understand what he is accused of. By the end one of the policemen after him meets the same dilemma. It was shot for the wide screen and the polar landscapes are its strongest feature. Some scenes were built in a studio. Anthony Quinn plays Inuk and Yoko Tani his wife. Peter O'Toole, who plays a trooper, was dubbed by another actor and asked for his name to be removed from the credits because of it. Nicholas Ray directed. An interesting production for anyone who likes films about the clash of cultures. Seen from here, the absence of performers from the local people in the cast is its most arguable feature.