Nanook of the North
(also known as Nanook of the North: A Story Of Life and Love In the
Actual Arctic) is a 1922 silent documentary film by Robert J. Flaherty.
The documentary follows the lives of an Inuit, Nanook, and his family as
they travel, search for food, and trade in northern Quebec, Canada.
Nanook, his wife, Nyla, and their baby, Cunayou, are introduced as
fearless heroes who endure rigors "no other race" could survive. The
film is considered the first feature-length documentary. Some have
criticized Flaherty for staging several sequences, but the film is
generally viewed as standing "alone in its stark regard for the courage
and ingenuity of its heroes."
In 1989, this film was one of the first 25 films to be selected for
preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library
of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically
significant".
|