The Big Sky (1952)

100% of critics liked it
(7 reviews)
68% of users liked it
(614 ratings)

The Big Sky is based on a popular novel by A.B. Guthrie. Kirk Douglas and Dewey Martin play a pair of Kentucky frontiersmen who embark upon the first keelboat trip up the Missouri River way back in 1830. Joining Douglas and Martin are Martin's grizzled old uncle Arthur Hunnicutt and garrulous… More The Big Sky is based on a popular novel by A.B. Guthrie. Kirk Douglas and Dewey Martin play a pair of Kentucky frontiersmen who embark upon the first keelboat trip up the Missouri River way back in 1830. Joining Douglas and Martin are Martin's grizzled old uncle Arthur Hunnicutt and garrulous Frenchman Steven Geray. Running afoul of various Indian tribes, Douglas nonetheless romances Sioux princess Elizabeth Threatt (their off-screen relationship was on the kinky side, as an embarrassed Douglas reveals in his autobiography). Director Howard Hawks leavens the Boys' Own Adventure atmosphere of the film with a few isolated comic sequences, including a sidesplitting scene in which Douglas' gangrenous finger is cut off. Produced for RKO Radio by Hawks' own Winchester Pictures, The Big Sky was released at 141 minutes, though the TV print runs 122 minutes. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

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Rating, Runtime: Unrated, 2 hr. 2 min.
Directed By: Howard Hawks
Written By: Dudley Nichols
Genres: Western, Action & Adventure

In Theaters: Aug 6, 1952 Wide
Studio: Turner Home Entertainment

Critic Reviews

A.H. Weiler, New York Times
A saga as long as the day and as big as all outdoors.
Jonathan Rosenbaum, Chicago Reader
Though this sublime 1952 black-and-white masterpiece by Howard Hawks is usually accorded a low place in the Hawks canon, it's a particular favorite of mine -- mysterious, beautiful, and even utopian.
Jeffrey M. Anderson, Combustible Celluloid
This is a rousing, good-time adventure tale with two Hawksian buddies making their way through the untamed wild.
Dennis Schwartz, Ozus' World Movie Reviews
This is not one of Hawks' great films, but it's one of his most visually satisfying.

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Featured Audience Ratings

Red L

An old movie with cowboys and Indians. This movie is OK - at least it doesn't automatically paint all Injuns as evil. Interesting that most of the time they walk the ship up the river. That certainly is not what they teach us about the river highways of Canada's fur… More
An old movie with cowboys and Indians. This movie is OK - at least it doesn't automatically paint all Injuns as evil. Interesting that most of the time they walk the ship up the river. That certainly is not what they teach us about the river highways of Canada's fur trade.
MJS M

I?ve begun to have my reservations about the works of Howard Hawks, his work always just seems kind of silly to me, especially when compared to what John Ford was doing. This is a pretty good western, but not the greatest. First of all, the film?s treatment of Indians is a little… More
I?ve begun to have my reservations about the works of Howard Hawks, his work always just seems kind of silly to me, especially when compared to what John Ford was doing. This is a pretty good western, but not the greatest. First of all, the film?s treatment of Indians is a little better than some of the other movies of the time (not that much, but a little). Secondly, there?s a lot of good scenery here, and the technical filmmaking is pretty good. All of that makes this worth seeing, but I can?t recommend it too strongly. I just didn?t connect with the story very much, and Kirk Douglass seems a bit out of place in this setting. Also it has a very annoying voice over.