''First Comes Courage'' is a 1943 American
war film
War film is a film genre concerned with warfare, typically about navy, naval, air force, air, or army, land battles, with combat scenes central to the drama. It has been strongly associated with the 20th century. The fateful nature of battle s ...
, the final film directed by
Dorothy Arzner
Dorothy Emma Arzner (January 3, 1897 – October 1, 1979) was an American film director whose career in Hollywood spanned from the silent era of the 1920s into the early 1940s. With the exception of longtime silent film director Lois Weber (who d ...
, one of the few female directors in Hollywood at the time. The film was based on the 1943 novel ''Commandos'' by
Elliott Arnold
Elliott Arnold (September 13, 1912 – May 13, 1980) was an American newspaper feature writer, novelist, and screenwriter. Born in Brooklyn, New York, he became a feature writer with the ''New York World-Telegram'' and authored dozens of nove ...
, adapted by George Sklar, with a screenplay by Melvin Levy and Lewis Meltzer. It stars
Merle Oberon
Merle Oberon (born Estelle Merle O'Brien Thompson; 19 February 191123 November 1979) was a British actress who began her film career in British films as Anne Boleyn in ''The Private Life of Henry VIII'' (1933). After her success in ''The Scarle ...
and
Brian Aherne
William Brian de Lacy Aherne (2 May 190210 February 1986) was an English actor of stage, screen, radio and television, who enjoyed a long and varied career in Britain and the United States.
His first Broadway appearance in '' The Barretts of ...
.
Plot
Nicole Larsen (
Merle Oberon
Merle Oberon (born Estelle Merle O'Brien Thompson; 19 February 191123 November 1979) was a British actress who began her film career in British films as Anne Boleyn in ''The Private Life of Henry VIII'' (1933). After her success in ''The Scarle ...
) is a member of the
Norwegian resistance
The Norwegian resistance (Norwegian: ''Motstandsbevegelsen'') to the occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany began after Operation Weserübung in 1940 and ended in 1945. It took several forms:
*Asserting the legitimacy of the exiled government, ...
in a small town, about to marry the Nazi commandant (
Carl Esmond). When his superiors begin to suspect her, the Allies land an assassin to kill him: her former lover, Capt. Allan Lowe (
Brian Aherne
William Brian de Lacy Aherne (2 May 190210 February 1986) was an English actor of stage, screen, radio and television, who enjoyed a long and varied career in Britain and the United States.
His first Broadway appearance in '' The Barretts of ...
).
Cast
*
Merle Oberon
Merle Oberon (born Estelle Merle O'Brien Thompson; 19 February 191123 November 1979) was a British actress who began her film career in British films as Anne Boleyn in ''The Private Life of Henry VIII'' (1933). After her success in ''The Scarle ...
as Nicole Larsen
*
Brian Aherne
William Brian de Lacy Aherne (2 May 190210 February 1986) was an English actor of stage, screen, radio and television, who enjoyed a long and varied career in Britain and the United States.
His first Broadway appearance in '' The Barretts of ...
as Capt. Allan Lowell
*
Carl Esmond as Maj. Paul Dichter
*
Isobel Elsom
Isobel Elsom (born Isabelle Reed; 16 March 1893 – 12 January 1981) was an English film, theatre, and television actress. She was often cast as aristocrats or upper-class women.
Early years
Born in Chesterton, Cambridge, Elsom attend ...
as Rose Lindstrom
*
Fritz Leiber
Fritz Reuter Leiber Jr. ( ; December 24, 1910 – September 5, 1992) was an American writer of fantasy, horror, and science fiction. He was also a poet, actor in theater and films, playwright, and chess expert. With writers such as Rober ...
as Dr. Aanrud
*
Erville Alderson
Erville Alderson (September 11, 1882 – August 4, 1957) was an American character actor, usually portraying strong-willed or wise men. He appeared in nearly 200 films between 1918 and 1957.
Life
Alderson was born in Kansas City, Missouri. He ...
as Soren
* Erik Rolf as Ole
*
Reinhold Schünzel as Col. Kurt von Elser
*
Byron Foulger
Byron Kay Foulger (August 27, 1898 – April 4, 1970) was an American character actor who over a 50-year career performed in hundreds of stage, film, and television productions.
Early years
Born in Ogden, Utah, Byron was the second of four ...
as Shopkeeper (uncredited)
*
Miles Mander
Miles Mander (born Lionel Henry Mander; 14 May 1888 – 8 February 1946), was an English character actor of the early Hollywood cinema, also a film director and producer, and a playwright and novelist. He was sometimes credited as Luther Mile ...
as Col. Wallace (uncredited)
Production
''First Comes Courage'' had the working title of "Attack by Night".
["Notes"]
on TCM.com
Turner Classic Movies (TCM) is an American movie-oriented pay-TV network owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. Launched in 1994, Turner Classic Movies is headquartered at Turner's Techwood broadcasting campus in the Midtown business district of Atl ...
The film was originally to have been set in France, but was changed to Norway because of the public's interest at the time in the occupation of that country.
When director Dorothy Arzner had an attack of
pleurisy
Pleurisy, also known as pleuritis, is inflammation of the membranes that surround the lungs and line the chest cavity ( pleurae). This can result in a sharp chest pain while breathing. Occasionally the pain may be a constant dull ache. Other sy ...
, she was replaced by
Charles Vidor.
The film would turn out to be Arzner's final film.
Some scenes were filmed on
Vancouver Island
Vancouver Island is an island in the northeastern Pacific Ocean and part of the Canadian province of British Columbia. The island is in length, in width at its widest point, and in total area, while are of land. The island is the largest by ...
,
British Columbia
British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...
, with military units providing extras for the scenes of the commando attack.
Oberon and Aherne had played the leads in ''Beloved Enemy'' in 1936, with David Niven in a large supporting role. By 1943, when this early film about commandos was produced, Niven (according to his memoir "The Moon' a Balloon") was an actual commando fighting in World War II.
References
External links
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*
*
{{Dorothy Arzner
1943 films
American black-and-white films
Films shot in British Columbia
1943 war films
American World War II films
1940s English-language films
Columbia Pictures films
World War II films made in wartime
Films set in Norway
Films directed by Dorothy Arzner
American war films
Films scored by Ernst Toch
Films about Norwegian resistance movement
Films based on American novels