All the Brothers Were Valiant is a 1953 adventure drama film directed by Richard Thorpe. The film stars Robert Taylor, Stewart Granger, and Ann Blyth. All the Brothers Were Valiant is based on the 1919 novel of the same name by by Ben Ames Williams.
Director: Richard Thorpe
Production Company: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Distributor: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Cast: Robert Taylor, Stewart Granger, Ann Blyth, Betta St. John, Keenan Wynn, James Whitmore, Kurt Kasznar, Lewis Stone
US Box Office: $5,010,000 ($79,900,000 adjusted for inflation)
Film Format: Technicolor
Genre: Adventure, Drama
Release Date: November 13, 1953
Plot Summary: In New Bedford, Massachusetts in 1857 Joel Shore (Robert Shore) learns that his brother Mark (Stewart Granger), the captain of the whaling ship Nathan Ross, is missing and presumed dead. Joel is given command of the Nathan Ross and sets out on another whaling voyage. Shortly before leaving Joel marries his girlfriend Priscilla Holt (Ann Blyth) and takes her with on the voyage. While anchored at the island of Tubuai, Joel and the crew realize that Mark is actually still alive! Although initially happy to see each other, the relationship between Joel and Mark quickly becomes strained: both due to Mark’s previous romantic feelings for Priscilla and Mark’s new obsession with finding the lost pearls he discovered while stranded. Mark is willing to do anything to get the pearls back, even lead a mutiny against Joel.
Production: In 1936, MGM studio executives began preliminary work on a film adaptation of Ben Ames Williams’ seafaring adventure novel All the Brothers Were Valiant (1919). MGM already owned the rights to the novel and had previously adapted it into two silent films: the now lost All the Brothers Were Valiant (1923) and Across to Singapore (1928). MGM hoped that All the Brothers Were Valiant could serve as a follow up to their successful seafaring adventure-drama Captain Courageous (1937), and the studio announced that Robert Taylor and Spencer Tracy would be the film’s stars. However, the film was soon postponed and quickly forgotten by the studio.
In November of 1951, MGM executives resumed work on All the Brothers Were Valiant and Pandro S. Berman was assigned to produce the film. Screenwriter Harry Brown wrote the script for All the Brothers Were Valiant based on Williams’ original novel. Richard Thorpe was chosen to direct the film. He was a longtime contract director for MGM and had been working for the studio since the 1930s. Thorpe was well-liked by studio executives for his versatility and efficiency as a director. Thorpe had recently worked with producer Berman on the adventure films Ivanhoe (1952), The Prisoner of Zenda (1952), and Knights of the Round Table (1953).
Captain Joel Shore, the main character of All the Brothers Were Valiant, was played by Robert Taylor. Taylor had a long career as a contract star for MGM, having first joined the studio in 1934. Richard Thorpe had previously directed Taylor in the sports-drama The Crowd Roars (1938) and in the adventure films Ivanhoe (1952) and Knights of the Round Table (1953). British actor Stewart Granger was cast as Captain Mark Shore, the secondary lead and the film’s antagonist. Granger had recently signed a contract with MGM and became a star in the United States due to his leading role in the adventure film King Solomon’s Mines (1950). Thorpe had previously directed Granger in The Prisoner of Zenda. Although he somewhat enjoyed playing a villain, Granger considered All the Brothers Were Valiant to be a mediocre film. He wanted to play the lead role in Mogambo (1953) and was disappointed when MGM studio head Dore Schary gave the part to Clark Gable and forced Granger to star in All the Brothers Were Valiant instead.
British-American actress Elizabeth Taylor was originally cast as Priscilla Holt, the film’s main female character. Taylor’s first son was born at the start of January 1953, when filming on All the Brothers Were Valiant was scheduled to begin. The studio decided to shoot the flashback scenes featuring Stewart Granger and Betta St. John (the Native Girl) first to give Taylor time to lose her pregnancy weight. Taylor was fired from All the Brothers Were Valiant in early February because she hadn’t lost enough weight by this time. MGM gave the role of Priscilla Holt to Ann Blyth. Blyth signed a contract with MGM in December of 1952 and All the Brothers Were Valiant was her first film for the studio. She had recently co-starred with Gregory Peck in The World in His Arms (1952), another seafaring adventure film.
Director Richard Thorpe began shooting All the Brothers Were Valiant in January of 1953 and principle photography wrapped up in March. The flashback scenes featuring Stewart Granger’s character were shot first. These scenes were partially shot on location at the towns Oracabessa and Ocho Rios in Jamaica. The majority of All the Brothers Were Valiant was shot on set at MGM Studios, including all scenes of actors onboard the Nathan Ross whaling ship. The Nathan Ross was represented by miniatures in extreme long shots. Stewart Granger got along well with Robert Taylor during filming.
Fun Facts and Trivia: All the Brothers Were Valiant was the final film to feature actor Lewis Stone (Captain Holt). He died in September, a few months before All the Brothers Were Valiant was released. Stone had been a contract player for MGM since 1924 (when the studio first formed) and was best known for playing Judge Hardy in fourteen films in the Andy Hardy film series. Stone had previously appeared with Robert Taylor in West Point of the Air (1935) and Small Town Girl (1936). Stewart Granger also appeared with Stone in Scaramouche (1952) and The Prisoner of Zenda.
Mark Shore is stated to be older than Joel Shore in All the Brothers Were Valiant. In real life, Robert Taylor was two years older than Stewart Granger. The first credited film role for stage actress Betta St. John was Miriam in the epic The Robe (1953). She had previously appeared as an extra in several films as a child and was notably the first actress to play the character Liat on the original Broadway production of the Rodgers and Hammerstein musical South Pacific (1949).
Reception: All the Brothers Were Valiant was released in the United States on November 13, 1953. The film was a success at the box office and it earned a modest profit for MGM. In July of 1953, MGM executives purchased the film rights to Black Pawl, another seafaring adventure book written by Ben Ames Williams. The studio initially wanted Black Pawl to serve as a follow up to All the Brothers Were Valiant and planned to reteam Taylor and Granger, however the film was never produced.
All the Brothers Were Valiant received mixed-to-positive reviews from critics when it was first released. Jay Carmody of The Evening Star praised All the Brothers Were Valiant for its excitement and for the acting performances. Gadsden County Times similarly lauded the film for its Technicolor location shooting, action, and cast. The St. Croix Avis also praised All the Brothers Were Valiant for it’s action and performances. Bosley Crowther of The New York Times conversely gave All the Brothers Were Valiant a negative review. Although he had some praise for the action scenes, Crowther thought that the film and its characters were too artificial and generic, and he strongly criticized MGM’s decision to shoot the film primarily on set.
Oscars: All the Brothers Were Valiant was nominated for one Oscar at the 26th Academy Awards ceremony: Best Color Cinematography (George Folsey). Folsey lost the award to Loyal Griggs who won for his work on Shane.
Why You Should See It: All the Brothers Were Valiant is a good seafaring adventure film. Richard Thorpe did a great job shooting the film: the technicolor cinematography is outstanding and the film features many exciting scenes. The scene where Joel and some of the crew members hunt a whale and the mutiny near the end of the film were both stand out moments. Stewart Granger gives a strong performance as Mark. The character is charming and manipulative, though he has his sympathetic and heroic moments as well. In general, the character relationships and dynamics in All the Brothers Were Valiant are interesting.