User reviews

I had never heard of this flick and tuned to it (thank you, Turner Classic Movies) primarily because of the presence of the great Spencer Tracy and one of my favorite character actors, Van Johnson, whose acting skills I find vastly underrated. I was not disappointed, and I was surprised to read the many disparaging comments here. I cannot speak for historical accuracy but I found the story gripping and the script very well written. Tracy reminds us again of the reason he is regarded as one the greatest actors of his generation. No doubt that the love interest between him and Bradford's wife is probably apocryphal, and was inserted to fulfill Hollywood's requirement for a romantic angle, but so what? Leaving that aside the movie is a pretty engrossing depiction of the trials and travails of the Pilgrims, although the conditions on their actual voyage were probably a lot grimmer than Hollywood could politely depict in those days. All in all a very worthwhile effort and well worth seeing.

Being Italian, I don't know much about the history of the Pilgrim Fathers. "Plymouth Adventure" appears to be a correct, somewhat non-exciting tale of their voyage to America, with all their sufferings and dismay. A patriotic aura pervades the movie, but exceeding rhetoric is carefully avoided: this is a merit of the film. The photography and the costumes are beautiful, the acting is high-standard. The great Spencer Tracy was fifty-two years old when "Plymouth Adventure" was made, and, unfortunately, he looked seventy. Despite his huge talent, he was definitely too old for the role of the captain of the Mayflower. A main theme in the plot is that the Pilgrims survive during the first terrible winter in America thanks to the decisive help of the rough captain. In fact, despite his strong dislike for the Pilgrims, he decides not to abandon them to sure death, because he loves Dorothy Bradford - Gene Tierney. Well, as a proud fan of Gene Tierney, the idea that her fantastic beauty and loveliness could be so crucial in the development of human history sounds perfectly reasonable to me...

"Plymouth Adventure" somehow manages to avoid being corny or sappy and also avoids being religiously preachy. By sticking to straightforward storytelling it gets the job done in a dignified way that retains your interest as the story unfolds.

Spencer Tracy is too old and craggy for the romantic scenes with a much younger actress, but utterly dominates the film in a constructive manner through extreme talent and skill. He manages to dominate the film without being noisy or over-acting. As usual an amazing demonstration of acting skill by Tracy.

Van Johnson, basically a humble, kindly sort of actor is appropriately cast as a poor man in the hard-working carpentry profession. Leo Genn of the golden voice and saintly countenance is well cast as a gentle, religious-minded leader. Actually Genn's voice is beyond golden- I would describe his voice as 24-carat gold or maybe even platinum. Gene Tierney, a complex and tragic beauty and fine actress, is cast as what else... you guessed it, her character is beautiful and tragic. And on and on I could comment about the triumphs of good casting that add immeasurably to the success of "Plymouth Adventure".

The script is not very dynamic, and while not intense in the movie-drama sense, manages to avoid all the maudlin or preachy traps that it could have fallen into. So, while being far from great, this movie is watchable and generally succeeds in my opinion.

Where is the masterpiece American film on this dramatic voyage and settlement of the founders of our democracy? Plymouth Adventure, the best of its kind, has many of the virtues of great American studio work (convincing mise en scene, great ship, vivid action [the storm], fine acting [try to ignore the hobbled accents], and smooth story continuity) and can be enjoyed because of all that, but it never conveys a sense of the agonized desperation and profound spiritual quest of the dissenters. Perhaps Gene Tierney is just too beautfiul, perhaps the costumes are just too sparkling, and certainly the tragic affair with the Captain is better suited to a Douglas Sirk melodrama. For a different account, one can view Mayflower (Anthony Hopkins version), but that errs on the side of political correctness, and drab plotting, and tub-sails a low-budget toy Mayflower. We await the great film about the adventure of these heroic common folks to whom we owe so much.

It tells the Mayflower odyssey , it was the ship that transported the first English Separatists , known today as the Pilgrims , from Plymouth to the New World in 1620 , a very dangerous voyage carried out by a brave passenger list that made the 96-day storm-filled crossing . There were 102 passengers , the majority of them becoming the settlers of Plymouth Colony in what is now Massachusetts and the crew is estimated to have been about 30, but the exact number is unknown . The pilgrims are looking for a land where they can worship according to their beliefs . Captained by Captain Christopher Jones (Spencer Tracy) who piloted and helped the valiant pilgrims , he stayed at the Plymouth Colony in Massachusetts , waiting for favorable weather to return home to England on the "Mayflower" . This voyage has become an iconic story in some of the earliest annals of American history , with its story of death and of survival in the harsh New England winter environment . About half of these emigrants died in the first Winter . Many Americans can trace their ancestry back to one or more of these individuals who, 'Saints' and 'Strangers' together, would become known as the Pilgrims . Thirteen of the eighteen servants listed were attached to Leiden families, the other five were families who boarded in London . Four of those travelers listed were small children , to be classed as indentured servants . Other notorious pilgrims were John Alden (Van Johnson) , William Bradford (Leo Genn) , Gilbert Winslow (John Dehner) , Edward Winslow (Lowell Gilmore) , and William Brewster (Barry Jones) . Luckily , it took place the culmination of the voyage in the signing of the Mayflower Compact was an event which established a rudimentary form of democracy, with each member contributing to the welfare of the community . The Native Americans living in the area , the Patuxet, were totally wiped out by a series of epidemics between 1616-1619 caught from English fishermen who landed regularly in the area . Indian tribes ran away and fell ill , and then the colonialists built in the cleared area where the Indian village stood and utilized the cleared farm land that the tribe had abandoned . However , actually , after landing in Massachusetts , the colonists tried three times to sail southward to Virginia, but was driven back by storms .

Interesting historical film about the famous feat based on the novel by Ernest Gebler with screenplay by Helen Deutsch , describing trials and tribulations of the risked sea journey , a fundamental event in American history . It packs emotion , drama , love stories and historical happenings . Very good cast plenty of familiar Hollywood faces as Spencer Tracy who has an ill-starred romance with the wife of a religious fanatic well played by Gene Tierney , both of whom had an affair that lasted for the duration of filming . Support cast is frankly excellent , such as : Leo Genn , John Dehner , Barry Jones , Dawn Addams , Lloyd Bridges , Paul Cavanagh and Van Johnson , though filmmaker Clarence Brown later said casting him was a huge mistake . In addition , other uncredited players : John Dierkes , John Alderson , Murray Matheson and Rhys Williams . The film is well based on historical events , though including some fictitious incidents ; as Dorothy Bradford did indeed fall overboard and was drowned while husband William was exploring for a site for the establishment of Plymouth . For once , the colonists are correctly shown building framed houses, and not log cabins as is commonly supposed . Decent production design by prolific Cedric Gibbons , though most film is set on the vessel , being some claustrophobic . Colorful cinematography in Technicolor by William Daniels , Greta Garbo's regular cameraman . Evocative and thrilling musical score by Miklos Rozsa .

The motion picture nicely produced by Dore Schary was professionally directed - though with no enthusiasm- by Clarence Brown . Clarence studied and learned with French director Maurice Tourneur . He directed several actors in Oscar-nominated performances. During his career Brown directed or produced more than 50 widely-acclaimed full-length films , many during his long association with prestigious MGM and worked with many of the industry's most illustrious performers . Clarence got a lot of successes , such as : Anna Karenina , Maria Walewska , Intruder in the dust , The yearling , National velvet , Song of Love , among others .

"Plymouth Adventure" is a 1952 MGM historical drama filmed in color, about the 1620 voyage of the Mayflower and settlement at Plymouth Rock. It's based on a 1950 novel, "The Plymouth Adventure," by Ernest Gebler. This is a highly fictionalized account of the Mayflower voyage. While the main characters of the actual voyage and first colony are here, some of the stories about them are fictional. Van Johnson plays John Alden, Dawn Addams plays Priscilla Mullins, Barry Jones plays William Brewster, and Noel Drayton plays Miles Standish.

William Bradford, played by Leo Genn, was not a prominent member of the Mayflower pilgrims, as the movie shows, until after the Plymouth colony was established. The Bradfords had a 3-year-old son whom they left with her parents when they made the Mayflower voyage. Although Bradford's wife fell overboard and drowned while he was in the party exploring the land, it's preposterous to conclude that she and the ships' captain were in love or had anything like an affair. Hollywood just has to sensationalize, even if it means fabricating history and distorting the truth.

One very good aspect of this film is its portrayal of the hardships in the voyage. Another is the depiction of tall ships of that time battling the North Atlantic storms. The Mayflower indeed suffered serious damage as record by Bradford and others. But, the general attitude of Captain Jones, played by Spencer Tracy, must be suspect. He clearly harbors disgust, if not outright hatred toward the pilgrims. Although the printed reports of the harsh conditions of ocean crossings had circulated in England and other European centers for years before this, other common reports were about the opportunities and horizons the New World offered. So, explorers, pilgrims, adventurers and others setting out for or dreaming about the New World were common. Many, if not most mariners also had a sense of adventure and wouldn't have looked down on or despised the passengers they carried to the New World. But then, that depiction in this film also may have been for dramatic effect. Perhaps Spencer Tracy would not have been satisfied playing a mild-mannered or otherwise pleasant captain of such a famous ship from history.

The movie has several prominent actors of the day, but no noteworthy performances. It won the Oscar for special effects.

For an action picture at sea and with such a cast, this film failed to pack 'em in at the box office. It actually lost money for MGM because of it's high budget. It's not a particularly good film for its history - then, only for the general fact of the pilgrims, the ship and founding of Plymouth Colony. The best reason for seeing the film is the depiction of the tall ships sailing and weathering severe storms at sea.

This is the story of how the English pilgrims journeyed over the treacherous Atlantic waters, to form their colony at Plymouth, Massachusetts. These were the "seeds" that grew into The United States of America. Helming the famous "Mayflower" ship of colonists is grouchy Spencer Tracy (as Christopher Jones). Mr. Tracy doesn't let his passengers know they are headed for New England, instead of Virginia. But, in the end, the local "savages" are more friendly up North, we are told...

How these adventurers survived the hellish conditions is revealed to be due to Tracy's forbidden love for the wife of passenger pilgrim Leo Genn, a Godly-clean and good-looking Gene Tierney (as Dorothy Bradford). Tracy gets drunk and tries to have "his way" with her, but she apparently isn't prone to rape fantasies. They continue to make "goo-goo eyes" at each other, though. Meanwhile, carpenter Van Johnson (as John Alden) ogles pretty Dawn Addams (as Priscilla Mullins)...

Here is a prime example of a film that would seem to have everything going for it - but the story floats like a stone. Tracy and Mr. Johnson saw their 1951 "Quigley Box Office Star" positions plummet from #10 (Tracy) and #24 (Johnson), after setting sail. Director Clarence Brown retired. If you do hang around until they reach land, you'll see Mr. Brown and photographer William Daniels create a gorgeous location. Lloyd Bridges (as Coppin) is one who doesn't look like a fish out of water.

**** Plymouth Adventure (11/14/52) Clarence Brown ~ Spencer Tracy, Gene Tierney, Van Johnson, Lloyd Bridges

This is a very fine movie! As I am not American these pilgrims have not meant so much to me - although I recognized a name or two - but now I feel I know them and understand them a little. Not only because of what I learned in the movie itself, but from the reading I have done after wards because it awakened my interest and curiosity. Good historical movies shall work just like that - and for a good cause a little poetical license is acceptable! Because without the unconsummated and tragic love story, also if it did not happen in reality, this movie would not have been half as thrilling.

Some reviewers here have complained that Spencer Tracy looks too old to play Captain Jones, but I find this strange as the real Captain Jones was the same age as Tracy... and as Jones also partook of the hardships on board, not only on this famous voyage but in a whole life at sea, and in fact died only a year after he returned to England, HE probably did not look like a spring chicken either... I also must admit that I at least find Tracy attractive in this part!

The best thing about this movie is the dialogue; there are many lines that are as beautiful as poetry. Captain Jones' words when he talks of his broken ship, his lonely nights and his feverish longing for Mrs Bradford, is some of the best dialogue I have ever heard in a love scene written for a movie. Very pungent and erotic with a feeling of impending doom...

The feeling of being transported to the time period is very good. The sailing part is as far as I can see accurate - you get to see a little of the sailors really working the sails, pulling up the anchor etc. (I would have wanted more of this). The photo is beautiful and there are impressive storm scenes etc..

There is one thing lacking though: I would have expected more religious ardor from the passengers. More spirit. After all: these are the founding fathers!!! I think they come out as too ordinary, too preoccupied with practical matters like any migrating peasants.

It's 1620 Southampton, England. Pilgrim families are waiting to board the Mayflower. Christopher Jones (Spencer Tracy) is the Captain. The authority is looking to hang the group's leader William Brewster. Among the crew is first-mate Coppin (Lloyd Bridges) and new ship's carpenter John Alden (Van Johnson). The captain conflicts with Dorothy Bradford (Gene Tierney) who is married to William Bradford. Company agent Weston bribes Jones to drop the Pilgrim in Cape Cod, hundreds of miles away from their intended destination in Virginia.

The production spent a lot of money and it shows on the screen. It did win the Oscar for Best Special Effects. Like always with historical dramas, accuracy is suspect. Everything else is a bit middling. This has great actors, but they can't do more than on the page. It feels a bit scattered as the story follows many characters. It's a bit old school with veteran director Clarence Brown and it turns out to be his last. There may not be enough drama to do a movie about the voyage and the movie does not disprove that fear. The romantic drama feels manufactured. In the end, this has the one Oscar and not much else.

Short on adventure and long on talkiness, this 1952 big-budget release from MGM sinks faster than you can say "Mayflower."

Yes, one of the most famous of famous ships is the main character, and it's only slightly more wooden than the cast that climbs aboard and ventures to the new world. That cast is led by perennial grump Spencer Tracy, who commands the ship and hates all the passengers, until their goody-goodness and preaching about God and opportunity makes him see the error of his ways. Leo Genn gives the film's best performance as the passenger with the best oratorical skills. He also happens to be married to Gene Tierney, who's given absolutely nothing to do until she gets to commit suicide, probably to escape from the boredom of the film, in a plot twist that makes absolutely no sense since nothing was done by the screenplay up to that point to establish it.

Speaking of the screenplay, the writers must have been paid by the word, because this particular group of passengers talk a LOT about all the things that aren't interesting, while few of the things that would be interesting about a story like this never happen. The film got the lavish Technicolor treatment from MGM and a sea storm garnered it an Oscar for Best Special Effects, but even if the pilgrims themselves were not dead on arrival, the movie certainly is.

Grade: C-

An already aged-looking SPENCER TRACY is Captain Jones of the Mayflower in this MGM visualization of what the crossing to the New World may have been like on an overcrowded ship full of hopeful, determined passengers and crew. But neither he nor GENE TIERNEY (as Mrs. Bradford) seem at home in roles that are never really fleshed out by the script. Nevertheless, Tierney gets plenty of wistful close-ups as she gazes toward the horizon (or Tracy), but little of substance to do.

Neither does VAN JOHNSON get more than a brief supporting role as John Alden. LEO GENN gets more material as Tierney's stuffed shirt husband but little can be said of the other passengers except for LLOYD BRIDGES who struts around as a bronzed, blue-eyed pirate with taking ways. He at least livens up the scene whenever he's around.

The main trouble is the lack of strong drama in the script. Most of the passengers are a dull lot. Added to that, the lack of real chemistry between Tracy and Tierney makes it difficult to believe their love could be deep enough for her to care about this rude and cynical man completely lacking any sort of refinement in his nature.

The big storm scene is well realized and staged for maximum effect, but only serves to remind us how dull the other sections of the film are.

Summing up: A very uneven drama about an historical event that celebrated the birth of the New World. Should have been so much better.

A HUGE MGM blockbuster about the Pilgrims voyage from Europe to America. Along the way they have to deal with illness, infidelity, scarce food and water and each other. It's all overseen by Spencer Tracy as a tough old sea captain.

MGM spared no expense with this one. The film is shot in breath-taking color with great costumes and an exact replica of the Mayflower. Also there's an exciting sequence where they battle through a fierce storm at sea (this film won a well-deserved Oscar for Special Effects). But, aside from that, nothing much happens. There's a love triangle story that was so obvious it was annoying. Also we have some great actors here giving there worst performances. Tracy looks depressed and old; Gene Tierney looks great but the poor woman has nothing to work with; Van Johnson just walks through his role.

This was understandably a public and critical failure and lost over a million dollars. A real snoozer.

If you were the beautiful Gene Tierney, would you get your head turned by the disheveled, grumpy, rude, immoral, disrespectful Spencer Tracy, or would you stand by your handsome, intelligent, upstanding, sensitive, responsible husband, Leo Genn? As Gene and Leo are passengers aboard the Mayflower, she somehow gets roped into a love triangle with the ship's captain, but it makes no sense. If you remember Leo from The Snake Pit, you probably like him already, so you really won't be rooting for Spencer Tracy.

It seems every man wants his chance to play Captain Bligh, which explains why there are so many ship movies with a stern captain no one likes. If you love Spencer Tracy and want to see his chance, you might want to rent this movie. I really didn't like it. Not only does the main love triangle leave me puzzled and annoyed, but Gene is relegated to the "older couple romance", while one of my least favorite actors, Van Johnson, is given the "young lovers" romance. He's a passenger aboard the Mayflower who falls for a peasant, Dawn Addams, but neither character is interesting. To me Plymouth Adventure is one of those movies that people who don't like old movies give as a reference to their opinion. Trust me, there are better movies out there, and they're not hard to find. You've probably never heard of Down to the Sea in Ships, have you? Find it and watch it, then raise your standard for seaside flicks.

It was a coincidence that I watched Clarence Brown's Oscar-winning "Plymouth Adventure" right before Thanksgiving. Either way, the whole thing is basically a cringefest due to its inaccuracy.

While it's true that the English Separatists - now known as the Pilgrims - fled persecution in England, what's not widely known is that they initially went to the Netherlands, a common refuge for victims of persecution. However, the English Separatists didn't like how tolerant the Dutch were! So they sailed across the ocean, and upon setting up their colony, established a theocracy (they even banned celebrating Christmas!).

But most importantly, they weren't the first English people to settle in what's now the US. England had established Jamestown in present-day Virginia in 1607, and already had slaves there before the English Separatists sailed over! The English separatists were headed for Virginia before storms blew them north.

Anyway, the movie has a fine cast - Spencer Tracy, Gene Tierney, Van Johnson, etc - but it's worth seeing more for the visuals than the historical accuracy.

A great movie to watch for the Thanksgiving holiday! It was a perfect blend of history and entertainment, not to mention excellent acting from Spencer Tracy as Captain Christopher Jones, and Van Johnson as John Alden. (I would have liked more scenes with him and Priscilla Mullins, played by Dawn Addams.)

The movie shows the many hardships the Pilgrims went through, not to mention the difficulties getting started in the first place, like William Brewster (Barry Jones) having to hide from the authorities wanting to arrest him. At the same time, it adds a bit of romantic tragedy, as the tough talking, hard drinking captain falls for the married Dorothy Bradford (Gene Tierney) and she returns the feeling, though still caring for her husband William (Leo Genn), a good man who too often puts duty before his wife. This story was added to give one possible answer to the question of what really happened to Dorothy Bradford.

A movie worth watching.

Other reviewers talk like Plymouth Adventure is fiction. They think Clarence Brown is like James Cameron, who cares more about the story conforming to a movie than the other way around. In other words, they have no idea what integrity is.

Though much was documented - and is adhered to by the plot points - much is conjecture, and this can be subject to dramatic license. Of course, the dialog is up to the screenwriter and director. We can discuss this, but for me, the language and dialog weren't at all problematic, nor was the lush cinematography, in itself (see below).

I have only two quibbles:

I should have preferred to see Plymouth Adventure in black and white. The Pilgirms were a black and white lot who established a black and white society.

I don't mind myth-making, because I think myths can be metaphors for the truths behind them. Of course, myths can be used in malign ways, as we know from the Nazis. Though not malign, the myth of the Pilgrims is of questionable value, since we know that the Pilgrims were seeking, in the New World, freedom, but freedom to establish their own tyranny. This is different from the myth, say, of George Washington and the cherry tree, since Washington was a true archetype of integrity. Nevertheless, rather than making a debunking movie showing the Pilgrims as a kind of proto-Taliban, perhaps it would be better to let their qualities of courage and resourcefulness stand, and leave the myth to benign neglect.