The Plough and the Stars is a 1936 drama film
based on the play of the same name by Se·n O'Casey.
It stars Barbara Stanwyck, Preston Foster and Barry Fitzgerald
John Ford, whose fierce pride in his Irish heritage often manifested
itself in his work, directed this historical drama which uses as its backdrop the
1916 Easter Rebellion of Irish patriots against British rule.
John Ford had several bitter disputes with RKO Pictures
while making The Plough and the Stars, especially after the studio re-shot several scenes
with another director to tone down the film's politics;
while he distributed several independent productions through the studio,
he never shot another picture for RKO.
~ Mark Deming, Rovi
User Review
QuoteFord's "Plough & the Stars" ('36) -- a powerful period piece
31 May 2010 | by jdeureka (France)
If you like Ireland, Irish history & literature, the traditions of the Irish people & the ambiguous creation of the Irish nation -- what's not to like about this movie? Sure, now, it's more John Ford than Sean O'Casey. But what would you be expectin from John Ford at the height of his creative spirit -- four years before he filmed "Grapes of Wrath"? Almost everyone in this movie plays their part with pungent efficiency. It's old-fashioned acting of the best sort. As movie, this is much more cinema of ideas, of belief & revolution, of theater, of language & gesture & non-verbal communication -- than our contemporary cinema of special effects and technicolor sensations. This movie is political entertainment of a very fine order; with as much said by the words as by what is shown. But how many people alive now can relate to it with the potency it must of had back in the 1930s?