The Mormons are chased out of Illinois by angry mobs. Their leader, Joseph Smith, is killed while in custody because they dared defend themselves.
Brigham Young (Dean Jagger) declares himself the new leader of the church and guides his people westward.
Of course, it’s going to be an arduous journey, one that will test their faith.
And all the more so because Angus Duncan (Brian Donlevy) has heard of gold being discovered in California.
He’d prefer to lead the Mormons there. Having seen his lucrative business burned to the ground back in Illinois he figures he could get rich in a land where you can just pluck gold from the ground.
Brigham isn’t keen on the California idea. He dreams of a society where everyone shares in the wealth and fears greed will take over in “a land of milk and honey.”
He suggests they settle in a valley that came to him in a dream — as a message from God — while recovering from illness during the trip over The Rockies.
But carving out a settlement in the Great Salt Lake area will be no less arduous than the trip there.
After a harsh winter, with rations nearly depleted, even the faith of Jonathan Kent (Tyrone Power), one of Young’s most ardent followers, will be tested.
So will his chances of marrying Zina Webb, a non-Mormon who joined the trip West after her father was killed in one of those raids back in Illinois.
Dean Jagger as Brigham Young, spotting the valley in his dreams in Brigham Young (1940)
Vincent Price as Joseph Smith, defending himself for defending his followers in Brigham Young (1940)
Review:
Decent story of the trials and tribulations of the Mormons as they settle in Salt Lake, complete with an attack by swarms of crickets who threaten to drive Young’s followers to starvation.
But Jagger comes off as way too stiff in the title role, leaving the young couple of Tyrone Power and Linda Darnell, still a teenager at the time, to steal the film.
As the villain of the piece, Brian Donlevy tries to undermine Young, but never gets very villainous. John Carradine has a decent role as Porter Rockwell, the rugged frontiersman of the group.
For the most part, the film merrily skirts the issue of polygamy.
At one point, Brigham tells Jim Bridger he has 12 wives. And there’s a publicity shot from the film showing him with all 12. But he’s shown interacting at length with just one, and praises her for not getting jealous.
Likewise, Tryone Power’s Jonathan Kent falls for just one woman, Zina. Though in one fit of anger, she does question the wisdom of marrying a man who’s likely to wind up with 30 wives.
Tyrone Power as Jonathan Kent talking to Zina about the journey west in Brigham Young (1940)
Linda Darnell as Zina Webb, the non-Mormon who decides to head west with Jonathan’s family in Brigham Young (1940)
Directed by:
Henry Hathaway
Cast:
Tyrone Power … Jonathan Kent
Linda Darnell … Zina Webb
Dean Jagger … Brigham Young
Brian Donlevy … Angus Duncan
Jane Darwell … Eliza Kent
John Carradine … Porter Rockwell
Mary Astor … Mary Ann Young
Vincent Price … Joseph Smith
Jena Rogers … Clara Young
Ann E. Todd … Mary Kent
Willard Robertson … Heber Kimball
Moroni Olsen … Doc Richards
Marc Lawrence … Prosecutor
Stanley Andrews … Hyrum Smith
Frank N. Thomas … Hubert Crum
Runtime: 114 min.
Brian Donlevy (right) as Angus Duncan, the man who would like to lead the Mormons to California in Brigham Young (1940)
Mary Astor as Mary Ann Young, supporting her husband Brigham in Brigham Young (1940)
Memorable lines:
Brigham Young: “The law? What law? The law that let’s a pack of scoundrels come in here and hunt us down like wild animals, burn our homes, ruin our crops, arrest our leader on trumped-up charges and then look the other way when a mob breaks in and murders him? If they call that law, let ’em keep it. We don’t want any more of it!”
Brigham Young: “If it’s got to the place where a man can’t stay in the United States and believe what he wants to, then he’s got to get out.”
Brigham Young: “Lord, the way these sisters go to work with an axe is something. They go at it like they had the devil himself on the ground, fixing to lop off his tail.”
Brigham Young: “Kind of gives you a creepy feeling knowing they’ve got their eyes on you. Some of our folks are getting downright uneasy. But I tell them Indians can’t be any worse than some Christians I know.”
Brigham Young, about taking the Mormons to California to search for gold: “You know human nature. Take a crowd of people to a place of milk and honey and within six months time, they won’t be worth shooting.”
Jane Darwell as Eliza Kent with her son Jonathan (Tyrone Power) in Brigham Young (1940)
John Carradine as Porter Rockwell, the frontiersman among the Mormons in Brigham Young (1940)
Arthur Aylesworth as Jim Bridger, preparing for the frog race in Brigham Young (1940)
Tyrone Power as Jonathan Kent and Linda Darnell as Zina Webb get a first glimpse of the valley where Brigham wants to settle in Brigham Young (1940)
Linda Darnell as Zina Webb, as starvation threatens the new Mormon community in Brigham Young (1940)
Tyrone Power as Jonathan Kent, trying to nurse Zina back to health in Brigham Young (1940)
John Carradine as Porter Rockwell and Dean Jagger as Brigham Young watch a swarm of cricketts descend on the Mormons’ crops in Brigham Young (1940)
Tyrone Powerr as Jonathan Kent and Linda Darnell as Zina Webb see hope for a brighter future in Brigham Young (1940)
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