Brigham Young

Darryl F. Zanuck's Brigham Young was originally released on September 27, 1940. This film is arguably the most important film in Mormon history. Just 18 short years earlier the film Trapped by the Mormons was released, which negatively depicted the Mormons. And just 11 years before that A Victim of the Mormons, the first anti-Mormon film, was shown to large audiences. Because of these films and other popular culture it was only natural that people associate Mormons with polygamy, Utah, missionaries, and violence . To many, Mormonism represented all that was evil in the world.

Then in 1930 the Hays Production Code was passed which, among other things, provided that "Ministers of religion in their character as ministers of religion should not be used as comic characters or as villains," and " No film or episode may throw ridicule on any religious faith" (http://prodcode.dhwritings.com/index.php). All of the sudden depictions of Mormons in film took a 180 degree turn for the better. No longer were Mormons subject to scorn and ridicule, but in fact held up for praise as the embodiment of true patriotism and frontier courage and optimism. Members of the church were so encouraged by their new public image that they came from far and wide to view the film on opening night in Salt Lake City. 7 theaters were filled to capacity, smashing records for movie premiers.


(Vincent Price as Joseph Smith)

In general the movie respected the culture and religion it depicted. A Mormon would be hard-pressed to find anything in the movie that should have been excluded. However, in hindsight some may look at the film and wish the writers had chosen to include certain aspects of the Mormon religion and culture. Things such as baptism, the Book of Mormon, priesthood, apostles, and main points of doctrine are major themes of Mormonism that were obviously left out. Others may wish the film would have shown things a little differently, such as Brigham Young's struggle with doubts regarding his call as a prophet.

In my opinion "beggars can't be choosers." In light of the previous depictions of Mormonism, members of the church were (and should have been) grateful for simply being treated fairly and honestly in a film. Members of the church have the same dilemma today. We want to be taken seriously as a religious group and to be thought of as important enough to be the subject of documentaries and films, yet when we are we feel like we have to fight every little point they get wrong. It would be a hard thing to find a completely objective director who would be able to portray Mormonism in the exact way every Mormon would like themselves portrayed while at the same time making his film understandable to a larger audience. Such a task is virtually impossible.


(Tyrone Power as Jonathan Kent and Linda Darnell as Zina Webb)

Therefore I conclude that we can't have it both ways, and Darryl Zanuck's Brigham Young fulfilled what I think was it's purpose, which was to reverse the negative image of the Mormons and replace it with a depiction of Mormons as courageous, faithful, pioneering men and women with a clear vision of their mission in life.

Emma Smith: My Story

Last Saturday at the LDS Film Festival I had the opportunity to watch "Emma Smith: My Story." I had heard from various graduate students in my Mormon History class (students who know their LDS history) that this film was very good and fairly accurate. So I decided this was one of the movies I wanted to see. I was not disappointed.

The movie was made by the Joseph Smith Jr. and Emma Hale Smith Historical Society and therefore there was considerable research done to ensure as much accuracy as possible. A couple of descendants of Emma and Joseph were also involved in the movie making process including Gracia Jones (well known author on the subject) and Michael Kennedy (President of the JS Jr. and ES Historical Society). One aspect of the film that I was particularly pleased with was the use of the same actors as those in the Temple Square film "Joseph Smith: Prophet of the Restoration." I thought these actors did an amazing job and was glad to have them back for this film on Emma.



The film is narrated by Joseph and Emma's adopted daughter, Julia Murdock Smith, who begins by recounting the marriage of her mother to Major Lewis C. Bidamon one year after Joseph Smith's death. She tells the story of Bidamon's unfaithfulness to Emma when he had an illegitimate child named Charlie with a young woman named Nancy Abercrombie. Nancy could not care for Charlie so Emma took him in as one of her own. She even employed Nancy in her home so she could be close to her child. Upon her deathbed, Emma encouraged Bidamon to marry Nancy so that Charlie could be raised by his true mother and father. This story shows the heart of Emma Smith, and is one not often told to members of the church. It was from this moment I knew they were going to attempt to tell the whole of Emma's story, holding nothing back.

The movie was different from any church movie about the restoration I had seen before. Rather than having Joseph at the forefront, it showed the events of the restoration through her eyes. The many persecutions suffered by Emma and Joseph including the loss of 6 of their 11 children in infancy, Joseph's frequent incarcerations which left Emma alone, and her difficulty explaining her love for Joseph and the religion he restored to her family are all powerfully shown in the film. These powerful portrayals of her courage and perseverance magnificently led up to my favorite part in the film. Emma is shown talking to the now grown Julia (who is experiencing troubles of her own in her health as well as her marriage) who asks her about plural marriage. Emma states that she just doesn't like to talk about it because it was such a hard time in her life. She also tells the story of Joseph's attempt to escape incarceration in Carthage by going Westward, and how she wrote him a letter asking him to come back. In recounting these two events the film shows Emma saying she regrets that sometimes she let her pride and the desires of her own heart get in the way of what she knew was right and good. Then in response to Julia's question that if she could change anything about her life what would it be, Emma replies "Me." I thought this was very powerful because so many members of the church (including myself at times) believe that Emma did not live up to her calling or that she is somehow in trouble with the Lord because she did not go West with the main body of the Saints or because she struggled with the idea of plural marriage. In the film, by having her say that in hindsight if she could go back she would change only herself, it made me re-think my ideas of her. What if she just made a mistake? Is she not allowed to have feelings of possessiveness over Joseph and his time with her? How many times in my own life to I let my pride or the things that I want get in the way of making correct choices? The scene was especially powerful because for the previous hour I had been shown all the many sacrifices and loneliness she had to endure. I believe Emma Smith was an amazing lady who perhaps made mistakes just like the rest of us do.

I am very excited for this movie to come out in April 2008!

Trapped by the Mormons

The 1922 silent film "Trapped by the Mormons" is a classic example of the kind of fear surrounding the infant Mormon Church. The above authentic advertisement depicts a six-armed, devilish looking Mormon man gripping unsuspecting women in each hand. The flames in the background give the poster a fiery, hellish tone. Above the title are a series of newspapers with dramatic headlines such as "Slave Women of Utah" and "Clear Out the Mormons." As stated above this illustration was actually used in the 1922 promotion of the film and demonstrates actual fears of the time.

The movie is set in London, England where Isoldi Keene, a Mormon missionary, uses his hypnotic powers and charm to lure young Nora Prescott into his church, after which he plans to marry her as a polygamous wife and whisk her away to isolated Utah where she will have no chance of escape. Her family and former boyfriend do everything they can to save her from the grips of the Mormons and the inevitable fate that awaits her if she is taken to Utah. I'll leave my summary at that rather than spoil the ending.

In many ways I think a silent film requires more acting skills as well as creativity with the camera. Well, maybe not more skill, but a different kind of skill. For instance, the actors have to be much more dramatic in showing their emotions than movies with sound. When writing descriptively you are encouraged to "show don't tell" when describing a situation, and a silent film forces the actors to show how they feel. Also, it would have been much easier to show Isoldi's hypnotic powers in a film today than it was in 1922. Play some soothing music and thrown in a couple spellbinding words from Isoldi and the viewer knows exactly what's going on. However, without such luxuries in this film the cameraman showed creativity by zooming in on Isoldi's eyes while also showing Nora in a blank stare and subsequently doing whatever Isoldi desires.

When it comes to accuracy about the LDS faith this film misses the mark. It is based on the fictional novel by Winifred Graham entitled "Love Story of a Mormon." This novel and many others like it were written by authors who had clearly never visited Utah or had much contact with Mormon people. This is evidenced by statements made in the movie such as the idea that Mormons take women up to the top of the temple and then throw them off into the Great Salt Lake. A simple look at geography is sufficient evidence that this is not possible.

However I do believe that the filmmakers were able to capture actual, real fears people had about the Mormons and their practices. At the time the movie was made the LDS Church had renounced its practice of plural marriage, yet it was still the practice that Mormons were best known for (and perhaps most feared for). The idea that unsuspecting young women were duped into following Mormon missionaries back to Utah where they were forced to live in polygamy was a real fear for many. Another religious group that was suffering some suspicion at this time was the Catholic church. Many believed Catholics would disregard the law in order to be loyal to the Pope. This was a fear extended to the Mormons. The connection between Catholics and Mormons was often made in the movie, such as the scene where Isoldi and his fellow missionaries are preparing to baptize 3 young women. The missionaries are wearing garments that clearly resemble the priestly robes of the Catholic faith.

In conclusion, I believe that "Trapped by the Mormons" successfully captured many fears of the day regarding the Mormon faith. I think the movie was simply a result of the fear of the unknown that is still prevalent in Mormon/non-Mormon relations today. Although at the time the movie was made it was meant to be a serious showing of the peculiarities and cunningness of the Mormons, today it is seen as comedic. It is so clearly over the top that it is unintentionally funny.


(Nora Prescott)


(Mormon missionaries outside the movies' premier in England)

Meghan's rating: This is a must see for any Latter-day Saint ready for a good laugh about early perceptions of their religion.