Main Cast: Edward G. Robinson, James Craig, Frances Gifford, Agnes Moorehead, Morris Carnovsky
Release Year: 1945
Country: US
Run Time: 105 minutes
Plot
An earnest rural melodrama set among Norwegian immigrants in Wisconsin, Our Vines Have Tender Grapes is a slightly updated version of George Victor Martin's 1940 novel. Edward G. Robinson stars as Martinius Jacobson, a farmer devoted to his wife Bruna (Agnes Moorehead) and precocious seven-year-old daughter Selma (Margaret O'Brien), whom he lovingly calls "Jente Mi." Along with her freckle-faced five-year-old cousin, Arnold (Jackie "Butch" Jenkins), Selma lives a carefree, joyous life, which is only temporarily clouded by the sudden death of Ingeborg Jensen (Dorothy Morris), an emotionally disturbed young women whose stern father (Charles Middleton) had refused to let her attend school despite the pleas of newly arrived schoolmarm Viola Johnson (Frances Gifford). The latter is quietly falling in love with Nels Halvorson (James Craig), the town newspaper editor, but cannot envision herself as a rural wife. She changes her mind when, inspired by young Selma, the entire town of Fuller Junction come to the aid of Bjorn Bjornson (Morris Carnovsky), who has lost his livestock when lightning struck a newly erected barn. When Selma generously donates her pet calf to the impoverished farmer, the townspeople in general, and Martinius in particular, follow suit, prompting Viola to reconsider her harsh views of country life and retract her letter of resignation to the school board. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, All Movie Guide
Review
Its title taken from the Song of Solomon. II. 15 ("Take us the foxes, the little foxes that spoil the vines; for our vines have tender grapes"), this pastoral family drama proved the perfect antidote to a war-weary audience. While the world war was finally nearing its end, the home fires burned brightly and little Margaret O'Brien packed 'em in at the local bijous. Margaret was almost a force of nature in the early '40s, arguably the most natural child actress there ever was. Our Vines Have Tender Grapes stands as a testament to her remarkable talent and no other child actress could have made Selma Jacobson more believable. MGM knew very well what they had, and Margaret earned above-title billing right alongside Edward G. Robinson. The latter is equally letter-perfect as the hardworking farmer and if the Jewish Robinson may not have been the obvious choice to play a Norwegian immigrant, he overcame that handicap by offering an affectionate portrayal of a quiet, dedicated family man. Partially filmed on director Roy Rowland's ranch in the San Fernando Valley, Our Vines Have Tender Grapes became the surprising victim of a lawsuit, filed in 1946 by original author George Victor Martin's former wife, Selma, who claimed that the film was based on her life and that its exhibition had caused her to suffer "undue public attention, mental anguish, and humiliation." The outcome of the suit, however, is not known. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, All Movie Guide
Edward C. Carfagno - Art Director, Cedric Gibbons - Art Director, Irene - Costume Designer, Roy Rowland - Director, Ralph Winters - Editor, Bronislau Kaper - Composer (Music Score), Jack Dawn - Makeup, Robert Surtees - Cinematographer, Robert Sisk - Producer, Hugh Hunt - Set Designer, Edwin B. Willis - Set Designer, Arnold A. Gillespie - Special Effects, Daniel Hall - Special Effects, Dalton Trumbo - Screenwriter, George Victor Martin - Book Author
Our Vines Have Tender Grapes is an American motion picture released in 1945, directed by Roy Rowland and starring Edward G. Robinson and Margaret O'Brien. The movie is based on the novel by George Victor Martin, about the Norse descended residents of a small Wisconsin farming community. The screenplay was written by Dalton Trumbo, who later in life was a victim of the McCarthy era Hollywood blacklist. Its title comes from Chapter 2, Verse 15 in the Song of Solomon in the King James version of the Bible, which reads, "Take us the foxes, the little foxes, that spoil the vines: for our vines have tender grapes."
Please help improve this article by expanding it. Further information might be found on the talk page. (December 2009)
A story is about a Norwegian immigrant in Wisconsin, Martinius Jacobson (Edward G. Robinson), a farmer, his wife Bruna (Agnes Moorehead) and their seven-year-old daughter Selma (Margaret O'Brien) who is very close with her five-year-old cousin, Arnold (Jackie 'Butch' Jenkins). Selma lives a carefree, joyous life. Her father Martinius' one great ambition in life is to build a new barn, but tragedy strikes. How the family copes with that is the core and the charm of the film. [1]
