Simply Perfect

The performances transcend the film's tropes, grounding it in characters that feel more complete than this subgenre often produces.

This is a coming of age storyline that you've seen in one form or another for decades. It takes a truly unique voice to make yet another one worth watching.

There is, somehow, an interesting story here, as well as some good acting. There are also some good scenes

Unusual Studio (Fox) Film with the Usual Studio Interference, Ignoring (once again) the Talent of the Director (Jean Renoir) because He (Zanuck) could. Still, the Artistry Remains and Thankfully the Changes and Bullying from another Egomaniacal Mogul did not Result in a Catastrophe. Because Renoir's Sensibilities Stamped the Movie with such a Decidedly Different Approach that, even Today, when Compared to its Contemporaries from the Assembly Line, it Stands Out as an Odd, Graceful, and Touching Story of Swamp People Living on the Edge Slightly Removed from Regular "Folks".Walter Brennan, Dana Andrews, Walter Huston, and Anne Baxter are part of the Fine Cast that Despite having to Dialect, the Feel of the Characters is Not Lost and the Beautifully Dark and Dank Surroundings are Impressive and Engaging.On Location and On Set, the Film is Highly Atmospheric in an Other Worldly Sense. It might have been Set on "Another Star" as Walter Brennan eludes. The People and Place are Rendered by Renoir Fascinating and some of the Story Arcs Push the Envelope of its Time.It's a Gritty Tale that Peeks in on the "Other" and it Offers Rubberneckers and Voyeurs a Glimpse of Life in one of America's Uncharted Territories that Reveals Colorful, Rustic, but Real Souls trying to Make Sense of Their Place in God's Universe and there's Plenty of Heart to be Seen as well as a "Touch of Evil".

While participating in a posse to hunt down the fugitive Tom Keefer (Walter Brennan), who is accused of murdering a local inhabitant, the young Ben Ragan (Dana Andrews) loses his dog Trouble in the Okefenokee Swamp in Georgia. He returns to the swamp to seek his dog out but he is captured by Tom. Soon he learns that Tom Keeler is innocent and has a daughter, Julie (Anne Baxter), who is raised by the local merchant Marty McCord (Russell Simpson). Ben has an argument with his father Thursday Ragan (Walter Huston) and he moves to a shanty that belongs to Marty. Then he associate to Tom Keeler to hunt animals in the swamp and he shares the profit of selling furs with Julie. Soon they fall in love with each other. One day, Ben witnesses Bud Dorson (Guinn Williams) and his brother Tim Dorson (Ward Bond) stealing Marty's pigs. There is a meeting in the village with Sheriff Jeb McKane (Eugene Palette) to find the thief and Ben's ex-girlfriend Mabel MacKenzie (Virginia Gilmore) is jealous of Ben and accuses Tom Keefer. The sheriff organizes a search party to hunt Tom down, but Ben presses Jesse Wick (John Carradine), who is harassing his stepmother Hannah (Mary Howard), and he finds who the real killers are. He wants Tom to return to the village, but Tom suspects that Ben might intend to betray him. "Swamp Water" is an entertaining and dramatic adventure. The locations and the camera work in the swamp are impressive. The choreography of the fight and the quick sand in the swamp "swallowing" the criminal are very realistic. The direction of Jean Renoir and the cinematography are amazing. My vote is seven.Title (Brazil): "O Segredo do Pântano" ("The Secret of the Swamp")

I wish I could remember when I saw this film on TV, but being a Renoir fan I was curious about it. The mood, the overall feel of the movie, was unusual and haunting. Given the cast, the acting was wonderful. It may not have done much for the tourist trade in the Okeefanokee swamp, but-- who knows?-- maybe it did. The film describes a style of life that was far from my experience, but it was believable. I recall loving Walter Huston's role. Comparing him in the Treasure of Sierra Madre where he seems shrunken and wizened, his large stature here shows what a towering presence he was on the screen. I have wanted to see this film again myself and keep looking for it on NetFlix.

When the Germans invaded France at the beginning of WWII, Jean Renoir had just directed three masterpieces...Grand Illusion (1937), La Bete Humaine (1938) and The Rules of the Game (1939). He escaped to Hollywood with little but an immense reputation and a poor command of English. So what did Hollywood do? Darryl F. Zanuck assigned him to a piece of swamp noir called Swamp Water. Renoir emerged with his reputation more or less intact, but as Zanuck said later, "Renoir has plenty of talent, but he's not one of us." Swamp Water tells the story of young Ben Ragan (Dana Andrews), who lives in a small community on the edge of Georgia's Okefenokee swamp. The swamp is a fearsome place filled with gators, quicksand, cottonmouth water moccasins, tangled undergrowth and mosquitoes. The menfolk all hunt, trap and fish around the edges of the swamp, and so does Ben with his dog, Trouble. One day Trouble goes missing and Ben, over the objections of his stern father, Thursday Ragan (Walter Huston), goes into the swamp to find his dog. Ben finds the hound, but an escaped convict, Tom Keefer (Walter Brennan), finds Ben. Keefer years ago had been judged guilty of hog stealing and killing a man, but he escaped before he could be hanged. He's been living deep in the swamp ever since. When Keefer is bitten by a cottonmouth, Ben tries to save him. Keefer survives and instead of killing Ben or abandoning him in the swamp, decides he'll trust Ben. He explains to Ben what really happened and that no one will believe him. The two of them agree to become partners. Keefer and Ben will hunt and trap to collect skins. Ben will keep Keefer's secret and sell the skins back in town. Ben can become independent of his father; he'll also save half the money for Keefer's daughter, Julie (Anne Baxter). Julie thinks her father is dead and has been raised by others. She is ragged with dirty feet, and works hard. Things are never simple, of course. Ben has a girlfriend to whom he by mistake shares his secret. She turns out to be a jealous flirt. There are two brothers who are tough, mean and who may be the real killers. There is Thursday Ragan's younger wife, who loves Thursday but longs for more companionship than Thursday is providing. There's Julie, who looks much better after a bath and wearing a pretty dress. And there's Ben himself, well-meaning, honest and a little naive, whose attempts to do the right thing often lead to more trouble. What did Renoir manage to make of all this, his first American movie? I wish I could say "a masterpiece," but that would be gilding the corn pone. Renoir does a fine job of showing us the life of this small community; we get a real sense of a tiny place where everyone knows everyone else and, sooner or later, everyone else's business. He insisted that he go to the Okefenokee and finally Zanuck gave him permission. He took Dana Andrews and a camera crew and came back with enough footage that we get a real feeling for what the swamp is like, especially if you're by yourself in the place. He also created some first-rate set pieces...the opening gator hunt, Ben's search for his dog, Keefer going to drink in the swamp at night and being struck in the face by a cottonmouth, the loneliness of Thursday's wife, the community dance, and Keefer's return with Ben that leads to an ambush in the swamp and an unsettling conclusion for the bad guys that involves quicksand and abandonment. On the other hand, we have to listen to Andrews try on a Georgia cracker accent. "My dog" becomes "mah doag." Andrews is never just sure of something, he's "plumb sure." And I can't count the number of times he refers to Baxter as a "young 'un" or he is referred to as a "young 'un" by others. The three canny old hands in the movie, Walter Brennan, Walter Huston and John Carradine (in a smaller role) never let themselves be trapped by corny accents; they speak their lines straight and it's much more effective. Good performances are also given by such recognizable faces as Eugene Palette, Ward Bond and Guin Williams. To add insult to injury, Zanuck himself rewrote the ending and gave this sentimental scene to a hack contract director to finish. All in all, Swamp Water is a movie Jean Renoir completists will eventually want to own, although I'm not sure how often you'll watch it after the first time. I suspect that when Zanuck said "Renoir has plenty of talent, but he's not one of us," Renoir was delighted and enthusiastically agreed.