Plow that Broke the Plains

This item is part of the collection: Prelinger Archives

Audio/Visual: sound, b&w
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Creative Commons license: Public Domain

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Reviewer: friedrich - - April 10, 2006
Subject: The Plow that Broke the Plains

This is an important historical document on several levels. It shows the state of the art in the documentary and the political orientation of government civil servants of its day. It includes some of the best raw footage of the environment and agricultural practices in the American West. The soundtrack by Virgil Thomson connects the otherwise dry narration with many important themes and trends in American society.

"The Plow that Broke the Plains" connects the booming World War I economy to the environmental crisis that followed. I therefore find showing this film helpful in teaching the complex economic causes for many environmental problems. The film does not provide answers, and subsequent research has provided new insights on the Dust Bowl crisis.

Reviewer: Spuzz - - March 9, 2005
Subject: Yes, And??

I saw the first inclination of this short last year, and refrained to put a review up, as it was ONLY part I, and it didn't really resolve anything. Well, guess what? I finally saw the whole thing, (Part II was only 2 mins?) and it STILL doesnt resolve anything. The story of the modern wheatfield is told here, from the wild west frontier where cows grazed freely, to the great migration out west, to war production, then to the dust bowl problem. Problem is, the film totally ends abruptly, with nothing to say what is being done, what the farmer has to do, or anything. This sort of has a Grapes Of Wrath ending to it, except without the optimism (whatever amount that that had lol)