The Black Watch (film)

The Black Watch
Theatrical release poster
Directed byJohn Ford
Written by
Based onKing of the Khyber Rifles (novel)
by Talbot Mundy
Produced byWinfield R. Sheehan
Starring
CinematographyJoseph H. August
Edited byAlex Troffey
Music byWilliam Kernell
Production
company
Distributed byFox Film Corporation
Release date
  • May 8, 1929 (1929-05-08) (US)
Running time
93 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

The Black Watch is a 1929 American sound (All-Talking) pre-Code adventure epic film directed by John Ford and starring Victor McLaglen, Myrna Loy, and David Torrence. It was written by John Stone, based on the 1916 novel King of the Khyber Rifles by Talbot Mundy, with dialogue by James Kevin McGuinness.[1] The film features an uncredited 21-year-old John Wayne working as an extra; he also worked in the arts and costume department for the film.[2] This was director John Ford's first sound film.[3]

The Black Watch entered the public domain in 2025.[4]

Plot

A captain in the British Army's Black Watch regiment is assigned to a secret mission in India just as his company is called to France at the outbreak of war in August 1914. His covert assignment results in his being considered a coward by his fellows, a suspicion confirmed when he becomes involved in a drunken brawl in India that results in the apparent death of another officer. He goes to stop a mysterious woman named Yasmani from leading a Pashtu tribe in a holy war against the British. After falling in love with the captain, following a skirmish in which the tribesmen are killed by British soldiers using machine guns, Yasmani dies in his arms. The captain returns to his regiment.

Cast

Production

After John Ford had completed filming, additional dialogue scenes written by James Kevin McGuinness and directed by Lumsden Hare were added[6] which Ford detested.[3][7] Myrna Loy was loaned to Fox Films by Warner Bros. for this film. To avoid violating the Motion Picture Producers and Distributors of America rule against miscegenation, Loy's character Yasmani is established as being white and a descendent of Alexander the Great prior to any romance with Captain King.[6]

See also

References

  1. ^ "Film Reviews: The Black Watch". Variety. 95 (5). New York City: Variety, Inc.: 20 May 15, 1929. Retrieved June 21, 2025.
  2. ^ "The Black Watch". Internet Movie Database. Retrieved August 9, 2012.
  3. ^ a b Gallagher, Tag (1986). John Ford: The Man and His Films. University of California Press. pp. 61, 68–69. ISBN 0-520-06334-1.
  4. ^ Jenkins, Jennifer; Boyle, James (January 1, 2025). "Public Domain Day 2025". Center for the Study of the Public Domain. Duke Law School. Retrieved June 18, 2025.
  5. ^ "Full cast and crew for The Black Watch". Internet Movie Database. Retrieved August 9, 2012.
  6. ^ a b Leider, Emily W. (2011). Myrna Loy: The Only Good Girl in Hollywood. University of California Press. pp. 72–73. ISBN 978-0-520-25320-9.
  7. ^ Levy, Bill (1998). John Ford: A Bio-Bibliography. Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Press. pp. 107–108. ISBN 0-313-27514-9.
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