The film Legends of the Fall was neglected or poorly received by audiences and critics alike upon its release in 1994, but deserves a fresh reflection for its sheer power, grandeur and thematic scope. It is “old school” 1950s-style, melodramatic film-making on a grand scale, spanning over 50 years in the tragic life of a family living in the Montana wilderness, and as well, a soul-stirring, at times deeply unsettling story of the broken bonds of brotherhood, guilt, madness, and redemption.

The film takes place in the remote mountains near Helena at the onset of World War I but transcends this locale to explore the darkened heart of the emotionally wounded spiritual warrior Tristan, and his quest to return to a Nature that once instilled in him a deep and protective reverence for all things. Viewed in retrospect as a heroic study of male initiation and masculine spirituality, Legends of the Fall overcomes much of the sentimentality and overblown romanticism for which it was so strongly criticized.

Legends of the Fall is widely available through most DVD outlets, including Netflix and Blockbuster. You might also try your local library.

 

Discussion Questions

The questions below can serve as a starting point for small group discussion.

1. Upon Samuel’s death, Tristan’s anguished cry is to damn God. What are the after-effects of his fall from the balance with nature in his soul?
2. Animal images and totems are important to many cultures in the rites of passage and male identity. How does the bear figure in this story, obviously in the life and death of Tristan, but also for the other characters? What other animals carry significant themes? Do you have an animal soul or totemic identification that shapes your character? How do you experience it at an inner level?
3. A warrior’s first fight is with his own demons. What are Tristan’s demons that turn him from an aggressive, spiritual warrior to a violent, mad hunter? Have you felt this tension in your own spiritual journey? And if you can’t kill the demon, as Robert Bly says, how do you educate him?
4. Men require ritual space for their feelings, especially grief. What rituals do you find in the film and what sacred spaces does Tristan explore in his dark night of the soul?
5. Colonel Ludlow is a father full of love, understanding, gentle refinement and great compassion, yet he is unable to mentor his sons. What is it about his character and the character of his sons that prevents this? The elder Native American, One Stab, answers that call and only then with Tristan. Why is Tristan the one to be mentored by One Stab? Can an elder and a mentor be the same?