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North West Frontier

North West Frontier

Adventure · Drama · 1959

In the rebellious northern frontier province of colonial India, British Army Captain Scott, a young prince and the boy's governess escape by an obsolete train as they are relentlessly pursued by Muslim rebels intent on assassinating the prince.

Movie details

North West Frontier

“Two people trapped by fate. In a country with no destiny.”

1959 Adventure · Drama 2h 9m

Critical arithmetic

One number, for now.

TMDB

6.8 / 10

Community rating

In the rebellious northern frontier province of colonial India, British Army Captain Scott, a young prince and the boy's governess escape by an obsolete train as they are relentlessly pursued by Muslim rebels intent on assassinating the prince.

CriticWise case file

What this film says about your taste.

Not a recommendation score. A measure of how closely the film’s taste signals resemble yours.

The archetype split

Who fights over North West Frontier?

The split comes from the same five-axis model used by the test, not audience ratings or review sentiment.

Taste neighbourhood

Nearby on the taste map.

TMDB supplies the candidates. CriticWise reorders them by craft, strangeness, prestige, emotion, and pace.

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Names above the title

The people responsible.

Directed by

J. Lee Thompson

Written by

Frank S. Nugent · Patrick Ford · Will Price · Robin Estridge

Kenneth More

Kenneth More

Capt. Scott

Lauren Bacall

Lauren Bacall

Catherine Wyatt

Herbert Lom

Herbert Lom

Van Layden

Wilfrid Hyde-White

Wilfrid Hyde-White

Bridie

I.S. Johar

I.S. Johar

Gupta

Ursula Jeans

Ursula Jeans

Lady Windham

Eugene Deckers

Eugene Deckers

Mr Peters

Court is in session

Put North West Frontier on trial.

Two incompatible taste archetypes. One film. Read the arguments, then issue a completely binding cultural ruling.

The defence The Sentimental Softie

“Sincerity is not manipulation.”

The film risks embarrassment to make emotion communal, and that openness is harder than fashionable detachment.

The prosecution The Cool Ironist

“The strings are showing.”

Every cue tells you exactly what to feel and when, leaving sentiment to do the work character should have done.