Sergeant York (1941) on Netflix
Approved19412h 14mBiographyDramaHistory
Alvin York, a sharpshooter in rural Tennessee, drinks and fights with his friends and dreams of buying fertile bottomland. When the draft comes, his claim as a conscientious objector is denied.
- Netflix3.6/5
- IMDb7.7/1020,170 votes
- Rotten Tomatoes85%
Trailer
Plot summary
Alvin York is a young farmer in rural Tennessee who lives with his widowed mother, Mary Elizabeth, his sister Rosie and his younger brother George. He spends his days fighting and drinking with his friends, and his aim is to buy a stretch of fertile bottomland. His skill with a rifle brings in the money, and the landowner Nate Tomkins gives him an extension, then takes the offer back. Alvin sets out for revenge, and he and his mule are struck by lightning on the way, which turns him back to his church. When the United States enters World War I, he claims exemption as a conscientious objector and is refused. Torn between serving his country and the biblical prohibition on killing, he is given leave to go home and settle the question.
Cast
Did you know?!Facts and trivia about Sergeant York (1941)
Can contain spoilers, watch the movie first.
- According to studio legend, Alvin York insisted that Gary Cooper play him on screen, and producer Jesse L. Lasky sent Cooper a telegram pleading with him to accept the role while signing York's own name to the message to help persuade him.
- The film's theatrical run coincided with the attack on Pearl Harbor, and its patriotic story of a reluctant soldier turned hero was credited with sending young men straight from movie theaters to military enlistment offices during World War II.
- After its initial theatrical run, Sergeant York kept being rescreened in American theaters throughout the war, used as a quick replacement whenever another film flopped at the box office and as a feature for wartime bond sales and scrap-metal drives.
- Alvin York refused, several times, to authorize a film version of his life story, but finally yielded to persistent efforts to finance the creation of an interdenominational Bible school.
- Studio records show Sergeant York earned $6,075,000 domestically and $2,184,000 internationally, figures Warner Bros. itself reported for the film's box office performance.
