--- title: "Louisiana Story" year: 1948 kind: "film" canonical: "https://film.one/film/louisiana-story" fi1m_id: "louisiana-story" imdb_id: "tt0040550" tmdb_id: 70447 wikidata_id: "Q2748409" fi1m_score: 72 critics_score: 73 critics_reviews: 7 published: "2026-09-25T04:28:13.928409+00:00" updated: "2026-09-25T04:28:14.245218+00:00" region: "CZ" licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL." --- # Louisiana Story (1948) Directed by Robert J. Flaherty · 1h 18m · Adventure, Drama ## Identity Louisiana Story - **Canonical:** https://film.one/film/louisiana-story - **Type:** Film - **Fi1m ID:** louisiana-story - **IMDb ID:** tt0040550 - **TMDB ID:** 70447 - **Wikidata ID:** Q2748409 - **Same entity:** https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0040550/, https://www.themoviedb.org/movie/70447, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q2748409 **Fi1m score: 72** · Critics 73 from 7 reviews *In a sentence:* The oil drillers receive a warmer welcome than we were prepared to offer > Robert J. Flaherty’s bayou drama is worth seeing for Richard Leacock’s photography and Virgil Thomson’s music. The slender story holds our attention, but its cheerful view of oil drilling leaves too much unquestioned. ## Synopsis In the Louisiana bayou, The Boy (Joseph Boudreaux) explores the waterways by canoe while oil drillers work in the landscape around him. At home are His Father (Lionel Le Blanc) and His Mother (E. Bienvenu); among the workers are The Driller (Frank Hardy) and His Boilerman (C.P. Guedry). The opening canoe journey follows the boy through the bayou, introducing the surroundings he knows before bringing him into contact with the drilling operation. With little dialogue, he gets to know the men whose work now shares those waterways. ## Review Robert J. Flaherty’s *Louisiana Story* is worth seeing for its photography and music, though its kindly treatment of oil drilling takes some swallowing. The small adventure puts a boy among waterways and working adults, with little dialogue to explain their lives. That leaves the photography, editing and music with much of the work, and they reward the attention they ask for. The trouble comes when the film expects the same warm response to everything it shows. Richard Leacock’s photography makes the opening canoe journey a reason to stay with the film, even before the slender story has much to offer. We felt ourselves relax as the boy travelled through the bayou, carried along by Virgil Thomson’s music and the pleasure of being allowed to look. The images give the waterway an interest that does not depend on an incident waiting around the next bend. There is confidence in spending so much of an adventure simply attending to its surroundings. Virgil Thomson’s score is especially valuable in a film with so little speech, giving the canoe journey movement without making it feel hurried. It encourages curiosity about the bayou and affection for the boy, and the pictures are strong enough to deserve both. We are less persuaded when that same affectionate mood extends to the oil workers. The music’s charm helps the favourable portrait go down easily, which is precisely why it needs listening to with a little suspicion. Helen van Dongen’s editing keeps the limited action from feeling merely strung out, although there are stretches where the slightness of the story becomes difficult to ignore. The film can generate suspense, and its quietness makes those changes of pace effective. The story credited to Frances H. Flaherty and Robert J. Flaherty gives the people too little substance, however, especially beside the attention paid to their surroundings. At 78 minutes, the film is short enough to sustain its leisurely approach. We still wanted more reason to care about the family beyond their place in these images. Joseph Boudreaux plays The Boy, and having a child at the centre gives the film a convincing reason to look at familiar surroundings with curiosity. Lionel Le Blanc and E. Bienvenu play His Father and His Mother, but the sparse dialogue gives their relationships little room to develop. Frank Hardy’s The Driller and C.P. Guedry’s His Boilerman receive a generosity that becomes hard to accept without question. The problem is the suggestion that friendly workers leave nothing else worth asking about their industry. An adventure this quiet needs no apology for keeping its action scarce, and the unforced stretches are often the most absorbing. Its interest in an actual landscape does, however, invite questions about what industrial work means for the people living there. The film need not supply a lecture, but its confidence in the drillers ought to rest on more than their agreeable presence. Come prepared for a quiet evening, and keep a little of that goodwill in reserve. *Fi1m score 72, published 25 September 2026.* ## Straight answers **Is Louisiana Story worth watching?** *Louisiana Story* is worth watching for its bayou photography and Virgil Thomson’s music, and we score it 72. It suits a quiet evening and a taste for leisurely adventure, though the characters remain thin and its cheerful treatment of oil drilling asks for more goodwill than we can give. **How long is Louisiana Story, and what is it rated?** *Louisiana Story* runs 1h 18m. It is an adventure and drama film. **Where can I watch Louisiana Story in Czechia?** *Louisiana Story* is not on any streaming or rental service in Czechia at the moment. It is available in 1 other country; change your country at the top of the page to see where. Availability is checked daily. **How does Louisiana Story compare to Kes?** *Louisiana Story* offers a gentler account of a boy’s absorption in nature than [*Kes*](https://film.one/film/kes), which we recommend more strongly for its attention to the child himself. We find the bayou film most absorbing when it watches the waterways; *Kes* gives its boy more substance and places him in a much less accommodating adult world. **What should I watch after Louisiana Story?** After *Louisiana Story*, try [*Kes*](https://film.one/film/kes) (1969, Fi1m 88): A boy’s absorption in nature meets a much less accommodating adult world. Then [*Local Hero*](https://film.one/film/local-hero) (1983, Fi1m 86): Oil money reaches another small community, where the welcome comes with complications. ### Reviews we read (7) - **The AV Club**, Scott Tobias (85/100, inferred): Tobias presents the film as a poetic, gently humorous work that complicates Flaherty’s legacy as a documentarian. He singles out the opening canoe sequence and its lyrical score for praise. [Read](https://www.avclub.com/louisiana-story-dvd-1798198573) - **The New Yorker** (80/100, inferred): The critic finds the film fascinating and luminous despite its awkwardness and dated industrial mythology. They single out Virgil Thomson’s score and its seductive interplay with Flaherty’s bayou imagery for praise. [Read](https://www.newyorker.com/goings-on-about-town/movies/louisiana-story-2) - **Variety**, Variety Staff (80/100, inferred): The review is positive, praising the film’s vivid atmosphere and superlative photography. It also highlights the slender story’s appeal and moments of agonizing suspense. [Read](https://variety.com/1947/film/reviews/louisiana-story-1200415818/) - **Empire**, David Parkinson (75/100, inferred): Parkinson gives the film a positive verdict, calling it a prime example of American neo-realism. He especially praises Helen von Dongen’s editing and Virgil Thomson’s evocative score. [Read](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/louisiana-story-review/) - **The New York Times**, Bosley Crowther (65/100, inferred): The available page does not reveal the critic’s verdict. It provides no readable detail about what the critic praised or criticized. [Read](https://www.nytimes.com/1948/09/29/archives/luisiana-story-a-flaherty-film-about-a-boy-in-the-bayou-country-at.html) - **Time Out**, DC (65/100, inferred): The available page identifies this as a film review, but provides no review text from which to determine the critic’s verdict. Its metadata mentions Standard Oil’s sponsorship, but offers no specific praise or criticism. [Read](https://www.timeout.com/movies/louisiana-story) - **Radio Times**, Allen Eyles (3/5): Eyles regards the film as a simple but affecting story, while noting its sparse dialogue and limited action. He singles out Virgil Thomson’s score and criticizes the wholly favourable portrayal of oil drillers. [Read](https://www.radiotimes.com/movie-guide/b-k6lxed/louisiana-story/) ## Details - **Director:** Robert J. Flaherty - **Director:** Robert J. Flaherty - **Story:** Frances H. Flaherty, Robert J. Flaherty - **Cinematography:** Richard Leacock - **Editor:** Helen van Dongen - **Music:** Virgil Thomson - **Producer:** Robert J. Flaherty - **Cast:** Joseph Boudreaux as The Boy; Lionel Le Blanc as His Father; E. Bienvenu as His Mother; Frank Hardy as The Driller; C.P. Guedry as His Boilerman - **Runtime:** 1h 18m - **First release (the UK):** 22 August 1948 - **Genres:** Adventure, Drama - **Budget:** $258,000 ## Where to watch in Czechia Not streaming, renting or buying in Czechia at the last check. Also available in: US. Add `?region=XX` to this URL for another country. ## Awards - Academy Awards 1949: Best Story (nominated) ## If you liked this - *The Naked Island* (1960): Patient attention to rural labour, with little speech and no easy comfort. - *Kes* (1969), Fi1m 88: A boy’s absorption in nature meets a much less accommodating adult world. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/kes.md) - *Local Hero* (1983), Fi1m 86: Oil money reaches another small community, where the welcome comes with complications. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/local-hero.md) - *The River* (1951): Waterside life observed with patience, and more room for complicated human feelings. - *Sweetgrass* (2009): For more landscapes and working lives, observed without quite so much reassurance. --- © Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/film/louisiana-story