Policing the Plains is a 1927 Canadian historical docudrama silent film directed by Arthur D. Kean and based on the book of the same name by R.G. MacBeth. It depicted the first fifty years of the Royal North-West Mounted Police.
Kean purchased the films rights to MacBeth's book two years after a separate company's unsuccessful attempt at adapting it. He originally planned for a six-reel film at a cost of $40,000, but it grew to eight-reels and $125,000 over the course of its filming over three years and five months. Kean filmed on location in western Canada and utilized the celebration of Macleod's 50th-anniversary.
The film's release date was delayed from the 1924 British Empire Exhibition to the 1927 Canadian National Exhibition before being shown once at the Royal Alexandra Theatre. The full film has since been lost since 1937, and one reel is believed to have been destroyed in a 1967 fire.
Plot
The film depicted episodes from the first fifty years of the RNWMP's existence, including: the Cypress Hills Massacre; the force's creation and March West; the force's relations with Indigenous peoples on the prairies; the founding of Fort Macleod; the pursuit of whisky traders and horse thieves; the building of the Canadian Pacific Railway; the Canadian sojourn of Sitting Bull and his followers; the Klondike Gold Rush; and modern police methods used in the 1920s.
Cast
Jack Downing as Corporal
Dorothy Fowler as Canadian Girl
Joe Fleiger as Jerry Potts
T. A. Wroughton as Officer
Alfred Crump Officer Commanding Police
James G. Harrison as Sergeant Major
Donald Hayes as Officer of Police
Senior Heaton as Canadian Statesman
Norman Randall as Indian Scout
Margaret Lougheed as Britannia
The cast members were almost all non-professionals; many were recruited more for their ability to ride and handle horses convincingly than for any noteworthy acting ability. Leading parts were played by Alfred Crump, Jack Downing [a.k.a. Jack Boyd], Joe Fleiger, Dorothy Fowler, James G. Harrison, Donald Hayes, Senior Heaton, Margaret Lougheed, Norman Randall, and Col. T. A. Wroughton.
In addition, members of the Blood First Nation appeared in several crowd, camp, and action scenes, wearing traditional dress and riding their own horses. They made Kean an honorary chief and gave him the name Oh-Mach-Ka-Si-Na-Ki ("The One Who Writes With Pictures").
Production
In 1922, Canadian Historic Features Limited attempted adapting R. G. MacBeth's Policing the Plains with the involvement of Harwood Steele, the son of pioneer Mountie Sam Steele, but the film was not made.
On 28 January 1924, Arthur D. Kean purchased the rights to MacBeth's book for $5,000 (). Kean planned for a six-reel (6,000-foot) film with a budget of $40,000, but production difficulties increased the final cost to over $125,000 as it grew to an eight-reel film.
Kean was the project's screenwriter, producer, director, cinematographer, and editor; he also handled publicity and some of the fund-raising duties. Kean believed in the ideal of a Canadian film industry that would celebrate Canadian and British history, values, and institutions. He also intended the film as a corrective to the clichéd and inaccurate portrayal of the RNWMP and its members in the numerous "Mountie movies" that were churned out by Hollywood studios during the silent era. Through personal contacts, he was able to secure the co-operation of the RCMP, including the loan of period-accurate uniforms and equipment. Assistant Commissioner T. A. Wroughton, of the RCMP's "E" Division, served as the film's technical advisor, and led a squad of Mounties shown in the opening scenes.
The Western Pictures Company announced Policing the Plains in March 1924, and planned a summer release at the British Empire Exhibition. However, the film suffered delays due to a host of financial, logistical, and technical difficulties. Much of the outdoor action was filmed on the Blood Indian Reserve near Macleod.
Filming was supposed to begin at Grouse Mountain, representing the Chilkoot Pass, but it is unknown if this sequence was actually shot. Filming at Green Lake near 70 Mile House started in March 1924. A nearby ranch belonging to Jack Boyd, a rodeo champion and cast member, was used as headquarters for multiple winter scenes. Modern-day scenes for the film's introduction were shot in downtown Vancouver. In July, the production moved to southwestern Alberta for several months.