All language subtitles for Northern.Lights.1978.1080p.WEBRip.x264.AAC-[YTS.MX]

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[melancholy music playing]

[man] I grew up
in a little town

west of Minneapolis,
about 110 miles,

called Sacred Heart.

Not only worked in town,

my father and I also
worked at a farm

a mile and a half from town,

and when we got tired
of living in town,

we'd move on the farm
and do some farming.

I plowed with a team
of horses

and a walking plow.

It was the boy that walked,
not the plow, by the way.

And when the horses got tired

and I thought the old man
wasn't looking,

I'd lie down,
and let the horses breathe,

and I'd dream about somebody
from the outside world

coming up with
some fast-stepping horses

and tell me, "We've just been
looking for a boy

that'll go out with us
with our circus.

And how would you like it?"

"Oh, it would be wonderful,"
and so forth and so on.

By that time,
the dream was over.

Time to go home
and do the chores at night.

So, when I became 21,

I followed
in my father's footsteps,

and went up
to northwestern North Dakota,

right up
on the Canadian border,

and homesteaded near a little
railroad town called Crosby.

[clock ticking]

Just a day or two ago,
I was rummaging around

in some old papers of mine,

and I came upon an old diary
I didn't even know I had.

It was written by a fella
I had known up there

on the claim near Crosby,

name of Ray Sorenson.

[soft music playing]

Ray's father, Henrik,
had come up there in the '90s.

So, by now, Ray,
together with his brother John

and the old man,

was working
a decent size farm,

while I was still living
in my old sod shack.

[clock ticking]

So, I figured
I'm not necessarily

getting any younger
at 94 years of age.

And here was an opportunity
to put down a good yarn

about those old times.

Good times, too,

almost forgotten
by most folks.

Times when we had
the powers that be on the run.

I had Ray's diary to tell
most of the story for me.

So, I sat down at my typewriter
and got started.

[bluesy music playing]

[typewriter keys clicking fades]

[music stopping]

[wind howling]

[sharp exhale]

[Ray] March 19th, 1915.

Going to see Inga
this afternoon.

Be tough and insist
on an answer.

[whirring]

[engine puttering]

[indistinct exclamations]

[whirring]

[yelping]

You tell me!

I'll leave you here!

And I got you now.

Go on, tell me.

If you don't tell me, I'm gonna
put snow down your back.

You put snow down my back,
I'll say no.

Then I won't put snow
down your back.

Then I won't say no.

What will you say?

[Inga] Yes.

[gentle music playing]

[spirited music playing]

[indistinct chatter]

[Ray] September 5th, 1915,

the day of my engagement party.

We started off
in the Blind Pig

in the back
of Gordon's elevator.

The joke is that Gordon
steals your grain

from you in the front,

and bootlegs it back to you
as booze in the rear.

[indistinct chatter]

But he's just a flunky
for the big milling boys

in the Twin Cities.

Small potatoes compared
to those grafters.

You're sold on this League,
aren't you?

You're gonna be sold on it, too.

The next few months
are gonna be critical.

Come on, don't get started
on the League again!

Don't get serious on us, Sven.

I'm only saying,
"Think about it."

[man] Time for another toast?

All right.

Let's see.

Here's to Ray.

I told him not to do it,
but he did it.

[man] One brother down,
one to go.

-You're next, John.
-Yeah.

Five.

-Whatta you got?
-[man] C'mon!

[chuckling]

I gotta go get cleaned up.

Come on, Ray. We don't want
to keep Ma waiting.

I'm going to stay
one more hand.

It's my deal then. I'm winning.

[man] What do you got?

You going, too?

[grunting]

See you in a little bit, Knut.

-[John] See you at home then?
-I'll be there.

[John] And don't be late.

I'll be there!

[indistinct chatter]

[Ray] With John gone,

Sven got going
on the League again.

I told him I'd join
if I won enough money.

[indistinct chatter]

It's to you, Sven.

He gambled on a couple pairs,
but I had three eights.

Very impressive, Ray.

Lay off, Sven,
it's my engagement day!

[glasses clinking]

I never met an organizer yet
with a sense of humor.

[Ray] When I finally
got out of there,

I knew I'd be in trouble
at home.

There are two things
Mother doesn't tolerate:

missing grace and
talking politics at the table.

But Father would be all right.

I could just see him,

waiting to get that first drink
under his belt.

-Amen.
-Amen.

[overlapping chatter]

[Henrik] Christians!
Bunch of hypocrites!

Not all of them,
but most of them.

He was born two months late.

[dishes clanking]

Hello, Inga.

You come for dinner?

[chuckling]

[man] You gotta have a toast.

There's no hurry, really.
This meal's good.

Nah, it's a special occasion.

[Ray] Of course it was
a strange engagement party

without Inga's parents there.

Ole and Adelaide
had decided to hire out

to a threshing crew
at the last minute

and couldn't come.

Anything to make ends meet.

But Uncle Thor tried
to cheer everybody up

by telling his grass story for
the 100th time.

[mimicking rapid ticking]

[mimicking soft clicking]

So, where's the toast?

-What's that?
-[John] Where's the toast?

If it's a toast you want,
then you'll have a toast!

Here's to Inga and Ray...

Good people!

-Skol!
-Skol!

But make sure, Ray,

that you make love
like a Viking marauder!

[laughing]

[clearing throat]

For my part, I have...

I've written a...

I've written a poem.

And so, here it goes.

-[paper rustling]
-[clearing throat]

Ole was a hunter
Who hunted the buffalo

But Lena hunted Ole
And laid the poor boy low

And when the couple went to bed
To keep their marriage pledge

Lena stayed on her own side

Ole hugged the other edge

And so it went
For one full year

And Lena's belly rose

And Ole's friends
Came by to toast

The thing that they supposed

And Ole smiled
And Lena smiled

And, uh, and let
Their neighbors know

That they did sure appreciate
The friends that loved them so

The next year, too
A child was born

And once more guests came by

And Ole smiled and Lena smiled
And no one questioned why

And finally
One cold winter's night

Lena turned to Ole and said

Ole, don't you want to come
To my side of the bed?

Said Ole, Lena dear...

I am a hunter
Who hunts the buffalo

I learned my trade
From the Indians

And I do things just so

In olden times
The Indians rode up

And speared their prey

But now we have repeating guns
We fire from far away

So, Lena dear, we have two sons
By this method tried and true

I'd be nothing but a Tosken
To come and sleep with you

[giggling]

[giggling]

To Ray and Inga, skol.

[laughing]

[clapping]

[vocalizing]

Forsythe has only given Papa
a month.

[Ray] Charlie Forsythe,
the banker from Crosby,

is demanding
his mortgage payment.

--down to McGregor already.

Ole and Adelaide can work
their fingers to the bone,

but only a good harvest
can help them now.

[rooster crowing]

[chickens clucking]

Yeah.

Yeah.

[squeaking]

[moody music playing]

[indistinct chatter]

[Ray] After Inga
and the guests had gone,

father and I took a walk
up on the hill.

He drank a toast
to my engagement,

but asked me to hold
the wedding off

until after harvest.

Inga's parents are too worried

about mortgage payments
right now.

But I wonder if he knows
I'm more worried about him.

[wind howling]

[vocalizing]

[clock ticking]

Is everything all right?

That little gray bird

trying to get in,

kept trying.

Then I heard him
at the kitchen window.

I covered that.

I could still hear him banging,
trying to get in.

[soft clattering]

Better get some sleep, Far.

I'll leave the lamp.

-Good night, Far.
-[in Swedish] Sleep well.

[scraping]

-[gunshot]
-[pig screeching]

[Ray] September 15th, 1915.

Today we went to Ole
and Adelaide's to butcher.

Ole's up against it.

This is the last
of their pigs,

the one Inga and the kids
raised on a bottle.

[indistinct remarks]

[saw scratching]

When we were through,
Howard came over

and started to badger me
about the League again.

[Ray] Howard and Sven
want to start organizing

down around Wildrose
and they need men to help.

Lot of talk,
but nothing ever comes of it.

Anyway, I had to get home

to help father
with the cattle.

[man] Come over here, boy!

-[cattle lowing]
-[shouting]

[man] Go!

-[sizzling]
-[cow lowing]

[man] That'll do it.

[man] Go!

[Ray] With grain prices down,
we need the cash now.

We spent the afternoon
re-branding

for the new owners.

[Henrik] Get up!

Get up, you devil!

[Ray] Now all father's got left
is "Black Toes."

He's so fond
of the little calf,

I don't think anything
could make him give it up.

[calf lowing]

[wind howling]

[grunting]

♪ Hallelujah ♪♪

[clock ticking]

Far?

[rooster crowing]

Far!

Far!

[echoes]

John!

[indistinct shouting]

[heavy breathing]

[somber music playing]

[clock ticking]

When the threshing crew
gets here,

we've got to be ready.

Yeah, yeah...

[clanking]

[Inga] I'm so sorry, Ray.

They'll be here soon.

[grunting]

[somber music playing]

[music stopping]

[wheels squeaking]

[somber music playing]

[music stopping]

Ray, they're here.

Oh.

[engine puttering]

[Ray] The day
after the funeral,

the threshing crew
finally arrived.

[wind howling]

We worked straight up
the section road

and finished our place
and Knut's in five days.

Today, we're setting up
at Ole's.

The wheat is still dry
and in good shape,

but Ole's in bed
with a high fever.

Kenny, Klaus,
and some of the others

have rallied together to help.

But Uncle Thor is afraid

there's a new blizzard
blowing in from Canada.

So, there's no time to lose.

[shouting]

[engine puttering]

[wind howling]

[door opening]

Inga, how soon?

About 10 minutes.

How's your Papa?

He's worried.

Well, don't you worry.
Things will work out.

[engine puttering]

[man] Yes.

[indistinct chatter]

-[wind howling]
-[machine whirring]

-[horse whinnies]
-[indistinct shouting]

[indistinct speaking]

[machine whirring]

[horse nickers, squeals]

[indistinct shouting]

[indistinct chatter]

[Ray] But we did it.

When we went back
to the cook car,

we had saved 90% of Ole's crop.

[indistinct chatter]

Thank God for friends
and neighbors like these.

[indistinct chatter]

Harvest dance in town
tomorrow night.

About time for a celebration.

[lively music playing]

-[chatter]
-[laughter]

-Back.
-Back.

-Over.
-Over.

Over.

Back...

[indistinct chatter]

[laughing]

-Back.
-Back.

-Right.
-Right.

[soft music playing]

[Ray] November 1st, 1915.

Inga and I have set
our wedding date,

but Mother won't be here.

[door opens]

[footsteps]

[indistinct chatter]

The farm no longer seems like
home to her with Henrik gone.

Her sister Amanda is sick

back at the old home place
in Ohio,

and Mother is going
to visit her for the last time.

[indistinct whispers]

Let's go, John.

[cart wheels rattling]

[sentimental music playing]

[cattle lowing]

[Ray] But our lives go on

and now new problems
have appeared.

Grain prices are still down,

we've had to take out
a second mortgage

with Forsythe to meet expenses.

The railroads have raised
shipping rates

to the Twin Cities again,

and everyone's feeling
the pinch.

As times get harder,

League organizers like Howard
and Sven don't waste any time.

Dreamers if they think they can
fight the money boys head on.

Try to tell them that.

Sven never misses a chance
to get on me about the League.

Howard and I were thinking,

your Uncle Thor Nyquist
lives down the Wildrose Road?

Yeah, that's right.

[Sven] We don't have so many
old rebel Norwegians down there.

Now the threshing's done,

you could go down there
and talk to some of those men

with your Uncle Thor.

It'd really help us
get things rolling.

[train clanging, chugging]

Well, John's gonna need me
at the farm

now that Far is dead and, uh...

Well, in--in a month, uh,

I'm gonna be a married man.

Ray, you argued with me
for six months

before you even signed up.

Now that we can use
that big mouth of yours,

you've got nothing to say.

Well, I'd like to help, but...

I just can't.

[coins clatter]

I'll see you around.

I've got enough problems
without Sven.

Inga's afraid that Forsythe
might not give Ole

an extension on his mortgage
in spite of the good harvest.

Ole can't sell his grain
until prices go up,

but Forsythe may
not want to wait that long.

[children shouting]

Mr. Sorenson,
Mr. Forsythe will see you now.

He's delinquent here.

Yeah, that's three years ago.

That was a bad year
for everyone.

Well, Ray, we get no pleasure
out of foreclosure.

Ole's been a good customer
of yours for many years.

[Forsythe] Yeah, I know,
and my father knew his father.

It's a good family,
I understand that.

He's a hard worker.

He can't help Flax Wilt.

I hope you'll, uh...

be able to give him
a break, Charlie.

[train whistle]

Well, I'll tell you what, Ray.
I'll do everything I can.

Thanks, Charlie.

[footsteps]

[door closes]

In spite of my protests,

Howard and Sven finally got me
to go to a League meeting

up around Kenmare
over the weekend.

The League program
sounds good on paper.

Who wouldn't want
state banks, elevators,

and a few good farmers
in there running things

instead of those stuffed-shirts
from Bismarck and Fargo.

But is it fair
to raise people's hopes

if nothing can be done?

-[wind howling]
-[birds chirping]

[liquid pouring]

Look.

Ray.

Here, let me have that.

Drinking and arguing
about workers

doesn't get the work done.

We're alone here now.

It's just the two of us.

And you've got to take on
a bigger share of the load.

[Ray] Eat your mush, John.

If we work, we live.

And if we don't, we die.

And it's that simple.
It's survival.

Grain prices, short weights,
dockage fees,

phony grading, land speculation,
mortgage rates,

that's what survival's about.

-That's what survival's about.
-No, no, no.

You guys can talk
till you're blue...

[Ray laughs]

Tosken!

[indistinct shouting]

[laughing]

[horse neighs]

[laughing]

[horse snorts]

-[hooves galloping]
-[wind howling]

Inga!

[indistinct chatter]

[engine revving]

[engine humming]

[horse whinnies]

[sheep bleating]

[horse whinnies]

[indistinct chatter]

Yeah, they're part of it.

[indistinct chatter]

Irv, be sure you get the door.

Yeah, I'll get it.

[horse whinnies]

[hammering]

[horse whinnying]

[indistinct shouting]

Looks like Ole's taking it
pretty hard.

Yeah...

Yeah, I guess I should
go talk to him.

[sheep bleating]

Don't say it.

Don't say anything.

No, Inga!

[indistinct chatter]

[cart bells rattling]

[metallic screeching]

[Ray] December 1st, 1915.

Inga's gone, and who knows
what will happen to us now.

The family can stay
with her Uncle Murphy

who runs a store in Crosby.

But Ole and Adelaide
are farmers.

They'll be fish out of water
in town.

[sharp thud]

[thudding continues]

You're not helping anything,
you know.

And you are.

No, I'm not.

I'm doing the only thing
I can do:

tend to my own business.

Good for you, John.

You smug bastard.

[bottle slams]

Never mind.

[John] Let's talk.

Let's talk.

[debris clatters]

[mutters]

All right! Go on!

You dumb, squarehead Viking!

You won't freeze to death,
you're too drunk.

What do I care? Go on!

The hell with you, John!

[wind howling]

Damn.

[shouts]

[shouts]

[shouting]

[somber music playing]

It's right in here.

[rooster crowing]

[cow moos]

Ray...

Wake up, Ray.

Wake up, Ray.

Come on.

[groans]

Feeling pretty sorry
for yourself.

Enough of that.

[bottle clinks]

Instead of this,

could have been up in Wildrose
where we needed a man.

Let's go get some coffee.

Come on.

[wind howling]

[Ray] December 15th, 1915.

This was supposed to be
my wedding day.

John's no help.

All he talks about is money.

He's still holding our grain
off the market,

waiting for prices to go up,
so we're broke.

The worse things get,

the more Sven and Howard
lean on me

about organizing in Wildrose.

I'm going to bed.

Ray, don't do anything stupid.

I can't roof by myself.

And they'll be all right
without your help.

[water splashing]

[chicken clucking]

[rooster crows]

[hay clattering]

I'm going.

I'm going, John.

Is the League going
to roof this barn for us?

The League gonna
sweet-talk Forsythe

into forgetting our loan?

I gotta have you this week, Ray.

I've got to,
or we're gonna lose this place.

[Ray] You're right.

I'm right.

So, you'll stay?

That's why I'm gonna go
because I'm not gonna let

fellas like Forsythe
steal another farm...

Ours included.

[footsteps]

[hay rustles]

-[engine cranking]
-[engine humming]

[energetic music playing]

I drove south of Crosby
to Corinth

and then turned east
to Wildrose,

stopping at farms
all along the way.

Everywhere I've found farmers
skeptical or scared.

They've been stung
by politicians for so long,

they're suspicious.

I traveled as far east
as Hamlet and McGregor

and found the same thing.

A lot of discontent,

but reluctance
to do anything about it.

Inga and I tried to stay
in touch while I was gone,

but only a few
of her letters reached me.

Her family had gone on to stay
with relatives in Milwaukee,

and Inga was left alone
with Murphy in the store.

I'd only seen her
a couple of times

since the foreclosure,

so it was a welcome relief

to go up to Crosby
for a weekend.

I found that Murphy's store
is being boycotted

by local businessmen
as a hotbed of League activity.

[man] Take out the banker,

and one of these
grain commission boys,

and throw in a railroad man.

Put 'em in a barrel,
roll it down the hill,

and you know there'd be
a son-of-a-bitch

on the top every time.

[laughing]

[Ray] Murphy is planning
a meeting about the problem,

and Inga is helping
with preparations.

[Inga sighs]

How's it going?

There's a lot to do.

Well, we better get busy.

[Inga] Yeah.

[hooves clopping]

-What time is it?
-[man] 8:30.

[engine rumbling]

[Ray] January 4th, 1916.

I had to leave early so I could
reach Wildrose by nightfall

and still make some stops
along the way.

Late in the afternoon,
I spotted a couple of farms

set near the Little Muddy River
and decided to try my luck.

Have a mortgage
with Forsythe, don't you?

Um, that's kind of
a personal question there.

Well, I know you do.

[man] I've got a little one
with him.

Now what happens
if you get in the hole and...

he decides
to foreclose on you?

And there's not a damn thing
you can do about it.

He'd have to grow a mite
before he'd foreclose on me.

[Ray] If you get in a hole,
he can do it.

I'm not in the hole yet.

See, I've got the same problems.

If I want to be able to get
the price I want for my grain,

something's going
to have to change.

That's what the League
is trying to do.

I just don't see where
it's gonna do us much good.

I'll tell you what I'll do.

Being you're so serious
about this thing,

I'll make you an offer.

I'll rassle you for it.

If I pin you,
you get out of here

and leave me and Harry alone.

If you pin me,
we'll join up with you.

You game for that?

He's gonna take us up on it.

[bucket clatters]

[bucket clatters]

[cow moos]

[grunting]

[man] You had enough,
sod-buster?

You just lost, you dumb cowboy.

[man] How you figure that?

You just lost!

[somber music playing]

[hooves clopping]

[hooves clopping]

-[indistinct chatter]
-[rocks clatter]

You gettin' played out now, huh?

Well, there you go, Krist,
no more rocks.

There's more of them
out in the field.

Oh, come on, Krist,
gimme a break.

So you can pick them up, too,
at the same time.

Why don't we come and--
come and talk with me.

Yeah, all right,
all right, I'll go then.

I'll get over there with you.

So...

I don't think you're very smart,

you come out to the farm
and haul rocks.

I did it to show you
that we were working for you.

That we want to work
for the farmers.

Oh, well, you figured you could
trick me into joining up.

We're not trying to trick you
into anything.

-We're farmers ourselves.
-Yeah, but I think...

You guys are too slick
to deal with.

If you get in the hole,
and the bank forecloses,

no one to help you now.

Yeah, but a small farmer

is better off
to stay by himself.

Well...

Well, you're a mighty
stubborn man, Krist.

[Krist] No, I'm pretty hard
to get.

I gotta study it out
and figure it out.

Okay, you do that, you do that.

See how it'll work.

We're pretty stubborn too,
you know.

[Krist] Got to be stubborn
once in a while.

[chuckles]

I'm gonna see you
when I come back.

I don't think it will do you
any good.

Well, I am.

-I'll see you.
-Well, goodbye then.

[engine rumbling]

[Ray] February 5th, 1916.

When I got back to Crosby,

all I wanted to do
was see Inga.

But Murphy,
always the staunch Socialist,

was starting to wonder
about the League,

so I had to hear him out.

Ray, I'm worried about Townley.

He's out telling people anything
to get their six dollars

and nobody
can control him anymore.

What do you mean?

He doesn't have
a long-range plan.

All he wants to do is
to get the six dollars...

And when Townley and--

[indistinct]

--the Socialist Party,

they went out and started
organizing farmers,

and they were successful,

and, uh, what happened?

They got booted out
of the Socialist Party.

Socialists just don't like
success, that's all.

-No, that isn't true, Ray.
-It's true.

I've never met
a successful Socialist.

No, they all think we're crazy.

[Ray] I don't care what you say.

As far as I'm concerned,
Townley's honest.

[Murphy] Where did you
hear that?

[Ray] I've heard it.

[distant children playing]

Momma says he hates the city.

He just sits in his room
all day.

He worked in a factory
for a while...

but they laid him off.

-[indistinct chatter]
-[dog barking]

Doesn't even talk
to the kids anymore.

[engine rumbling]

[Ray] This morning Inga and I
went back to the farm together.

[lively music playing]

Can't catch me!

[laughing]

-[whooping]
-[laughing]

[wind howling softly]

[soft music playing]

[shrieks]

[mysterious music playing]

-[Ray roars]
-[Inga shrieks]

Give me a kiss!
Give me a kiss!

I love you, I love you!

[mysterious music playing]

[shrieks]

Smelly lutefisk! Aquavit!

You're a horse!

[Ray "snorting"]

Good horsey. Good horsey.

Time to go
into your stall, horsey.

[Ray "neighing"]

Nice horsey.

Can I get out now?

[both sigh]

When was the last time
we did this?

-Mm.
-Let's see, I was...

-I was 12.
-I was eight.

[laughing softly]

-Poor monsters.
-Yeah.

-You're my monster.
-Mm-hm.

[soft music playing]

[Ray] We both wished that
our day could go on forever.

But, of course, it ended.

The old life was over
for us now.

Our only hope lay
in building something new.

February 15th, 1916.

The price of wheat finally
went up to $1.12 a bushel,

so John came up to Crosby
to sell.

It looked like his waiting
tactics had finally paid off.

I came up from Wildrose
to help him at the elevator,

but the roads were bad
and I got in late.

[indistinct speaking]

[John] Nobody else has got
wheat like this.

You can't find wheat like this!

[man] Sorry, I'd like to,
but that's all I can do.

Number Four.

-Now--now wait, Gordon.
-Look, John, just calm down.

Is that Number Four?

Well, don't blame me
for the snow.

But there's no damage.
Look at the stuff.

All I know is,
you threshed in the snow.

Now, look, John,
I'm a businessman.

I have to sell this stuff
in Minneapolis

after I buy it from you.

Now wait, Gordon.

This is going to ruin me.

Take it or leave it.

Come on, look at it, goddammit!

This is Number One
North Dakota hard wheat!

Come on, take it easy!

[John breathes heavily]

Come on, take it easy.

[John] I checked
every sack, Ray.

That's beautiful wheat in there.

You're some booster.

You never give up, do you?

[chuckling]

God.

[Ray] He thought
he could get along

without choosing sides,
just as I once had.

But it didn't take a genius
to figure out

why Gordon had
rejected our wheat.

Sven and Howard
had been downgraded, too.

If we can't sell our grain,
we'll go under,

probably before planting time.

[wind gusting]

When Uncle Thor
heard what had happened,

he was furious.

He set up a meeting
for Howard and me

with some of the key men
over at Krist Toresen's soddie.

All right, let me--let me ask
you fellas a question, then.

If you buy a pound of coffee,

who sets the price
for that coffee?

God only knows, Ray.

God set the price
to the coffee you buy, Gordon?

No, Andy Ingwalson and
his missus--and that missus!

One week, she'll have it
a cent up,

and the next week,
it will be another cent up.

Andy's missus sets the price,
that what

you're trying to tell me?

Yeah, I think so.

But where does
she get the coffee?

[Ray] But who is that?

I think that has to be Ted
from Minot, brings it up.

About once a week or so.

I don't think
he comes that often,

I think, more like
once a month.

No, I always had
it in my head it was

just once a week,
or twice a week.

No, it's only once a week.

[Ray] Beside that,
that's beside the point.

Does Ted set the price?

[group] He's just a salesman.

[Ray] He just works
for another company.

-And what about that company?
-That company is skunks.

But are they in there alone,
are they doing it

all by themselves?

And the railroads
are involved there, too.

They're getting their costs,

bet your boots about that.

So, you got
so many things there,

it gets pretty confusing.

Maybe--maybe God does
set the price.

[laughter]

But I mean...

What it comes down to,

what you're paying is

the cost of bringing
the coffee into Minneapolis,

the cost of processing
and packaging it there,

the cost of bringing it
into North Dakota,

the cost of distributing it
throughout the whole state,

and then finally,
on top of that,

And then, Mrs. Ingwalson.

[Ray] Then you got
Mrs. Ingwalson,

putting her five or ten cents
on top of that, right?

-That's right.
-That's what you're paying.

That's what's setting the price.

And the kicker in
the whole thing, though, is,

where does that coffee
really come from?

Comes from Brazil,
where it's grown.

Farming is the only business
where you buy retail,

you sell wholesale,

lower than wholesale.

You have no control
over your product.

You're just a damn slave.

That's what the League's
all about,

and that's what
we're trying to change.

But we can't do it
without the farmers.

[man] Ray.

You're pretty sharp there, Ray.

For not even having
a high school education.

[laughter]

[laughter]

Yeah, but it's not
how we say it,

it's what we say,
and that's the truth.

[laughter]

That's right,
the darned truth.

♪ I opened my Bible ♪

♪ And it brought back
Old times ♪

♪ I could hear Mother's
Teardrops on every line ♪

♪ There on the pages
The fragments still lay ♪

♪ Of a faded blue ribbon
And a lilac bouquet ♪♪

[jaunty accordion music playing]

But I've been busy
and haven't seen Inga at all.

She writes that Murphy's
going to Minot this weekend,

so we'll have
the house to ourselves.

Going to stop in
at Gordon's first, though.

Sven and I are meeting
with some Kenmare farmers

about the upcoming
nominating conventions.

After that,
no more politics until Monday.

[laughter]

[clock ticking softly]

[puffing softly]

[utensils clattering]

[knocking at door]

[slightly more insistent
knocking at door]

[door opens]

[softly weeping]

Inga.

[clattering]

[dog barking]

[knocking at door]

[knocking at door]

[door opens]

[door closes]

[footsteps approach]

[Inga] You've been at Gordon's.

Yeah.

[Inga] Papa was always gone.

Soon as the harvest was over,

he'd be out on the road
selling books.

"To make ends meet," he said.

[softly scoffs]

He was a terrible salesman.

So silent and tall.

I think people were
afraid of him.

He just wanted to get away.

Mother and I sat alone
on the farm all winter,

trying to keep the girls happy.

Mother never said
what she was feeling.

You don't complain,
you know, it isn't done.

But you can worry.

You can worry,

and fret it to death.

The roof needed mending.

The fence wasn't fixed.

The cistern leaked.

The chimney needed cleaning.

And wasn't somebody
gonna do something about it

so that you wouldn't have
to worry all the time?

But you never said...

You never spoke up.

Never once,

in that good, God-fearing home,
ever said what you meant.

I'm lonesome.

I want him there
when I turn over at night.

I want him!

I need him!

[shattering crash]

Have you ever looked
at your face, Ray?

It's so hard and stiff.

That's the way Papa's face was.

Maybe I've loved you
because of it.

You said "loved."

I have loved you.

And I'm trying to love you.

But you love what you're doing.

It'll end.

I promise you.

The people you're fighting
don't give up, Ray.

If we win,

we'll be fighting them off
for the rest of our lives.

And if we lose...

If we lose,

we'll have each other.

That's not enough.

No.

It isn't.

[engine puttering]

Look who's coming in here
all dressed up.

-Must have got a raise.
-Are you ever looking sharp.

You gonna be
a little nervous tonight?

Never mind about that,
just make sure you're there.

I'll be there,
don't worry about that.

-We'll all be there, Ray.
-Don't worry, we'll be there.

We're all pulling for you.

Okay, I'll see you fellas
tonight, then.

-You bet.
-Good luck to you.

[paper crinkling]

[whispering to himself]

[sighs deeply]

Well, folks, we're all here
together tonight

to meet a man
we've all heard about.

If he was
an old gang politician,

I would stand up here
and talk about

how great a fella he was,

until you fell asleep
like you do in church.

But I can't do that.

Lucky for me, he's a farmer.

So, now, I'd like
to introduce you to

the next governor
of the state,

farmer,

Leaguer,

our friend, Lynn J. Frazier.

[paper crinkling]

[pensive music playing]

Election eve, 1916.

Last night, a terrible storm
hit most of the state.

All day, we've been going
from farm to farm,

helping people dig out
and feed their livestock,

then get their cars
and rigs going

so they can
go to town and vote.

Telephone and telegraph wires
are down all over the state,

so we have no idea what's
happening in other areas.

We can only hope
that everyone is doing

the same thing we are:

getting the farmers
to the polls

by whatever means possible.

[train whistle wails]

Well, I guess
the crooks made it.

They fixed it.

[Ray]
This morning, the Soo came in

with the Fargo newspapers.

The League had lost badly
in all the Eastern cities.

It seemed impossible

that all our efforts
could end this way.

[bell pealing]

[train's engine chuffing]

But then, the late
mail train came in.

The rural vote
had turned things around.

We won!

We won!

[exultant music playing]

[Ray] With the primary won,

we all set our sights ahead

to the general elections
in the fall.

Much work remains to be done,

and there isn't much time
to celebrate.

But as John and I drove back
to the farm tonight,

we felt, for the first time
in our lives, powerful.

But leave it
to the powers that be,

they don't get there
by accident.

The long-feared
letter from Forsythe

was there when we got back.

The mortgage is up

and no elevator in the area
will accept our wheat.

Even if the League
wins in September,

help from
the Farmers' government

will still be months away.

Forsythe has played
his last card...

but it's a good one.

[wind howling]

[high-pitched
metallic scraping]

♪ Helen was the keeper
Of the Northern Lights ♪

♪ Cold winds here, disappear ♪

♪ Hopes that never end ♪

♪ They shine, they glow ♪

♪ Blue, yellow, green ♪

♪ Never what they seem ♪

♪ There then gone ♪

♪ Nothing lasts long ♪♪

[soft music playing]

Shh, quiet. Shh, quiet!

Inga came out to the farm

when she heard
about the foreclosure.

[wind gusting]

Inga.

I know.

[scoffs softly]

[sighs]

You struggle
for a good life, and...

You never get to live it.

Where are you going now?

Well, Howard wants me
up in Fortuna.

I'll be in Crosby
for the election.

I'll see you there, then.

[pensive music playing]

[Ray] I picked up Howard,
and we headed for Fortuna,

up near the Montana border.

Who can say
what is coming next?

But, win or lose,
I'm a part of it.

I have a place.

[uplifting music playing]

[soulful music]

[Henry] One of these days,
they'll go too far,

and, well, you know
what I'm talking about.

I'm an optimist, and I know

that good comes out of the bad.

Things are going to change.
I'm sure of it.

I've got time.

I can wait.

[bright music playing]