Quote:
Originally Posted by The Great Owl
Last night's viewing...
<snip>
I watched Stagecoach on Blu-ray last night for the first time, after recently upgrading formats from my old DVD copy of the film.
[Show spoiler]On DVD, Stagecoach got a lot of mileage on my television, but I had never bothered to watch the 1917 John Ford silent film, Bucking Broadway, that is included as a supplement. I remedied this last night by settling down to watch Bucking Broadway as a preview for the main feature. At 54 minutes, Bucking Broadway moves lightning fast and, although this movie was filmed during Ford's early years, his gift for majestic portrayals of wide open spaces in the Old West is already evident. This is not a laugh-a-minute silent film, but there are a handful of memorable comedic moments. A late scene in the film, with Cheyenne Harry's cowboy friends thundering down a busy city street on horseback to help him win back his fiancee, stands shoulder-to-shoulder with some of Ford's finest visuals later in his career.
The main feature, Stagecoach, looks impressive on this Blu-ray edition, especially during the Monument Valley sequences. Considering the history of this particular film as a lost epic, the restoration with surviving prints is ultimately nothing short of remarkable. Fans of the format, however, might do well to lower their expectations of this presentation compared to other high definition restorations due to the limitations in the source material.
When most viewers are actually watching Stagecoach, though, any criticisms of the video presentation will likely be shoved aside by the pure enjoyment of a masterfully-paced grand adventure of a story with an assortment of lovingly memorable characters. Stagecoach paved the way for John Wayne's iconic Western image, and nobody who has seen the film will ever forget his first appearance in the film, because it still stands as one of the greatest character introductions in the history of cinema. [Show spoiler] Stagecoach has a distinct feel of the American ideal, with its story of diverse characters who reluctantly share the same space and eventually view one another as equals when their individual mettles are put to the test in the face of adversity.
Stagecoach is a film where everything comes together beautifully. Fascinating characters with endearing quirks, rip-roaring actions scenes that are filmed in such a way to require no explanation, and a resolution that will bring a smile to any romantic's face all make for one of the most satisfying titles in the Criterion Collection. On Blu-ray, we now have one of the most influential American films, along with a fun early silent work from John Ford and several other informative documentaries, interviews, and essays. |
Nice review! I went into this one not quite knowing what to expect, so I suppose any expectations I might have had were low. Boy am I glad I went for it. The camera work/angles/shots/vistas ... whatever you want to call it, are fantastic. And like you say, who can forget John Wayne's introduction into the film ... iconic (... to me, anyway). There are quite a few more great shots than that one too.
Easily one of my favorite Criterions. But you might take that with a grain of salt because
Robinson Crusoe On Mars and
Harold and Maude are also very high on my Criterion list.
(A special thanks to the people in this forum who helped nudge me to buy
Stagecoach, with their good comments).