Cat Ballou (1965) (Limited Edition)

[Akijama]

PRE-ORDER http://www1.screenarchives.com/title...T-BALLOU-1965/

“Spoofs the Old West, whose adherents take their likker neat…sparked by an amusing way-out approach and some sparkling performances…Marvin is the standout of the picture.” – Variety

“A carefree and clever throwing together of three or four solid Western stereotypes in a farcical frolic…The gusto with which the plot is mangled makes this a breezy little film.” – Bosley Crowther, The New York Times

Directed by Elliot Silverstein from a screenplay by Walter Newman and Frank Pierson, Cat Ballou (1965) is a delightful comic Western starring Jane Fonda as the titular big-hearted beauty, who hires a notorious gunman to avenge her father’s death. Kid Shelleen (the great Lee Marvin, an Oscar®-winner here, who also appears as his own evil brother) turns out to be a has-been drunk…until he pulls himself together in an effort to assist the embattled Cat. Also starring Michael Callan, Dwayne Hickman, and Tom Nardini, and featuring Nat King Cole and Stubby Kaye as a pair of troubadours who narrate the tale via songs by Mack David and Jerry Livingston.

Limited Edition of 3,000 Units

LANGUAGE: English
VIDEO: 1080p High Definition / 1.85:1
AUDIO: English 5.1 DTS-HD MA / English 2.0 DTS-HD MA
SUBTITLES: English SDH
1965 / Color
96 MINUTES
NOT RATED

Special Features: Isolated Score Track / Audio Commentary with Actors Michael Callan and Dwayne Hickman / Audio Commentary with Film Historians Eddy Friedfeld, Lee Pfeiffer, and Paul Scrabo / Lee and Pamela: A Romance / The Legend of Cat Ballou / Original Theatrical Trailer

Source

Cat Ballou - Trailer - YouTube

[MovieDood]

Thank you, Akijama

[movielib]

I remember being very disappointed with this film which I saw when it first came out. I also thought it was one of the worst Best Actor choices in Oscar history - Rod Steiger should have won for The Pawnbroker. (I remember Marvin's screen time being rather limited and he probably should have been in the supporting category.) Steiger got his "make up" award two years later for In the Heat of the Night, robbing Dustin Hoffman.

[javi92]

I wonder if Sony has done a new transfer for this?

[baheidstu]

Originally Posted by movielib

I remember being very disappointed with this film which I saw when it first came out. I also thought it was one of the worst Best Actor choices in Oscar history - Rod Steiger should have won for The Pawnbroker. (I remember Marvin's screen time being rather limited and he probably should have been in the supporting category.) Steiger got his "make up" award two years later for In the Heat of the Night, robbing Dustin Hoffman.

I was kind of disappointed too when I first saw it, though I'd like to give it another try. Lee Marvin's win is definitely an odd duck, playing two different characters in a comedy western which is quite outside the norm of the usual Oscar winning performances.

[CinemaScope]

Well I loved it when I saw it at my local Odeon cinema in 1965, & I think Lee Marvin was well worth his Oscar.

[BluOrbit]

Originally Posted by movielib

I remember being very disappointed with this film which I saw when it first came out. I also thought it was one of the worst Best Actor choices in Oscar history - Rod Steiger should have won for The Pawnbroker. (I remember Marvin's screen time being rather limited and he probably should have been in the supporting category.) Steiger got his "make up" award two years later for In the Heat of the Night, robbing Dustin Hoffman.

Your assumption that Dustin Hoffman was "robbed" doesn't take into account that, had Steiger not won in '67, Spencer Tracey almost certainly would have, posthumously for "Guess Who's Coming to Dinner". And, given his many previous nominations, had neither Steiger nor Tracey won, then Paul Newman most likely would have for "Cool Hand Luke". At best, Hoffman was probably tied for 4th with Warren Beatty ("Bonnie and Clyde") as the Oscar "favorite". And, as much as I loved "The Graduate" and appreciated Hoffman's performance, I don't think anyone has ever made a case for him being "robbed".

[movielib]

Originally Posted by BluOrbit

Your assumption that Dustin Hoffman was "robbed" doesn't take into account that, had Steiger not won in '67, Spencer Tracey almost certainly would have, posthumously for "Guess Who's Coming to Dinner". And, given his many previous nominations, had neither Steiger nor Tracey won, then Paul Newman most likely would have for "Cool Hand Luke". At best, Hoffman was probably tied for 4th with Warren Beatty ("Bonnie and Clyde") as the Oscar "favorite". And, as much as I loved "The Graduate" and appreciated Hoffman's performance, I don't think anyone has ever made a case for him being "robbed".

Your analysis may be correct, showing just how goofy the Oscars can be. It's very likely Hoffman would not have won anyway, being the newcomer. I say Hoffman was robbed simply because I think he deserved to win it.

[JoeDeM]

It's always been one of my favourite movies, but then I like this sort of comedy, and it doesn't hurt that Jane Fonda looks fantastic in this.

[gkolb]

Jane Fonda has NEVER looked better than this movie (Barbarella has the topless thing, but ehh) and Lee Marvin was pretty d**n funny in his dual role. And Nat King Cole and Stubby Kaye as the wandering minstrels make it kind of special.

So two thumbs up on this one from me, hope it gets at least 4 stars on the PQ and AQ review.

[Race Bannon]

I will get this, depending on the reviews of the transfer quality.

[Momolamitraille]

That's a true gem! I'm glad Twilight Time will be releasing this title.

Day 1 buy for me, that's for sure!

[HE1NZ]

I need more Jane Fonda releases please

[chas speed]

Why would so many people who were "disappointed" by this film bother to go on this thread? I'm probably going to stick with the great DVD of this release knowing the pricing and quality of Twilight Time releases. Can't imagine a major studio didn't want to release this. It's a great film and most people love it.

[baheidstu]

Originally Posted by chas speed

Why would so many people who were "disappointed" by this film bother to go on this thread? I'm probably going to stick with the great DVD of this release knowing the pricing and quality of Twilight Time releases. Can't imagine a major studio didn't want to release this. It's a great film and most people love it.

Because I'm actually interested in giving it another try. When you hear so much about a film you've never seen before and you finally watch it, sometimes it doesn't meet your expectations. Then with more measured expectations you give it another try and you either enjoy it or realize you truly don't like it. There was enough here for me to think I might like it more this time around, especially as it's been about ten years since I first saw it.

[Unico]

I've seen it on TV a couple of times and enjoyed it. However it appears to be a limited edition of 3000. So might just have to wait a bit longer for this one.

[~Preach~]

Its a great film!

[ergumat]

I like this one. Will get it.

[jetthead]

Originally Posted by ~Preach~

Its a great film!

Originally Posted by ergumat

I like this one. Will get it.

[JoeDeM]

A great companion movie to this is The Great Scout and Cathouse Thursday, also with Lee Marvin.