John Wayne on Blu-ray

[OrlandoEastwood]

Hello, All.

I will be stopping in periodically to give updates. I had added the Lucky Texan years ago to the database and there had been no real movement in getting any of my film prints scanned over until now. I am working with a scanning on getting things digitized over to 4K. I just got reel #4 to my incomplete 35mm print of Bogard scanned over back in March. And I had just gotten back the Super 8mm prints to Nosferatu and Hell's Hinges scanned over to 4K as well. The print on Hell's Hinges is pretty faded and with other factors of not being able to film due to the lock down; I'm doing a quick release of Hell's Hinges in the fall on BD-R.

I also got a 16mm print of the John Wayne film, Hell Town. However, the print reeks of that dreaded smell of vinegar. But it looks okay from what I've looked over. I think I'll probably do a double feature with Lucky Texan when I get it's 16mm print scanned over. Probably looking like a $1,200 scan job in the end for both films in 4K.

All the best.
-Eastwood.

[SeanJoyce]

Revisited Chisum for the first time in so long that it was basically like seeing it for the first time. This is one I've always dismissed in Wayne's catalog, but it's actually an incredibly strong, well-done dramatization of the Lincoln County Cattle War of 1878.

Wayne doesn't have a fellow A-lister riding shotgun, but he does have an entire repertoire of longtime collaborators and character actors, including Ben Johnson, Forrest Tucker, Christopher George, Bruce Cabot, Hank Wordon and others to lend veteran support to this sprawling tale (Patrick Knowles, who I knew so well as a kid from Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man, has a plum role here as Wayne's neighbor and business associate who's also something of a father figure to Billy the Kid.)

This is the last Wayne DVD I've needed to upgrade, but the current price point has kept me at bay. The movie is so good though, and the disc so well-reviewed, that I'm going to have to bend. It would be fascinating to watch this back-to-back with Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid (which the HD format is sorely in need of.)

EDIT: Damn I just realized that the 3 leads in Grizzly (George, Richard Jaeckel and Andrew Prine) were all in this together...cool stuff.

[trentdiesel]

Originally Posted by SeanJoyce

Revisited Chisum for the first time in so long that it was basically like seeing it for the first time. This is one I've always dismissed in Wayne's catalog, but it's actually an incredibly strong, well-done dramatization of the Lincoln County Cattle War of 1878.

Wayne doesn't have a fellow A-lister riding shotgun, but he does have an entire repertoire of longtime collaborators and character actors, including Ben Johnson, Forrest Tucker, Christopher George, Bruce Cabot, Hank Wordon and others to lend veteran support to this sprawling tale (Patrick Knowles, who I knew so well as a kid from Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man, has a plum role here as Wayne's neighbor and business associate who's also something of a father figure to Billy the Kid.)

This is the last Wayne DVD I've needed to upgrade, but the current price point has kept me at bay. The movie is so good though, and the disc so well-reviewed, that I'm going to have to bend. It would be fascinating to watch this back-to-back with Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid (which the HD format is sorely in need of.)

EDIT: Damn I just realized that the 3 leads in Grizzly (George, Richard Jaeckel and Andrew Prine) were all in this together...cool stuff.

I've never seen it and I will have to rectify that, truthfully I was never a Wayne fan (never gave the movies a chance) I always loved Eastwood and I thought why bother. Big mistake. I actually just found The War Wagon on blu at a Big Lots store last night for $2.50 and The Misfits for $5 so I could get another Clift movie I needed.

[SeanJoyce]

Originally Posted by trentdiesel

I've never seen it and I will have to rectify that, truthfully I was never a Wayne fan (never gave the movies a chance) I always loved Eastwood and I thought why bother. Big mistake. I actually just found The War Wagon on blu at a Big Lots store last night for $2.50 and The Misfits for $5 so I could get another Clift movie I needed.

Don't want to turn this into a pissing match between Wayne and Eastwood fans because both are great and there's no reason to compare them. When I was younger it was cool to be dismissive of Wayne in favor of Eastwood, but I quickly did a 180. I like Clint, but the scope and breadth of Wayne's filmography dwarf his contributions for me. A list of my favorite westerns would be dominated by Wayne's work, while Clint would barely register.

The War Wagon is a blast, and a perfect example of the combined wattage of two superstars elevating fairly rote material.

There is a suffocating pall of gloom hanging over The Misfits, as it was the final picture of both Gable and Monroe while Clift would only make 2 more. The characters resemble the horses that are pursued in the climax, desperate and lonely in a rapidly changing world. It can be a tough watch at times but the 3 main stars + the support all turn in poignant, melancholic work. Update your thoughts in the Clift thread!

[Duke_45]

Originally Posted by SeanJoyce

Revisited Chisum for the first time in so long that it was basically like seeing it for the first time. This is one I've always dismissed in Wayne's catalog, but it's actually an incredibly strong, well-done dramatization of the Lincoln County Cattle War of 1878.

Wayne doesn't have a fellow A-lister riding shotgun, but he does have an entire repertoire of longtime collaborators and character actors, including Ben Johnson, Forrest Tucker, Christopher George, Bruce Cabot, Hank Wordon and others to lend veteran support to this sprawling tale (Patrick Knowles, who I knew so well as a kid from Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man, has a plum role here as Wayne's neighbor and business associate who's also something of a father figure to Billy the Kid.)

This is the last Wayne DVD I've needed to upgrade, but the current price point has kept me at bay. The movie is so good though, and the disc so well-reviewed, that I'm going to have to bend. It would be fascinating to watch this back-to-back with Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid (which the HD format is sorely in need of.)

EDIT: Damn I just realized that the 3 leads in Grizzly (George, Richard Jaeckel and Andrew Prine) were all in this together...cool stuff.

I would like to enjoy Chisum more than I do, but there is just too much I can't get past within the film. For one thing, you never feel like you are watching anything other than actors in the late 1960s / early 1970s trying to portray characters from the 1800s. The gaudy eye and face makeup on the females is ludicrous. And what is it with that song "Sally" halfway thru the movie, that stops the film dead in it's tracks. The ridiculous accent on the Mexican horse bandit (being obviously portrayed by a Caucasian actor) at the start of the film is wince inducing. So many parts of the film show a very bad production quality, from Duke's company. Skip around this same time period to films Duke starred in outside of his production control (like True Grit or The Cowboys), and the difference is startling.

Now don't get me wrong, I love almost everything John Wayne has been in (with the exceptions of Without Reservations and Reunion In France). I probably wouldn't turn off Chisum if I was channel surfing one day, and it was on. But it could have been so much better with another financier and director.

[trentdiesel]

I will use this thread to continue to build my Wayne collection, I need The Searchers and El Dorado right away as I have seen both and enjoy them quite a bit, then I will work on some of the much loved ones that I have not seen yet. I know I need to grab Stagecoach and Red River during the next Criterion sale, aside from those I have no idea what to get, pretty overwhelming amount of movies to choose from

[ltb2.0]

Originally Posted by trentdiesel

I will use this thread to continue to build my Wayne collection, I need The Searchers and El Dorado right away as I have seen both and enjoy them quite a bit, then I will work on some of the much loved ones that I have not seen yet. I know I need to grab Stagecoach and Red River during the next Criterion sale, aside from those I have no idea what to get, pretty overwhelming amount of movies to choose from

The following is a good place to start in terms of being much loved, I did the list based on memory, so I may have left off a few widely loved titles.

Stagecoach
Red River
Fort Apache
She Wore a Yellow Ribbon
Sands of Iwo Jima
Rio Grande
The Quiet Man
The Searchers
Rio Bravo
Comancheros
McLintock!
Sons of Katie Elder
War Wagon
El Dorado
True Grit
Big Jake
The Shootist

Beyond those, we begin to enter the murky waters of personal favorites. Hopefully this helps at least a little. And if you need some recommendations beyond the above, I will be glad to assist.

[RCRochester]

Originally Posted by ltb2.0

The following is a good place to start in terms of being much loved, I did the list based on memory, so I may have left off a few widely loved titles.

Stagecoach
Red River
Fort Apache
She Wore a Yellow Ribbon
Sands of Iwo Jima
Rio Grande
The Quiet Man
The Searchers
Rio Bravo
Comancheros
McLintock!
Sons of Katie Elder
War Wagon
El Dorado
True Grit
Big Jake
The Shootist

Beyond those, we begin to enter the murky waters of personal favorites. Hopefully this helps at least a little. And if you need some recommendations beyond the above, I will be glad to assist.

From a strictly objective point of view, I would remove Comancheros from that list and replace with with The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance. I don't know of too many people who would consider Comancheros to be much beyond a run-of-the-mill western, while Liberty Valance is considered a favourite and a classic.

[ltb2.0]

Originally Posted by RCRochester

From a strictly objective point of view, I would remove Comancheros from that list and replace with with The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance. I don't know of too many people who would consider Comancheros to be much beyond a run-of-the-mill western, while Liberty Valance is considered a favourite and a classic.

That was one I hesitated on. I probably should have switched those two. Or at least added in Liberty Valance as well. But despite that, I will let my list stand and let others chime in for discussion.

[glennstl]

Originally Posted by SeanJoyce

Revisited Chisum for the first time in so long that it was basically like seeing it for the first time. This is one I've always dismissed in Wayne's catalog, but it's actually an incredibly strong, well-done dramatization of the Lincoln County Cattle War of 1878.

Wayne doesn't have a fellow A-lister riding shotgun, but he does have an entire repertoire of longtime collaborators and character actors, including Ben Johnson, Forrest Tucker, Christopher George, Bruce Cabot, Hank Wordon and others to lend veteran support to this sprawling tale (Patrick Knowles, who I knew so well as a kid from Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man, has a plum role here as Wayne's neighbor and business associate who's also something of a father figure to Billy the Kid.)

This is the last Wayne DVD I've needed to upgrade, but the current price point has kept me at bay. The movie is so good though, and the disc so well-reviewed, that I'm going to have to bend. It would be fascinating to watch this back-to-back with Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid (which the HD format is sorely in need of.)

EDIT: Damn I just realized that the 3 leads in Grizzly (George, Richard Jaeckel and Andrew Prine) were all in this together...cool stuff.

You know, somehow I don’t think I’ve seen Chisum. I’m going to have to try to correct that. Sounds like good stuff! Thanks for the recommendation! Always looking for some Wayne that I haven’t seen.

[glennstl]

Originally Posted by trentdiesel

I've never seen it and I will have to rectify that, truthfully I was never a Wayne fan (never gave the movies a chance) I always loved Eastwood and I thought why bother. Big mistake. I actually just found The War Wagon on blu at a Big Lots store last night for $2.50 and The Misfits for $5 so I could get another Clift movie I needed.

I was also where you were. For me it was a year and a half ago. I had never seen a Wayne movie and thought they would be lame. I also wasn’t a western fan at all. The turning point for me was seeing 3 Godfathers on TCM. I don’t know what it was about seeing that movie, but after I did, I dived right in to Wayne Blus. Haven’t looked back since. Glad you also discovered Wayne movies! And, yes, The Misfits is a great movie!

[glennstl]

Alright Wayne fans... we only need 9 more posts to reach 1,000 for this thread! ��

[ltb2.0]

Originally Posted by glennstl

Alright Wayne fans... we only need 9 more posts to reach 1,000 for this thread! ��

I still need to pick the most recent releases on Blu-Ray.

Hopefully the Seven Sinners gets a blu-ray release soon.

[Rzzzz]

According to Barndoor and his detective work over on the Kino thread (after the insider confirmed they had some more John Wayne titles coming from their Universal deal), he is pretty confident that the titles are Seven Sinners and Shepherd of the Hills. Hopefully they are announced soon...

[Rzzzz]

Originally Posted by ltb2.0

The following is a good place to start in terms of being much loved, I did the list based on memory, so I may have left off a few widely loved titles.

Stagecoach
Red River
Fort Apache
She Wore a Yellow Ribbon
Sands of Iwo Jima
Rio Grande
The Quiet Man
The Searchers
Rio Bravo
Comancheros
McLintock!
Sons of Katie Elder
War Wagon
El Dorado
True Grit
Big Jake
The Shootist

Beyond those, we begin to enter the murky waters of personal favorites. Hopefully this helps at least a little. And if you need some recommendations beyond the above, I will be glad to assist.

Great list! In addition to the The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, I would add these bona fide classics...

Hatari!
Donavan's Reef
Hondo
Angel and the Badman
The Cowboys

[Michael24]

Threw on my dad's DVD of El Dorado a couple nights ago since it was being discussed here. I think another reason I like it is because so much of the movie takes place at night. (I'm a night owl myself.) Gives kind of a nice change of pace from how westerns are usually sun-soaked, taking place in the light of day with high noon showdowns and such. Gives it some unique atmosphere. I like when they're out walking around the town at night or having all those nighttime shootouts in the streets. I think this will be one of the next Blu-rays I pick up. I hadn't realized the disc was so packed with bonus features.

"I'm lookin' at a tin star with a drunk pinned on it." Always loved that line.

[ltb2.0]

Originally Posted by Rzzzz

Great list! In addition to the The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, I would add these bona fide classics...

Hatari!
Donavan's Reef
Hondo
Angel and the Badman
The Cowboys

All good choices, but I was trying to keep my list narrowed down to much loved films as per Trent's post. The ones I named, with one exception, are usually regarded as Duke's most enjoyable by a good majority of audiences and historians.

But I would add Angel and the Badman to the list as it does have more fans than detractors.

[glennstl]

Originally Posted by ltb2.0

All good choices, but I was trying to keep my list narrowed down to much loved films as per Trent's post. The ones I named, with one exception, are usually regarded as Duke's most enjoyable by a good majority of audiences and historians.

But I would add Angel and the Badman to the list as it does have more fans than detractors.

Totally agree about adding Angel and the Bad Man to the list. Just a really enjoyable, fun story. And Gail Russell ( I believe her name is) is absolutely gorgeous!

[Duke_45]

Originally Posted by Rzzzz

According to Barndoor and his detective work over on the Kino thread (after the insider confirmed they had some more John Wayne titles coming from their Universal deal), he is pretty confident that the titles are Seven Sinners and Shepherd of the Hills. Hopefully they are announced soon...

Would LOVE to see Shepherd Of The Hills released on Blu...fingers crossed!

[Rzzzz]

Me too! My dream is to own every film of the Dukes on blu....