Frequently Bought Together
What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?
Product details
|
Tags Customers Associate with This Product(What's this?)Click on a tag to find related items, discussions, and people.
|
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
13 of 14 people found the following review helpful
This film represents the finest hour for that Hollywood veteran director John Sturges. It is far superior to his "The Magnificent Seven" which relied heavily on uniquely skilled, one dimensional, stereo type characters. A film that had such an influence on that demented period of the Italian Western. This film is a fascinating contemporary western that has elements of the film noir. Made over fifty years ago it does not look contemporary now, but is still a very handsome film to look at, and has a wonderful fifties feel to it that would be hard to replicate now.
Spencer Tracy plays a one armed second world war veteran on a mission to find the Japanese/American Father of the war hero who died saving his life during the Italian campaign, and to hand him his sons medal. He stops at the small one horse town of Black Rock in the desert but finds that the Father has mysteriously disappeared. He is met with open hostility by most of the townsfolk especially in the form of Robert Ryan and his menacing henchman. But slowly due to dogged persistence he begins to uncover the grim truth. Tracy heads to an inevitable showdown with Ryan and his thugs.
The film boasts a very fine ensemble cast with possibly the best team of heavies to have ever graced the screen. Robert Ryan was always excellent as a villain. I recall him being especially good in "The Naked Spur". Ernest Borgnine provides another classic example of his pot bellied bully and Lee Marvin exudes menace with his mere presence. Sterling support is provided by Walter Brennan as a sympathetic Doctor and Dean Jagger as the drunken town marshall who turns a blind eye. All worth the admission fee alone.
The film has been compared with "High Noon" with its inherent liberal sentiments. It tackles the big subject of racial hatred and prejudice. Tracy with his one arm can relate to this. Similar themes were explored in Wellman's "The Ox Bow Incident", although the lynch mob in that film regret their actions, unlike the heavies of this film who have no remorse. The films influence can still be felt today in the way its title has fallen into everyday American slang. I must be one of the few in England to use it. Another bad habit picked up by watching too many movies.
This is a well acted and well crafted movie. It still looks good today and the time spent watching it passes all to quickly. We really, really don't get so many actors of this quality in one film any more. One last point of interest is that Black Rock consisted of a purpose built set of which nothing now remains, just the tumbleweeds. But what does remain is this fine film. Why oh why is this film not easily available on Region 2. I cannot unfortunately vouch for the quality of this foreign imported DVD, only the quality of the film. Highly recommended.
Spencer Tracy plays a one armed second world war veteran on a mission to find the Japanese/American Father of the war hero who died saving his life during the Italian campaign, and to hand him his sons medal. He stops at the small one horse town of Black Rock in the desert but finds that the Father has mysteriously disappeared. He is met with open hostility by most of the townsfolk especially in the form of Robert Ryan and his menacing henchman. But slowly due to dogged persistence he begins to uncover the grim truth. Tracy heads to an inevitable showdown with Ryan and his thugs.
The film boasts a very fine ensemble cast with possibly the best team of heavies to have ever graced the screen. Robert Ryan was always excellent as a villain. I recall him being especially good in "The Naked Spur". Ernest Borgnine provides another classic example of his pot bellied bully and Lee Marvin exudes menace with his mere presence. Sterling support is provided by Walter Brennan as a sympathetic Doctor and Dean Jagger as the drunken town marshall who turns a blind eye. All worth the admission fee alone.
The film has been compared with "High Noon" with its inherent liberal sentiments. It tackles the big subject of racial hatred and prejudice. Tracy with his one arm can relate to this. Similar themes were explored in Wellman's "The Ox Bow Incident", although the lynch mob in that film regret their actions, unlike the heavies of this film who have no remorse. The films influence can still be felt today in the way its title has fallen into everyday American slang. I must be one of the few in England to use it. Another bad habit picked up by watching too many movies.
This is a well acted and well crafted movie. It still looks good today and the time spent watching it passes all to quickly. We really, really don't get so many actors of this quality in one film any more. One last point of interest is that Black Rock consisted of a purpose built set of which nothing now remains, just the tumbleweeds. But what does remain is this fine film. Why oh why is this film not easily available on Region 2. I cannot unfortunately vouch for the quality of this foreign imported DVD, only the quality of the film. Highly recommended.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
There is a story that the head of the studio that made this film wanted to pull the plug on it because he thought it subversive.
He was right. It subverts a number of genres: it is a western without any horses; a war story thousands of miles from the front line; a thriller like a ghost story; a film noir set in the desert. But most subversive of all, at the core of the film it is about the consequences of racism, most specifically anti-Japanese racism, and how that racism is often dressed up as patriotism.
The film takes the form, popular in US and Japanese cinema, of the stranger arriving into town as a catalyst for the unfolding story. Spencer Tracy delivers one of his most iconic performances as the stranger, a brave man, but one who has seen too much violence already not to appreciate that, when faced with insurmountable odds, discretion is the better part of valour. Robert Ryan is brilliantly terrifying as the charming thug who dominates the town. Walter Brennan provides some light relief as the town undertaker and vet in the midst of a spare and nightmarish story.
The film must still be regarded as deeply subversive to those "heartland" Americans for whom ignorance and provincialism are regarded as virtues. The outsider played by Tracy asserts a different sort of Americanism, a cosmopolitan, progressive and principled one, and is hated and feared as a result.
For Trivial Pursuit and pub quiz afficianados: the film is said to be the first American film to portray the use of eastern martial arts when Tracy's character comes to a point at which he is driven to fight in self-defense, and displays a surprising propensity for karate, the Japanese martial art.
He was right. It subverts a number of genres: it is a western without any horses; a war story thousands of miles from the front line; a thriller like a ghost story; a film noir set in the desert. But most subversive of all, at the core of the film it is about the consequences of racism, most specifically anti-Japanese racism, and how that racism is often dressed up as patriotism.
The film takes the form, popular in US and Japanese cinema, of the stranger arriving into town as a catalyst for the unfolding story. Spencer Tracy delivers one of his most iconic performances as the stranger, a brave man, but one who has seen too much violence already not to appreciate that, when faced with insurmountable odds, discretion is the better part of valour. Robert Ryan is brilliantly terrifying as the charming thug who dominates the town. Walter Brennan provides some light relief as the town undertaker and vet in the midst of a spare and nightmarish story.
The film must still be regarded as deeply subversive to those "heartland" Americans for whom ignorance and provincialism are regarded as virtues. The outsider played by Tracy asserts a different sort of Americanism, a cosmopolitan, progressive and principled one, and is hated and feared as a result.
For Trivial Pursuit and pub quiz afficianados: the film is said to be the first American film to portray the use of eastern martial arts when Tracy's character comes to a point at which he is driven to fight in self-defense, and displays a surprising propensity for karate, the Japanese martial art.
12 of 14 people found the following review helpful
Not necessarily a 'well known' film but a classic of its generation dealing with immediate post WW2 xenophobia and guilty secrets of isolated communities. Spencer Tracey is superb as the 'one armed' stranger who refuses to be intimidated and shows the true courage of serving men who make promises, not only to their 'brothers-in-arms', but also to themselves i.e. the job has to be completed. Relatively short at 81 minutes but worth the very reasonable price for a film that has proved difficult to obtain.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
A Real Classic
I ran into this film a long time ago and I had memories of something special. My Christmas present didn't disappoint. This is indeed a truly seminal Western. Read more
Published 14 months ago by Jon Warden
DVD purchased
I was very happy with the prompt delivery on the item I purchased, and the excellent condition it came in as stipulated by the importer.
Published 16 months ago by Ms. L. Maiden
fair film.
Andre Previn music over the top and too loud.
Typical Sturges nonsense but better than the rest of his dismal output. Read more
Typical Sturges nonsense but better than the rest of his dismal output. Read more
Published on 16 Jan 2010 by MrViewer
fantastic movie
would give this six stars if i could . one of the best thrillers you will ever see you must buy it
Published on 23 Nov 2007 by Mr. R. Steele
Listmania!
Look for similar items by category
Feedback
- Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
|
