Hud Blu-ray - Paul Newman

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S E A R C H D V D B e a v e r

directed by Martin Ritt
USA 1963

"Well, I always say that the law was meant to be interpreted in a lenient manner, and that's what I try to do. Sometimes I lean to one side of it, sometimes I lean to the other." - Hud

Hard-drinking, arrogant, womanizing Hud Bannon (Paul Newman) lives a self-centered, indolent life supported by his hard-working and morally upstanding father, Homer (Melvyn Douglas), on the family cattle ranch in Texas. Hud's teenage nephew, Lonnie (Brandon de Wilde), blames Hud for the car crash that took the life of his father, Hud's older brother Norman, but shows hints of following in his ne'er-do-well uncle's footsteps when both men pursue family housekeeper Alma (Patricia Neal.)

***

A blistering adult western which broke ground in its depiction of an unglamorous West and in the decidedly anti-heroic nature of its lead.

The charismatic Newman is the title character, an immoral Texas heel--insensitive, crude, avaricious, and irresponsible. He has a stormy relationship with his father, Douglas, an extremely decent but rigid old man who long ago rejected his son. Somewhere in between them is the innocent de Wilde, whose attraction to Newman is almost as strong as that of salty housekeeper Neal. Newman does as little as possible around the ranch his father owns; ignoring the proud past, he is concerned only with having a good ol' time.

HUD belongs to a group of "anti-westerns" which includes LONELY ARE THE BRAVE, THE MISFITS, THE LUSTY MEN and JUNIOR BONNER. It's almost impossible to sympathize with Newman's character, presented cynically by director Ritt in an approach typical of many 60s filmmakers. Newman's performance, though, is unquestionably the best thing about this brutal portrait of humanity.

Excerpt from TV Guide located HERE

Posters

Theatrical Release: May 29th, 1963 - New York City

Reviews More Reviews DVD Reviews

Recommended Reading for Western Genre Fans (CLICK COVERS or TITLES for more information)


The Crowded Prairie: American National Identity in the Hollywood Western (Cinema and Society) by Michael Coyne	The Invention of the Western Film : A Cultural History of the Genre's First Half Century (Genres in American Cinema S.) by Scott Simmon	The Searchers (Bfi Film Classics) by Edward Buscombe	The Western Genre by John Saunders	Westerns: Films through History (AFI Film Readers) by Janet Walker	The Encyclopedia of Westerns (The Facts on File Film Reference Library) by Herb Fagen, Tom Selleck	Gunfighter Nation: The Myth of the Frontier in Twentieth-Century America by Richard Slotkin	The Western (Inside Film) by David Lusted	Red River (Bfi Film Classics) by Suzanne Liandrat-Guigues

Check out more in "The Library"

Comparison:

Paramount - Region 1 - NTSC vs. Paramount - Region FREE - Blu-ray

Box Cover

Distribution	Paramount Home Video - Region 1 - NTSC	Paramount (DE) - Region FREE - Blu-ray
Runtime	1:51:32	1:51:39.943
Video	2.35:1 Original Aspect Ratio 16X9 enhanced Average Bitrate: 5.18 mb/s NTSC 720x480 29.97 f/s	2.35:1 1080P Dual-layered Blu-ray Disc Size: 47,040,272,735 bytes Feature: 15,556,288,512 bytes Video Bitrate: 17.00 Mbps Codec: MPEG-4 AVC Video
Bitrate:
Bitrate: Blu-ray
Audio	English (Dolby Digital 5.1), English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono), DUB: French (Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono)	Dolby Digital Audio English 448 kbps 5.1 / 48 kHz / 448 kbps DUB: Dolby Digital Audio German 224 kbps 2.0 / 48 kHz / 224 kbps
Subtitles	English, None	German, None
Features	Release Information: Studio: Paramount Home Video Aspect Ratio: Widescreen anamorphic - 2.35:1 Edition Details: • None DVD Release Date: December 2, 2003 Keep Case Chapters: 24	Release Information: Studio: Paramount (DE) 2.35:1 1080P Dual-layered Blu-ray Disc Size: 47,040,272,735 bytes Feature: 15,556,288,512 bytes Video Bitrate: 17.00 Mbps Codec: MPEG-4 AVC Video Edition Details: • None Blu-ray Release Date: May 23rd, 2019 Standard Thick Blu-ray Case Chapters 12

Comments:

NOTE: The below Blu-ray captures were taken directly from the Blu-ray disc.

ADDITION: Paramount Blu-ray (June 2019): Paramount in Germany have transferred 1963's Hud to Blu-ray as part of a nine-film 3 BD boxset that includes True Grit (1969), Hondo, The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, El Dorado, Posse, The Sons of Katie Elder, Three Violent People, Gunfight at the O.K. Corral and Hud. They start with a Universal logo. Hud looks, like the SD, a bit soft and waxy but the higher resolution shows superior contrast and better detail. It is not a dynamic appearance but I have the feeling it may be a function of the original source and theatrical 'look'. It has a few speckles and a barely noticeable scanner noise around 1:06:00. It, surprisingly though, looks quite strong on my system blowing away the old single-layered SD. The bitrate is modest as it shares the disc with two other western genre films. Overall - far from ideal but a pleasing leap above the 2003 DVD with over 3 X the bitrate. It deserves better but the film captivated me... again and I appreciated seeing it look superior (1080P) if far from stellar.

NOTE: We have added 36 more large resolution Blu-ray captures for DVDBeaver Patrons HERE.

On their Blu-ray, Paramount use a lossy Dolby 5.1 bump with no option for the mono in English - but there is a German DUB for those that prefer it. There are only typical aggressive effects (gunshots for the cattle, ranch sounds etc.) but few demonstrative separations. The score from Elmer Bernstein (Midas Run, Report to the Commissioner, Kings of the Sun, Hud, To Kill a Mockingbird, Summer and Smoke) sounds gentle and pleasing with lonesome guitar plucks. Paramount offer optional German subtitles on their Region FREE Blu-ray.

The Paramount Blu-ray Boxset has no supplements - just the nine films listed above.

Hud is an absolute favorite western and I remain perplexed why it took so long to cme to HD - and that this package is still far less than the film deserves. It' would seem a stop-gap approach but I am glad to finally have in on Blu-ray despite hoping to reaches a better transfer, lossy mono audio, and maybe commentary - before I have to wait another 15 years.

Gary Tooze

ON THE DVD: Aside from a little dirt in the opening sequences this is a deceptively tight image for a single layered disc. The image has some waxy softness. The sound is restored and clean and has a bumped 5.1 option (as well as French mono). There are no Extras which is a little strange as this is a highly regarded film with quite a following among Newman fans. Still the video portion is fine, the audio is very good.

Gary W. Tooze