(aka "L'homme des vallées perdues" )
directed
by George Stevens
USA 1953
The
recurring theme of heroic nobility and valor with a protagonist that could be
described as a loner is quite common for the old westerns of John Ford and
Anthony Mann. This isolated characterization could often be a
reflective comparison to the wide expanse of the often un-chartered wild west
itself. Lonely men in lonely towns with neighbors on homesteads miles apart. A
comparison is surely there.
George Stevens (Giant) made a remarkable contribution to the western lore with
his film 'Shane'. The screenplay was based on Jack Schaefer's successful 1949
book of the same name and the film received six Academy Awards nominations:
Best Picture, Best Supporting Actor (Brandon de Wilde), Best Supporting Actor
(Jack Palance), Best Director, Best Screenplay (by A. B. Guthrie, Jr.), and
Best Color Cinematography, and won its sole Oscar award for photographer Loyal
Griggs. We seem abandoned in the late 1880s, settlers struggling for a new
life and having each other as the only support mechanism. If it crumbles, we
all crumble. The brilliance of the direction is it subtly detailing the story
with minimal dialogue and like its protagonists preferring more to work within
a certain unspoken code of behavior. The ending is uncompromising with the
savior of the community becoming the outcast, and he rides off alone into the
glorious mountains. Does valor require a decorated champion? or are the deeds
themselves more expected than unique and hence the legend of such men seems to
grow as the stories are told, often from young boys who become strong young
men with real role models for their maturity. Justly considered one of the greatest
westerns ever made.
Gary Tooze
Posters
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Theatrical Release: 23 April 1953
Reviews More Reviews DVD Reviews
Recommended Reading for Western Genre Fans (CLICK COVERS or TITLES for more information)
 |
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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 |
Check out more in "The Library"
DVD Comparison:
Paramount - Region 1 - NTSC vs. Paramount - Region 2,4 - PAL
Big thanks to Link and Vincent Lacomme for the Screen Caps!
(Paramount - Region 1 - NTSC - LEFT vs. Paramount - Region 2,4 - PAL - RIGHT)
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| Distribution |
Paramount Region 1 - NTSC |
Paramount Region 2,4 - PAL |
| Runtime | 1:57:48 | 1:53:09 (4% PAL speedup) |
| Video |
1.33
Original Aspect Ratio |
1.33
Original Aspect Ratio |
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NOTE: The Vertical axis represents the bits transferred per second. The Horizontal is the time in minutes. |
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Bitrate:
Paramount
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Bitrate:
Paramount
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| Audio | English 2.0 Mono DUB: French 2.0 Mono |
English 2.0 Mono DUBs: French 2.0 Mono, Italian 2.0 Mono, Spanish 2.0 Mono, German 2.0 Mono |
| Subtitles | English, none | English, English for the hearing impaired, French, Spanish, Italian, German, Arabic, Bulgarian, Croat, Czech, Danish, Dutch, Finnish, Hebrew, Hungarian, none |
| Features |
Release Information: Studio: Paramount Aspect Ratio:
Edition Details: Chapters 16 |
Release Information: Studio: Paramount Aspect Ratio:
Edition Details:
DVD
Release Date: October 6, 2003 Chapters 16 |
| Comments |
Very similar releases, but the PAL edition appears to be slightly saturated and is also hazier. I don't see any significant cropping. Both have the original audio and the same commentary. This is a great film, by the way and its nice to see it has more than bare bones for both standards. The PAL edition does, as usual, offer a host of DUBs and subtitle options. Overall we see no reason not to own the NTSC version for its superior image quality. -Gary Tooze |
DVD Menus
(Paramount - Region 1 - NTSC - LEFT
vs. Paramount - Region 2,4 - PAL - RIGHT)
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Screen Captures
(Paramount - Region 1 - NTSC - TOP vs. Paramount - Region 2,4 - PAL - BOTTOM)
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(Paramount - Region 1 - NTSC - TOP vs. Paramount - Region 2,4 - PAL - BOTTOM)
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(Paramount - Region 1 - NTSC - TOP vs. Paramount - Region 2,4 - PAL - BOTTOM)
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(Paramount - Region 1 - NTSC - TOP vs. Paramount - Region 2,4 - PAL - BOTTOM)
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(Paramount - Region 1 - NTSC - TOP vs. Paramount - Region 2,4 - PAL - BOTTOM)
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(Paramount - Region 1 - NTSC - TOP vs. Paramount - Region 2,4 - PAL - BOTTOM)
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Report Card:
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Image: |
NTSC |
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Sound: |
PAL for extra DUBs |
| Extras: | tie |
| Menu: | tie |
| DVD Box Covers |
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| Distribution |
Paramount Region 1 - NTSC |
Paramount Region 2,4 - PAL |
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Gary Tooze 1775 Rowntree Court Mississauga, Ontario, L4W 4V3 CANADA |
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Many Thanks...
