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Allan Dwan Coffret (5-disc)

Silver Lode (1954)      Passion (1954)      Cattle Queen of Montana (1954)

Escape to Burma (1955)      Pearl of the South Pacific (1955)

Tennessee's Partner (1955)       Slightly Scarlet (1956)

Born Joseph Aloysius Dwan in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, his family moved to the United States when he was 11 years old. At the University of Notre Dame, he trained as an engineer and began working for a lighting company in Chicago. However, he had a strong interest in the fledgling motion picture industry and when Essanay Studios offered him the opportunity to become a scriptwriter, he took the job. At that time, some of the East Coast movie makers began to spend winters in California where the climate allowed them to continue productions requiring warm weather. Soon, a number of movie companies worked there year-round and, in 1911, Dwan began working part time in Hollywood. While still in New York, in 1917 he was the founding president of the East Coast chapter of the Motion Picture Directors Association.


Career
After making a series of westerns and comedies, Dwan directed fellow Canadian Mary Pickford in several very successful movies as well as her husband, Douglas Fairbanks, notably in the acclaimed 1922 Robin Hood.

Following the introduction of the talkies, in 1937 he directed child-star Shirley Temple in Heidi and Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm the following year.

Over his long and successful career spanning over 50 years, he directed over 400 motion pictures, many of them highly acclaimed, such as the 1949 box office smash, Sands of Iwo Jima. He directed his last movie in 1961.

 

Excerpt from Wikipedia located HERE

Titles

 


 

Disc 1
Quatre étranges cavaliers (Silver Lode) 1954
- Interview with A. Dwan by Peter Bogdanovich (7 mn)
- Le dernier des grands maîtres (30 mn) par Peter Bogdanovich
- L'homme qui filme plus vite que son ombre (27 mn) with la participation d'Harry Carey Jr. et Stuart Whitman
- Bande-Annonce

Disc 2
Tornade (Passion) 1954
La Reine de la Prairie (Cattle Queen of Montana) 1954

- 2 Interviews with A. Dwan par Peter Bogdanovich (2 x 8 mn)
- L'homme qui acheta un canyon (11 mn) with la participation de Robert Blees, scénariste de La reine de la prairie.
- Bandes-Annonces

Disc 3 : spécial aventure
Les rubis du prince birman (Escape to Burma) 1955
La perle du pacifique sud (Pearl of the South Pacific) 1955
- 2 Interviews with A. Dwan par Peter Bogdanovich (9 & 7 mn)
- Bandes-Annonces

Disc 4 :
Le Mariage est pour demain (Tennessee's Partner) 1955
- Interview with A. Dwan par Peter Bogdanovich (9 mn)
- Documents radiophoniques (Screen director's playhouse) :
Interview with A. Dwan par Peter Bogdanovich (2 mn)
High Air (1956 – N&B – 25 mn)
It's Always Sunday (1956 – N&B – 25 mn)
- Bandes-Annonces

Disc 5 :
Deux rouquines dans la bagarre (Slightly Scarlet) 1956
- Interview with A. Dwan par Peter Bogdanovich (9 mn)
- Au secours de Cain (28 mn) with la participation de Robert Blees, scénariste de Deux rouquines dans la bagarre. 
- Bandes-Annonces

Posters

Theatrical Releases: 1954 - 1956


DVD Reviews

DVD Review: Carlotta (Allan Dwan Coffret) - Region 2 - PAL

DVD Box Cover

CLICK to order from:

Distribution

Carlotta Films

Region 2 - PAL

Runtime 1:17:12, 1:24;33, 1:20:54, 1;23:00, 1:22:24, 1:23:18 + 1:34:09
Video

1.33, 1.85 and 2.00 Original Aspect Ratio
Average Bitrate: 4.83
mb/s (Cattle Queen) - 7.51 mb/s (Slightly Scarlet)
PAL 720x576 25.00 f/s

NOTE: The Vertical axis represents the bits transferred per second. The Horizontal is the time in minutes.

Bitrate Silver Lode

Bitrate Cattle Queen

Bitrate Pearls  Burma

Bitrate Tennessee Partners

Bitrate Slightly Scarlett

Audio English (Dolby Digital 1.0 or 2.0)
Subtitles French, None
Features Release Information:
Studio:
Carlotta

Aspect Ratio:
Fullscreen - 1.33:1, 1.85 and 2.00

(where widescreen)

Edition Details:
• See full list above

DVD Release Date: November 19th, 2009
Five slim, transparent keep cases inside a cardboard box

Chapters various

 

Comments

ADDED : VCI Region 0 NTSC edition of Silver Lode - June 2010 - fully compared HERE.

****

 

Vintage cinema fans are treated with Carlotta's new boxset of stalwart Allan Dwan - who, unbelievably directed over 400 films in his long career. This has seven consecutive efforts from 1954-56.

While some of these have been released on DVD by, sub-standard distributor, VCI - in North America - we only had Slightly Scarlet to compare to (see matching caps below) - more fully discussed HERE.

Each of these 5 discs is dual-layered with progressive transfers - anamorphic where widescreen. I wouldn't say this look stellar but passable with Escape to Burma (1955) and Tennessee's Partner (1955)  appearing the worst looking. Image quality on both is weak with hazy visuals but having nothing to compare it to - this may be the best we will get without extensive restoration - which, for these less-known films, will probably not happen in our lifetimes. Cattle Queen of Montana (1954) is also a bit disappointing with a very low bitrate. Colors bleed a bit but grain is apparent in the SD-DVD transfers. These are. admittedly, imperfect looking but most will be pleased to see the films - superior to the lackluster, PAL unconverted, VCI releases - and all in one boxset with extras.

Bill says in email "...the screenshots for Silver Lode, and I think also for Pearl of the South Pacific and Tennessee’s Partner, look squeezed to me."  (thanks Bill!) - although I didn't notice it when watching I think he may have a point - especially for Silver Lode.

Audio is unremarkable but clear enough to follow dialogue - there are optional French subtitles (yes, totally removable).

Extras include slots of Bogdanovich who seems to stumble a bit - but his older conversations with Dwan (in audio only) shed some interesting light despite being very short. Some may really enjoy the 'Screen Director's Playhouse' with two entries - High Air and It's Always Sunday - both on the Tennessee's Partner disc. They run 25-minutes each and are quite entertaining - but perhaps more interesting as a product of their time.

I am going to endorse this boxset - especially if you can temper your expectations on the video portion. I got a better understanding of Dwan now - a director I had only seen bit and pieces from. While not identifying a specific signature to his work - these are still entertaining - and stories well told. If the video transfers had been superior than I would have put it on my 'best of the year' lists. Thanks to Carlotta for producing this - there are many fans who will appreciate this collection. Now, let's see a Volume 2!  

Gary W. Tooze



Sample DVD Menus
 

 

Supplements
 

 


Silver Lode (1954)

 

Screen Captures

 

VCI (Special Edition) - Region 0 - NTSC TOP vs. Carlotta (Allan Dwan Coffret) - Region 2 - PAL BOTTOM

 


 VCI (Special Edition) - Region 0 - NTSC TOP vs. Carlotta (Allan Dwan Coffret) - Region 2 - PAL BOTTOM

 


 VCI (Special Edition) - Region 0 - NTSC TOP vs. Carlotta (Allan Dwan Coffret) - Region 2 - PAL BOTTOM

 


 VCI (Special Edition) - Region 0 - NTSC TOP vs. Carlotta (Allan Dwan Coffret) - Region 2 - PAL BOTTOM

 

 


 

Passion (1954)

 

Screen Captures

 

 

 

 

 

 


Cattle Queen of Montana (1954)

 

Screen Captures

 

 

 

 

 


Escape to Burma (1955)

 

Screen Captures

 

 

 

 

 


Pearl of the South Pacific (1955)

 

Screen Captures

 

 

 


Tennessee's Partner (1955)

 

Screen Captures

 

 

 

 


Slightly Scarlet (1956)

 

Screen Captures

 

VCI - Region 1 - NTSC TOP vs. Carlotta (Allan Dwan Coffret) - Region 2 - PAL BOTTOM

 

 

VCI - Region 1 - NTSC TOP vs. Carlotta (Allan Dwan Coffret) - Region 2 - PAL BOTTOM

 

 

VCI - Region 1 - NTSC TOP vs. Carlotta (Allan Dwan Coffret) - Region 2 - PAL BOTTOM

 

 

VCI - Region 1 - NTSC TOP vs. Carlotta (Allan Dwan Coffret) - Region 2 - PAL BOTTOM

 

 

VCI - Region 1 - NTSC TOP vs. Carlotta (Allan Dwan Coffret) - Region 2 - PAL BOTTOM

 

 

VCI - Region 1 - NTSC TOP vs. Carlotta (Allan Dwan Coffret) - Region 2 - PAL BOTTOM

 

 


DVD Box Cover

CLICK to order from:

Distribution

Carlotta Films

Region 2 - PAL




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