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directed by Mark Robson
USA 1949

 

Director Mark Robson ("Earthquake"/"The Prize"/"Von Ryan's Express") puts more romance into this Western than usual and achieves better than expected results with this winsome old-fashioned oater. It's based on a story by Peter Viertel and written by Geoffrey Homes and Hugo Butler.

In 1893, Clay Phillips (Robert Sterling) and teenage kid brother Steve (Claude Jarman Jr.) are fledgling ranchers bringing a herd of horses to California and learn from the sheriff in Sonora, where the brothers own a ranch, that dangerous felon Lednov (John Ireland) has escaped and is gunning for Clay as revenge for when arrested by the former lawman for murdering his best friend. Clay and Steve come across a broken wagon and meet on the trail four pretty stranded dance-hall girls --Mary Wells (Gloria Grahame), Helen Carter (Myrna Dell), Elaine (Jeff Donnell ) and Marcia (Martha Hyer)--who were kicked out of Aspen by social reformers and are now headed for saloon work in Sonora, California. The reluctant puritanical Clay becomes the escort for the girls, and it leads to a strained romance between him and Mary as he's being stalked across the Sonora Pass by the three vicious gunmen.

Excerpt of review from Dennis Schwartz for Ozus' World Movie Reviews located HERE

Posters

Theatrical Release: 11 May 1949 (USA)

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DVD Review: Warner Home Video (Warner Archive Collection) - Region 0 - NTSC

Big thanks to Gregory Meshman for the Review!

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Distribution

Warner Home Video

Region 0 - NTSC
Runtime 1:28:09
Video

1.33:1 Original Aspect Ratio
Average Bitrate: 6.36 mb/s
NTSC 720x480 29.97 f/s

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

Audio Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono (English)
Subtitles None
Features Release Information:
Studio: Warner Home Video

Aspect Ratio:
Fullscreen - 1.33:1

Edition Details:
� None

DVD Release Date: January 12th, 2016
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Chapters 12

 

 

 

Comments

Roughshod is one of those adult westerns that are now being referred to as western noir, like Pursued, The Ox-Bow Incident, The Furies, Budd Boetticher westerns or Blood on the Moon (still missing in region 1 and awaits a new restoration from Warner Archive). They may refer to prostitutes as "dance hall girls" and protagonist may never shoot first, but these oaters are as dark and deadly as any contemporary urban film noir. Robert Sterling (Bunco Squad, Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea) and Claude Jarman Jr. (one of the best child performers of classic Hollywood - The Yearling , Intruder in the Dust) play brothers delivering a herd of horses and meeting a wagon of 4 "dance hall girls" needing help. Gloria Grahame steals the movie as a bad girl with a heart of gold. John Ireland (The 49th Man, All the King's Men) is film's mandatory baddie as an escaped felon on the trail to kill the older brother.

Roughshod had a DVD release in Spain back in 2007 by Manga Films, but this made-on-demand release as part of Warner Archive Collection features a new progressive transfer. There are still some specs and marks, but overall image is very fine with good contrast and healthy amount of grain. The mono audio is decent, with no distortions. There are no extras on this disc and, per usual, no caption or subtitles. This film would make a great double feature with RKO's Station West, another dark western that was concurrently released by Warner Archive. Highly recommended!

  - Gregory Meshman

 

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DVD Box Cover

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Distribution

Warner Home Video

Region 0 - NTSC

 

 



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