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Only John Ford excelled Anthony Mann as a purveyor of eye-fillingWesternimagery, and Mann's best films are second to no one's when it comes to thefusion of dynamic action, rugged landscapes, and fierce psychologicalintensity.The Man from Laramie is the last of five remarkableWesterns the director made with James Stewart (starting with Winchester'73 and peaking with The Naked Spur).This collaboration marked virtually a whole new career for Stewart, whose characters are all haunted bythe past and driven by obsession--here, to find whoever set hiscavalry-officer brother in the path of warlike Indians.

The Man from Laramie aspires to an epic grandeur beyond itspredecessors.It's the only one in CinemaScope, and Stewart's personal questis subsumed in a larger drama--nothing less than a sagebrush version of King Lear, with a range baron on the verge of blindness (Donald Crisp), hisweak and therefore vicious son (Alex Nicol), and another, apparently moresolid "son," his Edmund-like foreman (Arthur Kennedy). There are a few too many subsidiary characters, and the reach for thematic complexityoccasionally diminishes the impact.But no one will ever forget the scene onthe salt flats between Nicol and Stewart--climaxing in the single mostshocking act of violence in '50s cinema--or the final, mountaintopconfrontation.

For decades, the film has been seen only in washed-out, pan-and-scan videos, with the characters playing visual hopscotch from one panel of the original composition to another.It's great to have this glorious DVD--razor-sharp, fully saturated (or as saturated as '50s Eastmancolor could be), andbreathtaking in its CinemaScope sweep. --Richard T. Jameson ... Read more

Reviews (15)

I don't come from anywhere...
Some men arrive with provisions for a store, most of them will return from whence they came. One man, portrayed by James Stewart, may have come from Laramie but its not his home and does not intend to return until he finds out who supplied the rifles to the Apache - rifles which were used to kill a cavalry troop, among them his brother.

His quest brings him into conflict with a local landowner who has dreamt that a man would one day come to kill his son. Is it the man from Laramie?

James Stewart and Anthony Mann made some great films together - this was the last, and by no means the least. I have said it before and I'll say it again - James Stewart was the finest actor ever and this film features another fine performance.

The DVD transfer (anamorphic) is excellent - picture quality and sound are excellent. My only complaint is the lack of features. Trailers for the other Stewart/Mann films at least would have been a worthy addition.

A GREEK TRAGEDY IN THE DESERT
Director Anthony Mann's THE MAN FROM LARAMIE is a movie lover's dream. It's a western shot in the beautiful deserts of New Mexico with enough action to keep your mind occupied while your eyes wander through the landscapes. James Stewart, Arthur Kennedy and Donald Crisp are at their best and the rest of the cast gives a great performance.

Some of the reviewers have already noted the shakespearian flavour of the story so I'm rather going to underline other evident references. OK ! So, in THE MAN OF LARAMIE, we have an old man with a recurrent dream, a dream announcing that a stranger will come and murder his son. When Alec announces to Vic that he's becoming blind, we cannot have any doubts more : we are witnessing another variation of the myth of Oedipus. From this moment on, you're going to have a subtle pleasure to read THE MAN FROM LARAMIE with a pair of freudian glasses ! Let's observe these brothers ( Vic HansBRO ) fight for the love of their old father, let's mourn the disappearance of Alec's wife who created a monster out of her son in order to hurt her macho husband, etc..

Images and sound (stereo) are OUTSTANDING. For once, a production company has forgotten the usual economic laws and takes advantage of the real possibilities of a DVD by presenting 4 or five different subtitles. Thank you Columbia !

A DVD for your library.

Another great James Stewart western
This collaboration between director Anthony Mann and actor James Stewart is another dark character study as Stewart once again is a cowboy on the vengeance trail as he heads for a dusty New Mexico town in search of gun-runners who supplied rifles to the Apaches who wiped out a cavalry troop that included his younger brother. The town of Coronado and the surrounding territory are controlled by a cattle baron who owns the Barb ranch and doesn't take kindly to outsiders meddling in the town's affairs. Rancher Alec Waggoman's neurotic son Dave and tough but high-strung ranch foreman Vic Hansbro resent Will Lockhart's determination to uncover the mystery of Apaches acquiring rifles and why the massacre just happened to take place on Waggoman's land. The film has a few touches of extreme violence without being graphic and Stewart's straight-shooting Lockhart is likeable and believable. The picture's romantic angle is more implied than stated between Lockhart and Barbara Waggoman and is realistic in the way it unfolds during Lockhart's investigation in Coronado. A great cast of supporting actors was assembled for this movie and makes this star western even more enjoyable.

poor colorization
Originally saw this film in Black and White. This colorized version is poor at the best; spend the time and effort to find the B/W; the hokie-ness detracts from the movie itself.

Deserves more attention
Hard to believe I missed this jewel before. Just an outstanding collaboration by Stewart/Mann. I really don't see the brutality here that so many people are quick to scream these days, and who cares about King Lear? This is just a great Western in the classic sense. Jimmy Stewart was always his best in the "I'm gonna get you sucka'" role and he is terrific here. The story outweighs some casting issues but you won't care. Cathy O'Donnell is exactly like Stewart describes her..."beautiful", a fragile genuine treasure.

The DVD transfer is nothing but spectacular. I've never seen colors like this anywhere and there's plenty of scenery to "wow" at. Amazing actually but that's an Anthony Mann trademark. Just jumped into my top five all time list. 5 mules, still standing. ... Read more

Amazon.com

Nathanael West's The Day of the Locust is by consensus the great Hollywood novel, a poison-pen letter aimed squarely at the tinsel heart of the movie biz. Only in the 1970s could Hollywood actually hazard a film of this story, and the result is suitably corrosive. William Atherton is the observer Tod, Karen Black the blond starlet Faye, and Donald Sutherland the hulking Homer--but they are easily out-acted by the colorful supporting cast. In particular, Burgess Meredith's exhausted showbizzy salesman and Billy Barty's strutting dwarf are superbly crafted gargoyles in this Hollywood wax museum. Director John Schlesinger piles on the rancid atmosphere and rampant hypocrisy until the movie fairly drowns in its own grotesque vision. Long before the climactic apocalyptic riot, the film has torn itself up. There's no substitute for West's wicked prose, so the adaptation comes across as a literal-minded screech rather than a true bonfire of the vanities. --Robert Horton ... Read more

Reviews (17)

You're in the movie now.
A naive young art director played by William Atherton takes a job in a Hollywood studio in the 1930s and sinks into a bleak nightmare of crushed hopes and failed dreams. Nathanael West's novel reaches the screen with none of its impact diminished. Donald Sutherland's performance as a simple Midwesterner who falls in love with a venal bit player (Karen Black) is astonishingly good. Burgess Meredith is also good as Black's father, an ex-vaundevillian who struggles to make a living as a door-to-door salesman. Disturbing and fascinating, the film is brilliantly photographed by the great Conrad Hall and amply directed by John Schlesinger. It's a shame more people don't know about this film, and it's a shame that it hasn't yet been released on DVD.

unknown and neglected masterpiece
the day of the locust is a fascinating look at the people who go to hollywood and dont make it. it is brilliantly directed by the great john schlesinger ( midnight cowboy) but it was hated by the hollywood community itself for showing the seamy side of hollywood. when the acadamy awards presented the nominations that year this film was nominated for only one category (burgess merideth in a supporting actor role). the movie was clearly snubbed because it dared to show hollywood in this light and what a horrible light indeed. witness the disaster that takes place on a stage set that collapses because of shody materials or the incredible ending thats is one of the most night marish sequences ever filmed. richard atherton whom i thought would be a super star after this role is great as the new comer to hollywood who wants to be a set designer. he falls for a ditzy blond played very well by karen black whos carachter is so despicable and hatefull that we dont wether to be sorry for her or just hate her. donald sutherland is magnificent as the shy almost retarded rich man who holds in so much of his hate that your just waiting for it to explode ( of course it does). each scene unfolds so brilliantly under the direction of schlesinger that i would recommend it alone as a directors training guide on " how to direct a movie". why this film is not on dvd is beyond me. the film is a dark,brooding sad and powerfull story on human failure and dreams that can go wrong. it reminds me of something eric von stroheim would have done. in fact it is very much like his silent masterpiece GREED filmed in 1924. i have this movie on vhs but i cant wait for a dvd

Amazing film ..lousy and i do mean LOUSY DVD!
Oh my god the picture quality on this classic film is just horrible.
There is so much grain through out this film that I thought I was loosing my eye site. My VHS copy looks better!

There aren't any extra features on this dvd as well as 90% of Paramount home video's older films.

I am never buying another DVD from Paramount until they shape up with their releases.
:(

A movie like this deserves better treatment ...I feel robbed.

THE MECCA OF BROKEN DREAMS....
In the 1970's, a slew of films set in the 30's came out---evidently a vogue at the time. Two stand out in my mind. "They Shoot Horses Don't They?" and "Day of the Locust". "Locust" is a particularly corrosive portrait of 30's Hollywood based on the Nathaniel West novel. A young artist (William Atherton) comes to Hollywood and finds success as a scenarist for Paramount. He watches as people sell their souls for the Dream (whatever it is to them) and finally sees Hollywood turn into Hell. "Day of the Locust" won Oscars for Burgess Meredith (as a washed up vaudvillian) and the cinematography. But I thought John Schlesinger should have won for director as well. He paints such a nightmarish picture of a debauched and decadent 1930's Hollywood that you can almost smell and taste it. Donald Sutherland also should have won for his portrayel of Homer Simpson (yes, that's the name), a frighteningly insecure simpleton who becomes Karen Black's benefactor and lives to regret it. He's also the catalyst for the horrifying climax. Black is excellent as Faye Greener (the daughter of Meredith's character)---a callous, hopelessly star struck extra in films using anyone to get ahead...or to just buy her a Dream. Many familiar faces populate the film including Natalie Schafer as a Madam, Geraldine Page as Big Sister (an Aimee McPherson type evangelist), 70's disco artist Paul Jabara as a drag entertainer performing the Dietrich song "Hot Voodoo" and Billy Barty as...a midget. Atherton is superb as the artist and should have been a bigger star after this. Many disturbing images are here including a disgusting cock fight and the brutal murder of a child but even these upsetting scenes contribute to the fabric of the film...their impact is intentional. The DVD print is beautiful, you can see how this won for cinematography. The film is a bit long (144 min.) but not a scene is wasted. Highly recommended viewing all the way.

This movie will tear you up...
If you are an avid movie fan, then you probably know how it is to no longer have the ability to be tremendously affected by great movies, although you can still recognize their greatness. An example would be All About Eve. I have overwhelming respect for this film, but it has always left me relatively unmoved. Another example would be Dogville. I definitely could not bring myself to say that about The Day of the Locust, which is a massive artistic achievement, which speaks the truth, and speaks it directly to the heart. Truth is so rare today that when it hits you, it hits hard, and that is exactly what this film has to offer.

The Day of the Locust is inherently ambitious, and that is commendable regardless of how effective the final piece is. It is fortunate that all the artistic elements combined so seemlessly and movingly. The film, although it may not be readily apparent, is extremely well casted. Karen Black gives a career-best performance as Faye Greener, a creature so messed up inside that it is easy to love her in spite of her flaws, and that was just the mistake Todd (Donald Sutherland) made. In an ideal world, people meet and fall in love. But this is the dark, seamy, loveless side of Hollywood and the ability to love is all but forgotten (one could see parallels in our world today, that our world has in fact fallen prey to these loveless creatures, making the film ever more relavent), except in the heart of Todd who seems to be the hero of this rather tragic film.

There are many, many moments and lines that will make a kind of jarring imprint on your memory. One of the most horrific, nightmarish scenes occurs at the end of the film, when Faye is finally burned from Todd's memory forever, but, as we soon find, that loss is not too much of a bother for Faye...and that may just be the one great flaw of her character, and of Hollywood. There are no emotional attachments. There is no sincerity or truth. It is an illusion, a fantasy. Faye's heart was part of the illusion, for where it should have been was just empty space, compensated by an appearance that was all flashy and tinsel.

Sorry that is the best I can do to describe a film that defies accurate description or criticism--masterpieces always do, except by masterful writers. The DVD quality? Well, there are no extra features to speak of, but for the price I am very satisfied. The picture and sound quality are both excellent, and that is all that really matters.

Like another reviewer said, seeing this movie will leave you as emotional wreckage and you would be well-advised to take a day off to think about it. However, I disagree with the reviewer who urged depressed people not to see this. On the contrary, that this movie is depressing is only consequently, for it provides truth and, maybe if you look deep enough, answers. ... Read more

Description

This 88 minute film details the rousing adventure of two brothers who join opposing sides of the civil war conflict. Former president, Ronald Reagan, is Vance Britton, the commander of a group of Confederates plundering Union gold shipments and wreaking havoc on the settlers of the SantaFe Trail. Bruce Bennet is Jeb Britton, the commander of theUnion forces sent to the frontier to seek out and destroy this Confederate menace; unaware it is his brother who is the target. When Vance and his brother areunexpectedly united on the frontier, sparks fly, and theyreluctantly put aside their differences to try and save asmall town from the rampaging Apache Indians. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

A typical 1950's Civil War film
Those old Civil War films are always the same. They're filmed in the California desert with inaccurate uniforms and weapons. Reagan gives a so-so performance as a Confederate Cavalry officer who finds himself fighting against his brother who is an officer in the Union Cavalry. And of course...there's a woman invoved too. It's a somewhat enjoyable movie, but certainly not a five star film.

the last outpost
well made movie. Ronald Reagan, Rhonda Fleming, and a host of tv stars of the fifties. Premise is two brothers fighting the civil war one union one confederate on tv it's known as the last outpost. Interesting plot and in color ... Read more