Starring: Alan Ladd, Jean Arthur Average Rating: Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated) Binding: VHS Tape Format: Closed-captioned, Color, HiFi Sound, NTSC Label: Warner Home Video Number of Items: 1 Release Date: April 07, 1998 Running Time: 117 minutes Theatrical Release Date: 1953
Amazon.com essential video: Consciously crafted by director George Stevens as a piece of American mythmaking, Shane is on nearly everyone's shortlist of great movie Westerns. A buckskin knight, Shane (Alan Ladd) rides into the middle of a range war between farmers and cattlemen, quickly siding with the "sod-busters." While helping a kindly farmer (Van Heflin), Shane falls platonically in love with the man's wife (Jean Arthur, in the last screen performance of a marvelous career). Though the showdowns are exciting, and the story simple but involving, what most people will remember about this movie is the friendship between the stoical Shane and the young son of the farmers. The kid is played by Brandon De Wilde, who gives one of the most amazing child performances in the movies; his parting scene with Shane is guaranteed to draw tears from even the most stonyhearted moviegoer. And speaking of stony hearts, Jack Palance made a sensational impression as the evil gunslinger sent to clean house--he has fewer lines of dialogue than he has lines in his magnificently craggy face, but he makes them count. The photography, highlighting the landscape near Jackson Hole, Wyoming, won an Oscar. --Robert Horton
My wife chuckled when I said this film nearly made me cry I guess if it's okay for her to get choked up watching all that Jane Austen stuff, then it's okay for me to have to fight back a few tears while watching little Joey run after his hero.
SHANE is one of the best westerns ever made. It captures the essence of this American mythology and offers superb quality in a such a wide array which one rarely sees anymore. For instance, the acting was just right; never over-the-top, never one-dimensional and boring, and never emotionally manipulative. The camera shots were top notch and could easily compete with any western/epic of the last twenty years. The action was fast-paced and intense, and yet this film is not ruled by the action sequences. The characters carry this film, not the action. The characters are likeable and very believable.
But perhaps my favorite thing about SHANE is the presence of the hero who on the surface appears too nice and too meek (the nice tough guy, if you will). But at the right time, he is a force to be reckoned with. Another of my favorite examples of this would have to be James Stewart in DESTRY RIDES AGAIN.
SHANE is one of the few films I've watched recently (for the first time in a long time) which left me wondering, "Why in the world have I not bought this yet?"
VERY PLEASED I AM VERY PLEASED WITH THE PRODUCT AND THE TIMELY MANNER IN WHICH MY ORDER WAS PROCESSED.
SHANE, a classic western Shane was indeed a classic western film. The photography was excellent. I especially liked the fact that the women were not dressed up in clean clothes with modern make-up, making them look like an anachronism, as is done in many westerns. THe constuming was more realistic. Alan Ladd did a great job, and the boy was great also.
A gun is as good or as bad as the man using it This is a believable, exciting story. The scenery is beautiful and the movie is just well-done all the way around. Alan Ladd, Jack Palance, Ben Johnson and the rest are outstanding. A gunslinger who is trying to make a new start in life thinks he's escaping to a peaceful area. Then he discovers that conflict is there too. He does his best to avoid involvement, but realizes that he is the only one who can defend the defenseless. He eventually embraces his role as a sheepdog of sorts and goes to battle the wolves. American Indians are only mentioned in passing when a character brags about a Cheyenne arrowhead that's still stuck in his shoulder from when he was one of the first settlers in the territory. I highly recommend.
Shane I received the DVD, Shane, in excellent timing and condition. I will most certaintly be ordering from you again. I like your professionalism.
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