A Western Microcosm of Civilization

By Christopher P. Jacobs
Movies Editor

An increasing number of older films and genuine classics have been released in the high-definition BluRay home video format over the past year, with more on the way over the next year. Already it’s possible to put together a good 20-30 or more titles on BluRay that give a representative cross-section of American and international cinema from the influential half-century spanning the 1920s through the 1960s.

A large percentage of those BluRays come from the Criterion Collection, with a substantial number from Warner Home Video and a growing list from smaller companies like Kino Video and European labels like Eureka.

One of the most iconic American films of the 20th century made its BluRay debut May 25th from Criterion. John Ford’s “Stagecoach” (1939) is sometimes credited with changing the movie Western from routine low-budget action-adventure formulas aimed at young boys into a higher-quality, serious genre for adults.

It’s also the film that turned John Wayne into a major star and won an Oscar for character actor Thomas Mitchell (who the very same year played Scarlett O’Hara’s father in “Gone With the Wind,” the cynical press secretary in “Mr. Smith Goes to Washington,” and notable supporting roles in “The Hunchback of Notre Dame” and “Only Angels Have Wings”).

“Stagecoach” incorporates all the usual stereotypes of Westerns, the good outlaw, the kind-hearted prostitute, the wise marshal, the comic sidekick, the Indian attack, the shootout on Main Street, and more. But Ford and screenwriter Dudley Nichols turn the plot’s wide variety of characters into human archetypes, giving each a depth far beyond the norm for a genre movie, especially a western. The characters don’t merely go through the motions of the plot, but are affected by them, changing their own outlooks and preconceived notions by the end.

The plot that seems simple on the surface – a group of disparate passengers travel across hostile desert for various reasons – is both literally and figuratively a journey for all involved. The period Western story becomes merely a framework for multiple layers of contemporary social criticism, ranging from moral hypocrisy to class snobbism to unjust legal systems to racial attitudes to the stifling oppressiveness of urban life over the freedom of the wilderness and the unknown.

Even the expected use of Native Americans as faceless antagonists to the white settlers is subverted by Ford with low-angle close-ups of tribal elders and warriors that give them a powerful dignity, and an implicit understanding that it is the whites’ intrusion into Indian territory and breaking treaties that is responsible for the uprising. Mexican-American relations likewise get a sympathy that belies apparent stereotypes.

The film can be considered a textbook of plot structure, character development, and cinematic technique, all in the service of telling a crowd-pleasing story while conveying personal attitudes to the audience. Numerous critics have analyzed Ford’s expert use of setting, camera, and editing in “Stagecoach,” and Orson Welles claimed to have run it over 40 times before making “Citizen Kane.”

“Stagecoach” has been available on an adequate DVD from Warner Home Video for some time, but Criterion’s new BluRay is now the definitive version. Unfortunately the original camera negative has been lost, and until now all copies have been several generations from the original, made from beat-up old TV prints or from a dupe made off John Wayne’s personal 35mm print.

Criterion was able to locate a duplicate negative from the 1940s that preserves most of the clarity that is lost in muddy shadows on other copies. There is still a noticeable amount of film wear – scratches and dirt – in various sections, mainly the beginnings and ends of reels. Criterion wisely allowed it to remain, rather than applying excessive digital “cleanup” that would also have softened the overall picture and eliminated details. Audio quality is generally quite good, restored from multiple sources and presented in its original mono.

Criterion’s edition excels in its bonus features, making this an excellent disc for self-directed study of the film, of John Ford, and of movie Westerns. Most notable is the inclusion of a delightful and rare early feature by Ford, his 54-minute 1917 silent Western “Bucking Broadway,” starring long-time Ford favorite Harry Carey. This film was restored from a copy discovered in Europe with picture quality that’s only mediocre and sometimes choppy, but a superb musical accompaniment by Donald Sosin has been added and the romantic melodrama is quite entertaining.

“Stagecoach” has a good audio commentary by an expert on Westerns. There’s an excellent video essay on Ford’s style, an illuminating uncut 1968 interview with Ford filmed for the BBC, home movies of John Ford narrated by his grandson, and several other interesting video featurettes on Ford, the locations, and the stunts, all in high definition. There’s also a copy of the original trailer (a bit beat-up and dupey-looking) and the 1949 radio dramatization with John Wayne and Claire Trevor repeating their roles, as well as a 36-page booklet with a critical essay and a reprint of the original short story that inspired the film.

The BluRay of “Stagecoach” is a must-buy for any film buff or fan of Westerns. “STAGECOACH” on BluRay –Movie: A / Video: A- / Audio: A- / Extras: A+

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