Product Description John Ford was easily one of the greatest, most prolific and versatile directors Hollywood ever produced. Combined with a star of the caliber and magnetism of John Wayne, what emerges is pure cinematic magic. WHV now introduces a ten-disc set featuring eight of the team's finest collaborations: The Searchers: Ultimate Collector's Edition (1956) Stagecoach: Special Edition (1939) Fort Apache (1948) The Long Voyage Home (1940) Wings of Eagles (1957) She Wore a Yellow Ribbon (1948) They Were Expendable (1945) 3 Godfathers (1948) .com There may be no better representation of America's love of the old West than the 10-disc John Ford-John Wayne Collection. The iconic star and iconic director collaborated on 14 films, eight of which appear here. Four--Fort Apache (1948), The Long Voyage Home (1940), The Wings of Eagles (1957), and 3 Godfathers (1948)--are appearing for the first time on DVD, and the two most famous, Stagecoach (1939) and The Searchers (1956), are represented in brand-new two-disc editions that add new and old featurettes as well as the outstanding American Masters documentary John Ford/John Wayne: The Filmmaker and the Legend. (This Ultimate Edition of The Searchers adds a variety of printed materials as well, such as reproductions of press materials and a 1956 comic book.) Two other landmark films previously available on DVD, They Were Expendable (1945) and She Wore a Yellow Ribbon (1949), round out the set. The three non-Westerns in the set have military settings, with They Were Expendable arguably the greatest World War II picture ever.The Movies: A favorite film of some of the world's greatest filmmakers, including Martin Scorsese and Steven Spielberg, John Ford's The Searchers has earned its place in the legacy of great American films for a variety of reasons. Perhaps most notably, it's the definitive role for John Wayne as an icon of the classic Western--the hero (or antihero) who must stand alone according to the unwritten code of the West. The story takes place in Texas in 1868; Wayne plays Ethan Edwards, a Confederate veteran who visits his brother and sister-in-law at their ranch and is horrified when they are killed by marauding Comanches. Ethan's search for a surviving niece (played by young Natalie Wood) becomes an all-consuming obsession. With the help of a family friend (Jeffrey Hunter) who is himself part Cherokee, Ethan hits the trail on a five-year quest for revenge. At the peak of his masterful talent, director Ford crafts this classic tale as an embittered examination of racism and blind hatred, provoking Wayne to give one of the best performances of his career. As with many of Ford's classic Westerns, The Searchers must contend with revisionism in its stereotypical treatment of "savage" Native Americans, and the film's visual beauty (the final shot is one of the great images in all of Western culture) is compromised by some uneven performances and stilted dialogue. Still, this is undeniably one of the greatest Westerns ever made. The landmark Western Stagecoach began the legendary relationship between Ford and Wayne, and became the standard for all subsequent Westerns. It solidified Ford as a major director and established Wayne as a charismatic screen presence. Seen today, Stagecoach still impresses as the first mature instance of a Western that is both mythic and poetic. The story about a cross-section of troubled passengers unraveling under the strain of Indian attack contains all of Ford's incomparable storytelling trademarks--particularly swift action and social introspection--underscored by the painterly landscape of Monument Valley. And what an ensemble of actors: Thomas Mitchell (who won a Best Supporting Actor Oscar as the drunken doctor), Claire Trevor, Donald Meek, Andy Devine, and the magical John Carradine. Fort Apache stars Wayne as a Cavalry officer used to doing things a certain way out West at Fort Apache. Along comes a rigid, new commanding officer (Henry Fonda) who insists that everything on his watch be done by the book, including dealings with local Indians. The results are mixed: greater discipline at the fort, but increased hostilities with the natives. Ford deliberately leaves judgments about the wisdom of these changes ambiguous, but he also allows plenty of room for the fullness of life among the soldiers and their families to blossom. Fonda, in an unusual role for him, is stern and formal as the new man in charge; Wayne is heroic as the rebellious second; Victor McLaglen provides comic relief; and Ward Bond is a paragon of sturdy and sentimental masculinity. All of this is set against the magnificent, poetic topography of Monument Valley. This is easily one of the greatest of American films. She Wore a Yellow Ribbon, the second installment of Ford's famous cavalry trilogy (which also includes Fort Apache and Rio Grande), continues the director's fascination with history's obliteration of the past. It features one of John Wayne's more sensitive performances as Capt. Nathan Brittles, a stern yet sentimental war horse who has difficulty preparing for his impending military retirement. It's a film about honor and duty as well as loneliness and mortality. And Oscar-winner Winton C. Hoch beautifully photographs it in Remington-like Technicolor tones. The combination of melancholy and farce (Victor McLaglen makes a perfect court jester) evokes comparisons to Shakespeare. Best of all, the scene in which Wayne fights back tears when receiving a gold watch from his troops is unforgettably bittersweet. If you view the whole trilogy, it actually makes sense to save this for last. It's hardly shameful that Three Godfathers ranks as the slightest John Ford Western in a five-year arc that includes My Darling Clementine, Fort Apache, She Wore a Yellow Ribbon, Wagon Master, and Rio Grande. The story had already been filmed at least five times--once by Ford himself. Just before Christmas, three workaday outlaws (John Wayne, Pedro Armendáriz, Harry Carey Jr.) rob a bank and flee into the desert. The canny town marshal (Ward Bond) moves swiftly to cut them off from the wells along their escape route, so they make for another, deep in the wasteland. There's no water waiting for them, but there is a woman (Mildred Natwick) on the verge of death--and also of giving birth. The three badmen accept her dying commission as godfathers to the newborn. Motley variants of the Three Wise Men, they strike out for the town of New Jerusalem with her Bible as roadmap. Ford's is the softest retelling of the tale, but it's all played with great gusto and tenderness--especially by Wayne, who's rarely been more appealing. Visually the film is one knockout shot after another. This was Ford's first Western in Technicolor, as well as his first collaboration with cinematographer Winton Hoch. What they do with sand ripples and shadows and long plumes of train smoke is rapturously beautiful. It's also often too arty by half, but who can blame them? Eugene O'Neill loved The Long Voyage Home, the feature-length adaptation of his one-act sea plays, with intelligent bridging material written by Dudley Nichols and a final movement, both hellish and elegiac, appropriate to the onset of World War II. John Ford directed, in his more self-consciously arty vein but with no loss of power or passion. The focus is on the working seamen aboard a merchant ship making its way from the Caribbean to New York harbor and then England, with dangerous cargo on the transatlantic leg. Thomas Mitchell (who had won a 1939 Oscar in Ford's Stagecoach) gives a career-best performance as Driscoll; Ian Hunter plays the enigmatic shipmate known only as "Smitty"; Ford regulars Barry Fitzgerald, John Qualen, Ward Bond, Arthur Shields, and Joseph Sawyer fill key roles; and the top-billed John Wayne contributes a surprisingly effective supporting performance as Ole, a gentle Swedish giant who really belongs on a farm somewhere. Although neglected in recent years, this movie has a permanent place of honor in one of the most amazing three-year creative streaks any director ever had. John Ford had a big emotional investment in The Wings of Eagles, and his favorite star John Wayne rewarded the director with one of his strongest performances. The subject is Frank "Spig" Wead, Naval aviation legend turned Hollywood screenwriter, who had written Ford's very good 1932 movie Air Mail and his magnificent WWII elegy They Were Expendable (1945). Ford was fond of exploring the theme of "victory in defeat." Wead's life was made to order for that. The hell-raising flyboy shenanigans, and his flailing marriage to a scrappy Irish redhead (The Quiet Man's Maureen O'Hara reporting for duty), were abruptly curtailed by a fall that left him with severe spinal damage. He should never have been able to walk again, but he fought his way back to limited mobility and built a new career as a writer. And when WWII broke out, Wead made a key contribution to the Pacific air war. It would be satisfying to report that The Wings of Eagles is a triumph--that the broad comedy of the early reels cuts brilliantly against the raw pain of the Weads' marriage, the grief of a family broken and mended and broken again, the film's specters of death and deep frustration. There are powerful moments, but the low comedy is very low, the visual style sometimes stark but more often just drab, and the screenplay is very choppy about the passage of time. They Were Expendable is the greatest American film of the Second World War, made by America's greatest director, John Ford, who himself saw action from the Battle of Midway through D-day. Yet it's been oddly neglected. Or perhaps not so oddly: for as the matter-of-fact title implies, the film commemorates a period, from the eve of Pearl Harbor up to the impending fall of Bataan, when the Japanese conquest of the Pacific was in full cry and U.S. forces were fighting a desperate holding action. Although stirring movies had been made about these early days, they were gung ho in their resolve to see the tables turned. They Were Expendable, however, which was made when Allied victory was all but assured, is profoundly elegiac, with the patient grandeur of a tragic poem. "They" are the officers and men of the Navy's PT boat service, an experimental motor-torpedo force relegated to courier duty on Manila Bay but eventually proven effective in combat. Their commander is played by Robert Montgomery, who actually served on a PT and later commanded a destroyer at Normandy (he also codirected the breathtaking second-unit action sequences). John Wayne's costarring role as Montgomery's volatile second-in-command initially looks stereotypically blustery, but as the drama unfolds, Wayne sounds notes of tenderness and vulnerability that will take Duke-bashers by surprise. They Were Expendable is a heartbreakingly beautiful film, full of astonishing images of warfare, grief, courage, and dignity. This is a masterpiece.
M**E
THE ULTIMATE COLLECTION FOR WAYNE-FORD LOVERS!
The eight films that are included in the John Wayne-John Ford Collection are (1)The Searchers(The Ultimate Edition) (2)Stagecoach(Two-Disc Special Edition)(3)Fort Apache(4)The Long Voyage Home(5)The Wings of Eagles(6)She Wore A Yellow Ribbon(7)They Were Expendable(8)Three Godfathers. While I would have elimated They Were Expendable and replaced it with The Horse Soldiers,Rio Grande,and/or The Quiet Man,this an excellent collection with the great addition of Fort Apache and The Long Voyage Home,heretofor neither of which had been available on DVD.Fort Apache was only available from Asia in so/so quality imports. THE SEARCHERS-AN ANTI-RACIST CLASSIC! ***** What can I say about this GREAT Anti-racist Western,by the Greatest American Director?Ever since I first saw it(on TV) 30+ tears ago,I loved it for its excellent Technicolor photography,wonderful score,outstanding performances,and hard as nails indictment of racism and bigotry,and what hatred does to a human's soul. This is the 50th anniversary of its original release and it hasn't lost any of its splendor and WB has issued a wonderful DVD presentation,including an excellent audio commetary by Peter Bogdanovich. The story opens with Ethan Edwards(John Wayne) returning home to Texas three years AFTER the Civil war has ended.Ethan was a Confederate soldier.In Texas he is reunited with his brother Walter Coy,his wife(Dorothy Jordan,who MAY have been Ethan's lover) and their 2 daughters and only son.Also in the family is Martim Pawley(Jeffery Hunter)who was rescued by Ethan after Martin's family was killed by the Comanche,Martin is also part Indian,and Ethan doesn't like " NON PURE WHITES". An Indian raid occurs on the Jorgenson (John Qualen and family)farm and Ethan, and Martin are joined by a posse lead by preacher-lawman andex-Confederate friend of Ethan's Ward Bond chase after the Comanche.While the posse is away Ethan's brother farm is raided with father,mother,and son killed,and the two daughters taken captive. Ethan,Martin,and Brad Jorgenson(Harry Carey,jr) start a search for the two girls,early on Brad is killed with Ethan and Martin carrying on.As the years go by Ethan"s hatred toward Debbie(Natalie Wood)grows and grows because by now she has probably slept with an Indian,and in Ethan's eyes she is no longer WHITE and he feels that he MUST kill her. After seeing this film how anyone can say that John Wayne can't act is beyond me,he gives a wonderful performance.In fact every cast member does an outstanding job with the exception of Ken Curtis,as a would be husband of Vera Miles,is somewhat annoying,but over the years I've come to lessen my eomewhat hard feelings towards his performance.Adding to the pleasure of watching the film is seeing many members of the"John Ford" stock company-John Qualen,Carey jr.,Olive Carey(his real-life mother),Cliff Lyons,and Hank Worden. Some people rank The Searchers as the all-time greatest Western,I think it ranks at#2 behind Ford's Fort Apache being #1,with My Darling Clementine,and The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance following right behind.DVD-5 Stars The Film-5 stars. STAGECOACH-IT MADE WAYNE A STAR ***** This film made John Wayne a star!Up until 1939 "A" Westerns were a rarity,but in that year in addition to Stagecoach,Union Pacific,Dodge City,Destry Rides Again,and I believe The Oklahoma Kid (starring Cagney,with Bogart in support) were all released.Stagecoach is by far the best. I'm not going to go into many details of the story of the film,because I believe most of the readers of this review know the story.The movie may seem cliche'd today,but back in 1939,the story of,mostly,strangers who are thrown together in a dangerous situation was something new and fresh. The cast is excellent from Thomas Mitchell's druken "Doc Boone",to Claire Trevor's Dallas(and Wayne's love interest),to Donald Meek,John Carradine,and Andy Devine,as the stagecoach driver.It is these performances,under Ford's direction that raises this film above the ordinary. Included is an excellent audio commetary by Scott Eyman,who in my review of "My Darling Clementine ! was to harsh on,mainly because of his commets concerning (one of my favorites)Linda Darnell. The DVD 5 Stars The Film 5 Stars FORT APACHE THE GREATEST WESTERN OF ALL TIME ***** Fort Apache,the first of the so-called John Ford cavalry trilogy(She Wore a Yellow Ribbon and Rio Grande being the other two) is THE GREATEST WESTERN EVER MADE!Henry Fonda,playing against type,is outstanding as Col.Owen Thursday the made man who seeks glory no matter what the cost,and John Wayne also playing against type,as a less than gung-ho(liberal-?common sense) army type.This film is ford's recreation of Custer's last stand and in the filming shows the arrogance of many "whites" as epitomized by the WASP'y Thursday,who also looks down on the Irish,NEVER a good sigh in a Ford Film.Among other things Thursday does not approve of his daughter's(shirley Temple) romance with young Irish Catholic officer Michael Shannon O' Rourke(John Agar-in real life the future Mr.Temple) whose name Col.Thursday constanly gets wrong,he substitutes another Irish name. Excellent also are George O'Brien,Victor McLaglen,Anna Lee,Pedro Armendariz,Guy Kibbee,Ward Bond,and a host of othersThe DVD has one drawback-NO audio commetary.DVD 4 1/2 Stars The Film 5 Stars.--The GREATEST WESTERN EVER! THE LONG VOYAGE HOME A MASTERPIECE! ***** John Wayne with a Swedish accent? Yes! But is Thomas Mitchell's film,who as Driscoll is the core of the film,along with great support for Ian Hunter,in his finest role as "Smitty",a tormented Englishmen,Barry Fitzgerald,Arthur Shields(Barry's real-life brother)Ward Bond,John Qualen,Joe Sawyer,Carmen Morales(why didn't she have a Hollywood career,she is very beauiful and a fine"spitefire" personality)and in her film debut(later Ford regular)Mildred Natwick. This is a story of the merchant marine,updated from WW1 to WW2 from from four Eugene O'Neill playlets,their trials,tribulations,hardships,and loves and one of Ford's greatest films which is saying a lot. No audio commetary is the only drawback.I have also a separate(longer) review of this film on another page. DVD 4 1/2 Stars The film 5 stars THE WINGS OF EAGLES The "SPIG"WEAD STORY +++++ Frank "Spig" Wead was a Naval Air Pilot in WW1 and WW2 Naval Officer and in between a Hollywood screen writer.The Wings of Eagles is his life story as told by his longtime friend John Ford. As portrayed by John Wayne and director Ford, Wead is to me, a patriot yes,but also a very immature man who by his blind devotion to the Navy he is destroying his marriage to his wife Min,played touchingly by Maureen O'Hara and whose part was drastically reduced because of objections raised by the Wead family due to the showing of Min Wead's alcoholic problems.To me the cutting of the key role lessens the overall effectiveness of the motion picture,which I first saw at the TIFFIN Theatre in Chicago,in the summer of '57.Dan Dailey(as Wead's sidekick "Jughead" Carson),Ken Curtis,Ken Tobey, Ward Bond (as John"Dodge" a film director) and Sig Rumann lend an able hand. No audio commetary. DVD 4 1/2 Stars The film(dispite its flaws) 5 Stars. SHE WORE A YELLOW RIBBON WAYNE STOPS INDIAN WAR! ***** Four of the greatest Western male film roles are by one man."Tom Dunson" in "Red River","Ethan Edwards" in "The Searchers","Kirby York" in "Fort Apache" and "Nathan Brittles" in "She Wore a Yellow Ribbon",and that man is John Wayne and HE COULD ACT,maybe he needed Ford ad Hawks to guide him,but he COULD ACT,and this is coming from someone who detested Wayne's politics.She Wore a Yellow Ribbon,in glorious Technicolor,is the second leg in the Ford cavalry triolgy and the 2cd best,though many critics rank it # 1Romance,between John Agar and Joanne Dru,Indian attacks,evil Suttlers(this one played by Harry Woods,Fort Apache had Grant Withers playing a similiar and larger role) and broad Irish comedy(supplied by Victor McLaglen) are all stirred together by Ford to make an amazing cavalry Western.Such Ford regulars as Mildred Natwick,Ben Johnson,Arthur Shields,George O Brien,and Harry Carey,jr all add to the enjoyment of this beutifully photographed,by Winton Hoch,classic,No audio commetary DVD 4 1/2 Stars The Film 5 Stars THEY WERE EXPENDABLE WORD WAR 2 DRAMA 4 1/2 Stars From a screenplay by Frank "Spig" Wead,from the earlier reviewed,"The Wings of Eagles",comes a WW2 drama set in the Pacific starring John Wayne,and one of my least favorite actors,Robert Montgomery,and it is his "acting" that lowers this otherwise fine film to 4 1/2 Stars.John Ford directs with his usual skill,and Wallace Ford,Leon Ames,Wayne and Donna Reed all do nice work, in a film,based on true incidents invovling wooden PT boats,in the Phillipines,and the seemingly hopeless situtition in which the Navy men find themselves in.Montgomery's "performance' while NOT terrible ruins,to a minor extent the film for me.No audio commetart DVD 4 Stars The Film 4 1/2 Stars 3 GODFATHERS WAYNE,ARMENDARIZ,and CAREY jr.AS THREE "BAD" MEN *****John Wayne,Pedro Armendariz,and Harry Carey,Jr, rob a bank,and in their getaway their canteens are shot full of holes,and in the desert that's not good,So the bandit trio try to get to various remote train stations that have water wells,well the Marshall,played by Ward Bond stations some members of his posse,at these stations to twart the boys attemp to get water.Along the way our three badmen come across dieing young widow Mildred Natwick,who has just given birth.The boys become the "Godfathers" to the infant and the story goes on from there. Sounds a little corny and trite,right! WRONG! In Ford's hands this story which has been filmed at least 5 times,including once by Ford as a silent,is turned into a near classic.The beautiful Technicolor photography by Winton Hoch and thrilling Western score by Richard Hageman add to the visual and listening pleasure as does the performances by the 3 leads and the other players,many from the Ford "Stock Company",Bond,Ms Natwick,Mae Marsh, and Hank Worden.No audio commetary. DVD 4 1/2 Stars The Film 5 Stars
S**D
The John Ford - John Wayne summit
THE JOHN WAYNE JOHN FORD FILM COLLECTION is the finest DVD boxed set I have bought all year. It has almost nothing but masterpieces--not just great westerns, but great non-westerns like the Merchant Marine drama THE LONG VOYAGE HOME (1940), based on a few Eugene O'Neill one-act plays; and the World War Two PT boat adventure THEY WERE EXPENDABLE (1945), one of the great war films of all time. One watches this set over two weeks and comes away with renewed respect for John Wayne as an outstanding actor, but also downright awe for John Ford as a director. Not the nicest person, but boy could he direct westerns in Monument Valley. And the Ireland of THE QUIET MAN (1952), which is not included in this set--wrong studio.The set's crown jewel is the 50th anniversary remastering of THE SEARCHERS (1956), which includes not just a shimmering transfer of this dark and tragic masterpiece, but also a rare comic book, publicity material, lobby cards, and an audio commentary by Peter Bogdanovich. Ethan Edwards, post Civil War loner and indian hater when his niece is kidnapped and killed by Comanches, may be John Wayne's greatest performance in a sea of great performances in this DVD crown jewels box. But a little bit of Hank Worden's and Ken Curtis' unwelcome comedy relief goes a long way.I personally think STAGECOACH (1939), with Wayne's first important role as the Ringo Kid, is the equal to THE SEARCHERS. It has also been remastered and includes an audio commentary by author Scott Eyman, an "American Masters" documentary on both Wayne and Ford, a new documentary on STAGECOACH as a neglected treasure, and a radio production with Randolph Scott and Claire Trevor. The movie is about nine people traveling by stagecoach through indian territory and features an Oscar-winning score by Max Steiner--the same year he did not win for GONE WITH THE WIND!The dusty B&W FORT APACHE (1948) and brilliant Technicolor SHE WORE A YELLOW RIBBON (1949) make up 2/3 of John Ford's Cavalry trilogy with Wayne at his peak. (Part three, RIO GRANDE, is not included here because it is a different studio). APACHE has a nasty Henry Fonda as an indian-hating Commanding Officer of Fort Apache in Utah's Monument Valley. Wayne is his likeable subordinate who must carry out orders he personally disagrees with in a role that mirrors THE SEARCHERS.YELLOW RIBBON may be my personal favorite Ford Monument Valley western, even more than THE SEARCHERS. It has Wayne as a Commanding Officer about to retire after a lifetime of Army service, but not until unfriendly nearby indians settle down. Winton Hoch's magnificent color photography, inspired by Remington paintings, won a richly-deserved Oscar.Also set in Ford's beloved Monument Valley, but not a Cavalry drama, is the Technicolor 3 GODFATHERS (1949). It has Wayne, Pedro Armendariz, and newcomer Harry Carey, Jr. as outlaws out in the desert who come across an abandoned baby at Christmas time. This story is the third version of a movie done previously in 1929 and 1936 in B&W. I've seen all three versions and like Ford's the best. It also stars Ford regular Ward Bond as a sheriff out to get the three men--but with a wife who wants the baby. This is a pleasantly sentimental movie, often shown on cable at Christmas season, and reveals a soft side of a gruff filmmaker.The last of eight treasures in this Ford and Wayne DVD set is the lightweight (and color) THE WINGS OF EAGLES (1957). It is the true story of Commander Frank "Spig" Wead, a pioneer aviator in the 1920's and later screenwriter in the 1930's and 1940's. One of his finest scripts is for Ford's THEY WERE EXPENDABLE in 1945. EAGLES, also starring Dan Dailey and Maureen O'Hara, is the sentimental and labor of love story of Spig Wead's life over several decades.Almost all of these film classics come with an original theatrical trailer, if you want to see how the movies were originally promoted. That especially interests me when masterpieces like THE SEARCHERS, THE LONG VOYAGE HOME, and THEY WERE EXPENDABLE get shut out of the Oscar race, especially for Picture and Wayne's performance. But, as they say, time is the key factor with movies. And people still want to see these Ford/Wayne movie gems, long after even Best Picture Oscar winners are forgotten. Should you buy or rent these from Netflicks? It is an expensive set, in the $55-$75 range. But if you buy the set, it averages out to only about $8 a picture, a ridiculously great buy. Maybe it can be a Christmas present. Happy viewing!
B**P
No Stage Coach
The reviews for the set went on about "Stage Coach' which completely misled me. Sorry to say no Stage was in the set and I sent it back.
Trustpilot
2 weeks ago
1 month ago
