Customer Reviews

Arizona

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Go west and find your riches, as the west offers new opportunities that await discovery. This was the idea of the 18th and 19th century America, which led many to seek a new and better future in the unknown west. It led to the colonization of the western United States, which continued over centuries, as people began to inhabit different regions of the west. It was not an easy journey, as the Native Americans sought a way to protect their way of life against the new invaders while nature also presented numerous threats. Despite the many hazards, people continued to flow west with the hope for something better. Director Wesley Ruggles portrays the struggle of the western expansion through a woman and the people around her, as they fight for their southwest state - Arizona.

Arizona opens with a rolling text that briefly explains the situation, as a large caravan rolls into the meager town of Tucson in the year 1860. Tucson has become a gathering place for a diverse group of people, as they for some reason have to end their journey west at this arid town. There is no law enforcement present to offer safety, which means that those with the ability to fend for themselves often deliver their own justice. Phoebe Titus (Jean Arthur) is such a woman, and she does not fit the traditional norm for a woman of the 19th century. She is a jeans wearing entrepreneur with a charisma resembling Jean d'Arc who has exchange her sword for a six-shooter while willingly dealing with those who try to take advantage of her on her own accord.

Despite her independence and strong will, Phoebe still presents a feminine persona by baking pies while presently being the only known Caucasian woman in the state of Arizona. Thus, many men find her intriguing, and one of these men is Peter Muncie (William Holden). Peter eyes her and it is apparent that she makes quite an impact on him from the first encounter when she is dealing with two thieves. The affection is mutual; however, both have equal difficulty to express their feelings. Nonetheless, Phoebe expresses her emotions by offering him a job, as a caravan pilot for her newly started freight business. However, he kindly declines, as he must see California before it is too late for him, but promises to return.

Phoebe's business venture begins to run smoothly, until the beginning of the Civil War. It becomes a time of hardships, as the military withdraw from Arizona to fight the war in the east. Meanwhile, Phoebe and the people of Tucson must find an alternative way of safeguarding their homes and lives against a rampant war with the Native Americans, which Arizona does by joining the Confederate side. It becomes a time of much difficulty for Phoebe, but she does not surrender to the hardships. Instead, it seems as if she is flourishing in the difficulties while her mind occasionally drifts to Peter. Unaware of his possible return others begin to show interest such as the shady character Jefferson Carteret (Warren William) who befriends Phoebe with ulterior motives.

Arizona presents an interesting film that captures some of the hardships that the pioneers dealt with, and to cast a feminine lead makes it even more fascinating. How the film portrays the Native Americans is unsettling, yet it was a common portrayal in the 1930s and 1940s. Despite this ethnic fallacy, the film still provides an accurate illustration of how the first Arizonans experienced the migration west and some of the difficulties that they faced in the dawning of the new state. Eventually, the audience will recognize the resolute perseverance that the pioneers had to possess in order to manage through the repetitive adversity that nature and other forces caused upon those who sought a better way of life in the arid Arizona.

Jean Arthur is terrific in "Arizona" as a strong-willed woman who holds her own out west. She gets her man (Holden) without sacrificing her freedom and dreams. I suppose one should call the whole thing unconventional. After all, it's a western whose lead character and overriding focus is the heroine (who is also unconventional). So few westerns retain my interest because of the lack of interesting roles for women. Thelength of the film, a common complaint, didn't bother me, I felt the film showed the "complete world," of Arthur's character's life in Arizona while never becoming one of those overblown epics in which the characters get lost for all the action. All in all, I think this film deserves more respect and attention than it gets.

I just viewed this 1940 movie a few days ago.Overall,the picture was above average for two or three reasons.First of all,the cinematography is superb and secondly,Jean Arthur's fine performance elevates my opinion.There is a very brief moment near the end of the movie,when Arthur's character(Phoebe),is standing off by herself waiting for the outcome of the gunfight between her new husband(Holden)and the villain(Warren William).No words are spoken but in less than thirty seconds of a closeup on Arthur,her expressions shift from terror(at the sound of gunshots),to hope,and finally to extreme relief when she hears Holden's voice.A simply superb piece of acting by the wonderful Jean Arthur.If you buy this movie and if you are a Jean Arthur fan,you will not be disappointed.

Columbia Pictures presents "ARIZONA" (1940 125 min/B&W) -- Starring: Jean Arthur, William Holden, Warren William, Porter Hall, Edgar Buchanan & Regis Toomey

Directed by Wesley Ruggles

Wesley Ruggles's Arizona is an epic western set in an impoverished Arizona outpost. It tells the story of the feisty, no-nonsense Phoebe Titus (Jean Arthur). Wearing leather breeches, with a bull whip and gun, she can out-shoot and out-fight nearly every bad hombre in town, and manages to transform the down-and-out community into Tuscon, one of the most respected towns in the West. When handsome Peter Muncie (William Holden) arrives, on his way to California, Phoebe asserts that he is the perfect person to help her run her cattle ranch, and the two fall in love. But one obstacle makes their plans extremely difficult: con man Jefferson Carteret (Warren William), who secretly hatches a plan to cheat Phoebe out of the property and annihilate Peter on the couple's wedding day!

Oscar Nominated for Best Music (Victor Young) & Best Art Direction (B&W)

Columbia Pictures were so pleased with the success of this film that they commissioned a sort-of-follow-up: Texas (1941) which also starred William Holden. Texas (1941)

* Special footnote: -- The set still stands outside Tucson Arizona and is an active studio and Old West theme park called Old Tucson. Since it was built in 1939, Old Tucson has served as the set for many famous Westerns such as Rio Bravo and Tombstone. Little House on the Prairie also used the studios.

BIOS:
1. Wesley Ruggles [Director]
Date of Birth: 11 June 1889 - Los Angeles, California
Date of Death: 8 January 1972 - Santa Monica, California

2. Jean Arthur [aka: Gladys Georgianna Greene]
Date of Birth: 17 October 1900 - Plattsburgh, New York
Date of Death: 19 June 1991 - Carmel, California

3. William Holden [aka: William Franklin Beedle Jr.]
Date of Birth: 17 April 1918 - O'Fallon, Illinois
Date of Death: 16 November 1981 - Santa Monica, California

4. Warren William [aka: Warren William Krech]
Date of Birth: 2 December 1894 - Aitkin, Minnesota
Date of Death: 24 September 1948 - Hollywood, California

5. Porter Hall
Date of Birth: 19 September 1888 - Cincinnati, Ohio
Date of Death: 6 October 1953 - Los Angeles, California

3. Edgar Buchanan
Date of Birth: 20 March 1903 - Humansville, Missouri
Date of Death: 4 April 1979 - Palm Desert, California

Mr. Jim's Ratings:
Quality of Picture & Sound: 4 Stars
Performance: 4 Stars
Story & Screenplay: 4 Stars
Overall: 4 Stars [Original Music, Cinematography & Film Editing]

Total Time: 125 min on DVD ~ Columbia Pictures ~ (December 6, 2005)

William Holden is overshadowed by Jean Arthur here. Ms. Arthur plays a woman of independence and leadership, which reminds me of "Mr. Smith Goes to Washington", "Mr. Deeds Goes to Town", and the "Ex-Mrs. Bradford." Although she is a woman that takes over, she shows her vulnerability toward her main squeezes that puts her signature on her characters and is unparalleled in cinematic history. I bought this tape because it is not available on DVD, and I am very happy with it.

"Arizona" is a 1940 black and white western billed as "the screen's mightiest spectacle of love and adventure." Hmmm.

In 1867 Tucson, a woman owner of a freight service (Jean Arthur) is helped by a former Union Calvary soldier (William Holden) to overcome a gang of thieves run by a former Confederate (Warren William).

Jean Arthur (1900-91) is best known for her films with Frank Capra ("Mr. Deeds Goes to Town", "Mr. Smith Goes to Washington"). She was a marvelous comedienne known for her "screwball" comedies like "You Can't Take it With You" (1938), but she had a wide range of skills and made "Only Angels Have Wings" (1939), "The Devil and Miss Jones" (1941) and "A Foreign Affair" (1948). She was nominated for an Oscar for "The More the Merrier" (1943). Her last film was "Shane" (1953).
Arthur was 40 years old and her love interest, William Holden, was only 22, and the age difference shows. Nonetheless Arthur's performance as the pioneer woman is convincing.

William Holden (1918-81) was a terrific actor, with such memorable performances as writer Joe Gillis in "Sunset Blvd" (1950), Sergeant Sefton in "Stalag 17" (1953), Lt. Brubaker in "The Bridges at Toko-Ri" (1954), Hal Carter in "Picnic" (1955), Shears in "The Bridge on the River Kwai" (1967), Max Schumacher in "Network" (1976) and my personal favorite, Bishop Pike in "The Wild Bunch" (1969). He won the Oscar for "Stalag 17" and was nominated for "Network" and "Sunset Blvd". He won an Emmy for "The Blue Knight" (1973) and was nominated for a Golden Laurel every year from 1958 through 1964. Photoplay named him most popular male star in 1954 and 1955. AFI named him the 25th greatest screen legend.

FWIW - I found it hard to recognize Holden and his face appears to be different. Perhaps it had something to do with his service in the War which followed this film.

Warren William (1894-1948) plays the sleazy former Confederate who will do anything to defeat Arthur. William is probably best known for his role as d"Artagnan in "The Man in the Iron Mask" (1939) and as the first Perry Mason in a series of mid 30s films.

The film was produced and directed by Wesley Ruggles (1889-1972) who is best known for his Oscar nominated "Cimarron" (1931) which has many resemblances to this film. Ruggles work centered on comedies beginning with his work in the silent era with Chaplain.

The top grossing films in 1940 were "Fantasia", "Pinocchio", "Rebecca", "Boom Town", and "Santa Fe Trail". "Rebecca" won for best picture, James Stewart ("Philadelphia Story") was best actor, and Ginger Rogers ("Kitty Foyle") was best actress. Other notable films that year were westerns like Spencer Tracy in "Northwest Passage", Gary Cooper and Walter Brennan in "The Westerner", and Errol Flynn in "Virginia City", comedies like Irene Dunne and Cary Grant in "My Favorite Wife", Cary Grant and Roz Russell in "His Girl Friday", and W.C. Fields as "The Bank Dick" and with Mae West in "My Little Chickadee".

The NY Times called it "a film spectacle that is crowded, sprawling, often exciting, extravagant in detail, obviously the result of colossal labor and expenditure" but "unfortunately, extravagance does not make drama, at least not the kind of drama one might expect from such an effort." They said "Arizona lacks the most important thing of all--a story with credible characters."

Arizona has some good photography, a great location, and very interesting historical recreations, and it's interesting to see a woman as the central character in a western. There are a few other examples (Jane Russell in "The Outlaw", Marlene Dietrich in "Rancho Notorious", and Joan Crawford in "Johnny Guitar") but very few. But the script is a little cockeyed and the chief villain is really not up to the task. Nor is Holden, at 22, a convincing savior of the 40 year old Arthur. For a 2+ hour film, these are serious problems.

Bottom line - a great location and beautiful photography can't save a B western with a cockeyed script and an unconvincing cast.

This is a terrific movie if you love classic westerns. It was great that it was simple to order and delivered quickly in perfect condition. Highly recommended!

This is a great movie about a woman turns an army outpost into Tucson, Arizona. Of course she needs plenty of help to do so, and she gets it. Jean Arthur and William Holden are a perfect match. With a good balance of comedy, romance, and adventure, this movie delivers!

Miss Phoebe Titus (Jean Arthur) is a cross-dresser with big ambitions. She wants nothing less than the greatest ranch in Arizona. To raise the money she goes into business, first selling pies to the riff-raff of Old Tucson, then competing for army freight contracts. Of course, her trail is not a smooth one, or there wouldn't be a movie, in this case an extravaganza directed by Wesley Ruggles (of CIMMARRON fame). Shot on location in the Tucson Basin, local color is provided by lots of cacti and a cast of thousands who wander pointlessly, but colorfully across scenes clad as Mexicans, Indians, cow pokes, or ladies of the night.

Although neither the Civil War, nor corrupt Apache chiefs can frustrate our heroine for long, the usual coven of stock Western villians create some tension and move the plot forward. An unconvincing love interest is provided by a man on the move (the young William Holden) who joins the Union Army as an apparent device for varying his wardrobe. He turns up just when most needed to rescue Miss Phoebe from her own stupidity, releasing her from one of the flick's two bondage scenes.

The history lessons inserted into the film fall flat, and the chronology is confused. However, things liven up in the second half with the obligatory Indian raids, a spectacular cattle stampede, and, of course, a wedding (the latter borrowed from THE VIRGINIAN). It may sound like I hate ARIZONA, but, in fact, it's truly a classic Western and, unusual for its time, one with a woman as the action lead.

The worst copy I have ever seen. The movie was of very poor qualify; I stopped the movie after trying to watch it (it caused my eyes to strain) and threw it in the garbage.

Ben Butler