Customer Reviews

The Duke and the General: Lost Interviews with John Wayne and James Stewart [VHS]

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With the deluge of repackaged public domain videos relating to John Wayne (i.e the 1000th release of "Angel and the Badman"), it's terrific to experience a truly rare film tribute to both the Duke and Jimmy Stewart. This is an outstanding tape in every way. It offers a glimpse into Wayne's unapologetic views on patriotism and the political climate in the world (circa 1971)as well as taking an in-depth look at the making of Wayne's great western "The Cowboys". There is also a very entertaining interview with Jimmy Stewart, who is seen on the set of "Fool's Parade", his last major starring role. As with other titles put out by Spy Guise Video, this one does a great job of including some extraordinary bonus material including some trailers, original t.v spots for "The Shootist" (which starred both actors), great still photographs, and other bonus shorts. Best of all, unlike most independent labels dreadful EP speed tapes, this one is recorded in the SP mode. Highly recommended not only for Wayne and Stewart fans, but also for movie lovers in general.

The Duke tells like it is,no script,no teleprompters,straight from his heart.A man who loved his country,loved his job,and the industry of making movies.Jimmy Stewart,also told it straight from the heart,A war hero,a class act.Both men were patroits,hardworking,and trying to understand the new generation of that time.The video is not the best quality,but the producers explain very well in the front of the video,why.A must for the serious John Wayne fan.

This tape runs about 90 minutes, all told. It contains clips from
several short interviews with the Duke on the set of "The
Cowboys" that were cobbled together into a special program back
in 1971.

Also included are comments from Mark Rydell, the director
of "The Cowboys", several movie trailers, and some b-roll
footage cut from the final version of the show, and a short
behind-the-scenes peek at "The Cowboys".

The thrust of
the interviews have to do with Duke and Jimmy's life and convictions,
and their relation to the views of "young people". In this,
the interviews date themselves to 1971. Duke had just given an
interview with Playboy magazine, in which he (in true Duke style),
told things like he saw them. Both men felt a backlash from the hippy,
peacenik crowd for their patriotism and old fashioned values.

The
material about John Wayne is extensive, but the interview with Jimmy
Stewart is only a few minutes.

Though the commentator appeared quite
competent, both stars seemed ill at ease with some of the questions,
and the impression was that the interview was a bit of a hassle that
is the price of stardom. However, there are some interesting comments
that shine through.

The interview with Rydell is informative and
gives a good background on both his pre-1971 career and "The
Cowboys". The kids in the movie are asked about their feelings
toward the Duke, going back to the central theme of the show. Jimmy
talks a bit about "Harvey" and how "young people"
saw the play in a different light than older folks.

The show might
have made an interesting series, with two stars interviewed each
week. Hank Fonda and Robert Mitchum, say, or Burt Lancaster and Steve
McQueen.

Overall, an interesting time capsule dealing with two
famous stars, as well as the social climate of the day.