Customer Reviews

The Man From Snowy River

5 star:		(120)
4 star:		(16)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

The rural grazing life in the Snowy Mountains has hardly changed since Banjo Paterson traveled the high country and wrote his famous "Man from Snowy River" poem. His poetry is an authentic voice of a frontier society in which song and campfire recitation were much appreciated entertainment.

"And the Snowy River riders on the mountains make their home,
Where the river runs those giant hills between;
I have seen full many horsemen since I first commenced to roam,
But nowhere yet such horsemen have I seen."

Andrew Barton Paterson was born in New South Wales and was the son of a Scottish immigrant. Paterson was a poet, journalist, lawyer, jockey, soldier, farmer and one of the best-loved figures of Australian literature. His poem is the basis for this gorgeous movie about the treacherous terrain and bands of wild, stampeding horses. He also wrote Waltzing Matilda, which is lovingly woven into the soundtrack.

The Man from Snowy River Movie tells a more in depth story of a cattle baron Mr. Harrison (Jessica's father) who has had a long quarrel with his brother Spur. Kirk Douglas plays both roles. When one brother finds his fortune, the second goes searching for gold. This is a story based on a time when families tended their sheep and cattle. Ghost towns from the gold rush still haunt the landscape.

Set against the untamed Australian Outback, a love story unfolds between Jessica Harrison ( Sigrid Thornton) and Jim Craig (Tom Burlinson). Jim seems to have a way with horses and Jessica is a bit of a brash filly herself.

She has her own ideas regarding a woman's choices in life and choosing the path she will take in her own career. She defies her father and runs off to find Jim. Her anger towards Jim over a horse riding accident is like a summer storm that quickly disappears once she experiences the excitement of forbidden love.

Her father, Mr. Harrison, has not yet learned that there is a beautiful place inside each person where we are either nurtured or destroyed. He seems emotionally destructive and Jessica rebels because he won't let her follow any of her dreams. He seeks to trap her in his own wishes and thinks she should settle down into a domestic lifestyle.

Jim and Jessica are soul mates with hearts as wild as the horses running free through the snow. While at first they fight their mutual attraction, Jessica seems clearer in her thinking after she almost dies and realizes there are just some things in life worth fighting for.

Equestrian Heaven with an impressive conclusion! You must see this movie once in your life if you love horses. The wide-screen edition is highly recommended!

~The Rebecca Review

I remember seeing this with my girlfriends in the theatre, and then buying my first vcr so I could watch this film everyday. The cinematography is gorgeous. The music is haunting and beautiful. Tom Burlinson and Sigrid Thornton make a great romantic team, and Jack Thompson is wonderful as Clancy. All of the actors fit their roles except for Kirk Douglas. It really shows that a "big name star" had to be used to get this picture made. Kirk Douglas insisted on re-writing many of his lines, and refused to step off his horse with the entire cast at the end of the movie in homage to The Man From Snowy River. The entire end scene had to be re-written. Little wonder that Brian Dennehey was cast in the role in the sequel. Enjoy both the original and the sequel. And be sure to get the soundtracks. Bruce Rowland created two of the best movie scores you will ever hear.

The Man From Snowy River is an all-time favorite movie of mine. Horses! Gorgeous Australian scenery! Men with accents!

But eye candy aside, it's an excellent movie in its own right, with no weak points except, very rarely, instances of mediocre cinematography. Tom Burlinson carries the character of Jim Craig perfectly, Sigrid Thornton is marvelous as Jessica Harrisson, and for years I had absolutely no idea that Harrisson and Spur were both played by Kirk Douglas.

Beautiful scenery, beautiful acting, but both are merely dressing on an equally beautifully story that flows seamlessly from beginning to end.I would praise it more highly if I could, but the highest praise I can think to give the movie is that, while I am watching it, I do not question for a moment that it is real--soundtrack notwithstanding, because the soundtrack is so perfectly suited to the movie, heroic brass and romantic piano and strings.

You don't have to be a horse fanatic to love this movie, even though it is the second-best horse movie of all time, surpassed only by its sequel, Return to Snowy River.

I knew this 1982 movie from the cinema and VHS, and was hoping the picture and sound on DVD wouldn't disappoint in 2002. I needn't have worried!

The DVD (which contains both widescreen and full screen versions) features a magnificent visual transfer, and a thunderous, sumptuous orchestral soundtrack. The cinematography, especially the helicopter shots of horseback chases and Australia's vast, pristine, alpine scenery, is spectacular. The recreation of pioneering life is very believable, and the dramatic story is very engaging, with comical moments and nothing offensive (why can't they do that these days?). And did I mention that the horses are gorgeous?

It would have been nice to see a feature about the epic poem of the same name by Andrew Barton "Banjo" Patterson, but that is easily found on the Internet.

Enjoy it soon with your children, your grandparents, your spouse ... even your drinking buddies! Great entertainment, great DVD!

"NEVER CRY WOLF"..."FLIGHT OF THE PHOENIX"..."THE ENLGLISH PATIENT"...

...all, cinematic and character delights - as you will find "THE MAN FROM SNOWY RIVER"...

Technically a "10", this Aussie (and World) classic, may leave you none-the-less breathless. George Miller's direction, Cull Cullen's script (enhanced by John Dixon and David Bradshaw's, "A.B. 'Banjo' Paterson", whose original poem is the essense of the film), Keith Wagstaff's absolutely stunning cinematography and Bruce Rowland's original and heart-tugging music (particularly, the piano solo, "Jessica's Theme") may bring tears to your eyes with this simple, Down-Under western plot -- but it took a world-class editor like Adrian Carr to put this gorgeous film into the top ranks of movie-watchers the globe over. Carr's timing of Wagstaff's photography and Rowland's music is the stuff legends are made of...just, dare I say it, "Professional Grade"(!)
It didn't hurt to have a made-to-order cast. Burlinson is quietly, and wonderfully, cast as the young male hero, "Jim Craig." Kirk Douglas hasn't played a better role - and, as a double. Terence Donovan played the quietly strong, short-lived role as Burlinson's father, "Henry." Sigrid Thornton was exemplary and believable as Tom's love interest, "Jessica" (the woman is beautiful) and the venerable Jack Thompson was magnificent as "Clancy" - the range-wise, "horse-magician" glue that holds the whole film together.
The subtle British humour Americans are so used to is sometimes raucous in the film - more the better from Chris Haywood's
"Curly" (..."Ah'm studyin' to be Supavisa!").
If you can't get an empathetic rise and a teardrop over the cornea through this wonderfully crafted epic, then pop-a-top from a 12 oz. curl of your favorite brew, pull back the handle on your Lazy-Boy and turn on the Wrestling Channel...you dolt.

Filmed in 1982, it's still a true classic 22 years later.

~Bob Shank Jr

Technical Support Engineer
IT UNIX Help Desk
Engineering Computing
Raytheon Missile Systems Co.
Tucson By-God Arizona (...and, yes, we still have true 'horsemen' here - they just blacksmith Tomahawk missiles in their spare time)

This is definitely one of the best movies ever made. The music is gorgeous, the stunts are amazing, and the acting is excellent. Tom Burlinson plays the man of the title. Kirk Douglas is great as crusty old Harrison and his brother Spur (he has a dual role). The scene where Jim jumps down the mountain always gives me the chills. It's such an amazing stunt! Being a rider myself, I know that took a wonderful stuntman and a very talented and trusting horse. Definitely a must see if you love pretty music, a good story, amazing scenery, and horses!

One of the best horsemanship movies ever made. The presentation of the main characters exceeds most movies. The actors, Kirk Douglas (playing a dual role), Tom Burlinson and Sigrid Thornton were made for their roles. There are parts of this movie that stand out as unforgettable. -- The startling beauty of the Australian outback; the wild horses running free across the vast wilderness; the men on horseback riding out on their search for Jessica; and, the ride of Jim Craig straight down the mountainside. It is a movie to be watched over and over again to see things missed the previous time. This movie is a must buy.

The other reviews cover this classic story, so I'll not rehash the it yet again. This movie is an incredible feat of cinematography and likely the best horse riding scenes ever filmed. However, the real travesty is that the U.S. release is not digitally remastered and the sound track is just 2.0. The sequel is even worse, as it was not released in it's original aspect ratio of 2.35:1, rather it's pan and scanned to make it fit the standard TV ratio of 1.33:1. Since I am a huge fan, I really wanted to see these movies the way they were meant to be. And there is a solution out there, if you are like me. There was a digitally remastered DVD of both Snowy River I and II with Dolby 5.1 and DTS 5.1 in their OAR released in Australia. If you have a region free player or are able to convert to region free, you can find brand new DVDs for sale on fleabay. That's what I did, and let me tell you, it's magnificent!!!

This is one of my all-time favorite movies. The story line is interesting, the romance is exciting, the acting is flawless, the horseriding action is phenomenal, the scenery is breathtaking, and the music is superb. I can't say enough about this movie; it's one of those rare films that leaves you wanting more as the ending credits roll.

I had the VHS for years, then bought the DVD. I had planned to get rid of the VHS, but decided to keep it after watching the DVD because the picture seemed darker, making some scenes a little more difficult to view. But I will keep both for my collection because I love this film so much, and I also bought and highly recommend the soundtrack.

"The Man from Snowy River" is a movie I'm sure you'll fall in love with just as I have. Actor Tom Burlinson plays Jim Craig, a mountain boy from the Victorian Alps of Australia. Ever since his mother died he had been living with his father, Henry Craig (Terence Donovan). But when Henry is killed, Jim must go down to the flat lands to find a job so that he can keep up his place. Since Jim's horse, Bess, had joined the wild Brunby horses lead by the 'black stallion', a good friend Spur (Kirk Douglas) gives him a mountain horse, Denny. When he reaches the flat lands, he is hired by rich and powerful Mr. Harrison (also played by Kirk Douglas) as a stable hand. Though because he is a mountain boy and everyone says away from him, some even openingly making fun of him like Curly (Chris Haywood), Jim makes friends with the lovely daughter of Jessica Harrison (Sigrid Thornton). They begin to fall in love but when a dark and long kept secret involving the Harrisons is brought up, will they still be able to be together? And will Jim be able to prove himself not as a lad, but as a man... a man from Snowy River?

As a Hollywood Reporter quoted, "A movie for the eyes as well as the heart," I most certainly agree with him! The Australian mountains are beautiful and breath-taking. There is not one place that you would want to skip or fast forward. And besides that, you have action and adventure, romance, magnificent horses, and absolutely terrific acting. Though Tom Burlinson and Sigrid Thornton are perfect for the part of the two lovers, the person who really shone in his role was veteran actor Kirk Douglas. He was wonderful and it must have been fun for him to play two parts in the movie.

There is also a sequel to this movie, "Return to Snowy River" in which Jim Cranston returns to Snowy River after a few years. But many things have changed, but does that mean that Jessica's love for him has changed? Another marvelous movie though I was somewhat disappointed that instead of Kirk Douglad playing Harrison, they had Brian Dennehy play the part. Yet still a movie that is also enjoyable!