Customer Reviews

Warner Home Video Western Classics Collection (Escape from Fort Bravo / Many Rivers to Cross / Cimarron 1960 / The Law and Jake Wade / Saddle the Wind / The Stalking Moon)

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This is a pretty good collection of miscellaneous westerns by Warner Home Video. There is no word on extra features yet, but here are the details on the films themselves and my viewpoint on each one.

Escape From Ft. Bravo (1953) Directed by John Sturges. (4/5)
At the end of the Civil War, Ft. Bravo is being used to house Confederate POWs. William Holden stars as Captain Roper, a man responsible for retrieving escapees from the Fort. He is often brutal in the execution of his duties, but he feels he must be or risk even more escapes. Eleanor Parker comes as a visitor to the fort and butters up Roper. All the while she is helping enable the escape of her true love, a Confederate prisoner. Roper falls in love with Parker's character. When he finds out the truth - after the prisoners escape - he could just leave them to the Apaches. Instead he goes out to rescue and retrieve the prisoners and the girl who betrayed his trust.

Many Rivers To Cross (1955) Directed by Row Rowland. (4/5)
This is a rather unusual cross between a comedy and a western. I really didn't like it the first time I saw it, but it does grow on you. Eleanor Parker stars as a woman who is afraid she will be a spinster and sets her sights on Robert Taylor's character, Bushrod Gentry. Bushrod is an unlikely husband and an untameable frontiersman, or so it seems.

Cimarron (1960) Directed by Anthony Mann (3/5)
Maybe I was spoiled by the 1931 version - in particular the very hammy portrayal of Yancey by Richard Dix. That film won an unbelievable Best Picture Oscar and a Best Actor nomination for Dix. This movie is far superior to the original, with Glenn Ford as Yancey. It confronts head-on the issues that the original just skirts around, yet in doing this it just seems to take on too much. The film is about an ill-matched couple that settles in Oklahoma during the land rush years and how things progress between the two of them as the years progress. Yancey is a wanderer at heart. His wife, Sabra, wants Yancey to settle down and raise a family. You'll probably like this one more if you haven't seen the original.

The Law and Jake Wade (1958) Directed by John Sturges (4/5)
This one has great performances in a rather unremarkable story. Robert Taylor plays Jake Wade. Richard Widmark plays Clint Hollister. It turns out that in years past Clint saved Jake's life when they were in the same gang. Jake goes straight and becomes a sheriff. Jake hears that Clint is about to hang - for something that he actually did - yet feels a debt and breaks him out of jail. Clint does the natural thing - he kidnaps Jake and his fiancee and forces him to return some money Jake stole when he was with the gang. You can pretty much see where this one is going at every turn, but it is worth it to see Taylor and Widmark in the lead. They really are excellent.

Saddle The Wind (1958) Directed by Robert Parrish (3/5)
The only western written by Rod Serling, this one was rather disappointing considering its author. Robert Taylor once again plays a bad guy gone straight, this time as a farmer. He has a younger brother (John Cassavetes) who is following in his wild footsteps but surprises everyone when he brings home a wife. This doesn't prevent him from getting into deep trouble from which his brother must rescue him.

The Stalking Moon (1968) Directed by Robert Mulligan (4/5)
Considering it was made at a time when westerns were largely out of fashion, this one is very good. It does a great job of building suspense. An army scout (Gregory Peck) takes in a woman and her half-Apache son who are pretty much ostracized by society because of their origins. Unfortunately, the boy's Apache father is a violent fellow who wants his "property" back.

Even though I like Westerns, I can't say the movies in this package are all excellent; they range from good to maybe very good at best.

Warner does its job again and the picture quality is very nice and aspect ratios preserved. If you like actors like Robert Taylor, William Holden and Glenn Ford, and Gregory Peck, you may want to consider getting this box set since it also has a good price.

Considering everything, I gave the package 4 stars but the movies would get between 3 and 4 stars from me.

If you love Westerns, you will love this Warner Western Classics DVD box set. Not just one movie but ALL 6 DVD movies are SPECTACULAR in this set. I could watch them over and over, the movies will keep you on the edge of your seat-----indeed real thrillers! Fantastic acting, beautiful scenery in vibrant color,and LOTS of action! I would actually rate these films a 10+---------
Simply thrilled that they put these Westerns out on DVD!!

I've had my eye on this collection since it came out, but with a real interest in only 3 of the movies due to high cost I held off buying. Yet today at WalMart I found the entire collection of 6 DVDs for $15.00.

I watch western movies and also read many fiction and non-fiction books on the west so several of these films meet my interest. Nothing better than seeing a book you have read brought to the silver screen. Among the better ones here are THE STALKING MOON (From noted western writer T.V. Olsen's book of same name), ESCAPE FROM FORT BRAVO, and THE LAW AND JAKE WADE (Fawcett Gold Medal Book 756, Marvin H. Albert). While the other 3 DVDs are interesting the above 3 are the ones of main interest to me, and was surprised how good a movie such as SADDLE THE WIND turned out to be. I am less interested in CIMARRON (remake from 1931) and MANY RIVERS TO CROSS.

Warner Brothers seems notorious for not opening their vaults to issue many DVDs, even the acclaimed CHEYENNE series of the 1950s and 60s has seen only 1 box issued. If more are desired one must turn to the Encore Western channel for both Cheyenne and Maverick series. Quite frankly as a reader having both hardcover and softcover westerns by noted author T.V. Olsen on the shelf, wondered if THE STALKING MOON would ever appear on DVD.

The collection of western movies in this box covers the years 1953 through 1968, a fifteen year period seeing the western go from top box office draw to almost its disappearance. As more than one reviewer has mentioned the movies do not fit together much at all, but then maybe they were never meant to do so. Any collection having work by both Theodore V. Olsen and Marvin H. Albert can never be viewed by anyone having any knowledge of western fiction as being irrelevant or out of place. Those two authors wrote many worthy books with a western setting.

Would I spend $42.49 on this set: No. Would I spend $15.00: Yes; as mentioned, I did so earlier today at WalMart and a great deal that was too. No more going to the local library to check out these 3 movies. If any reader has the Encore Western channel they will also know that all of these westerns started showing there last fall, 2008. Best in western reading and watching, pards.

(As another reviewer mentioned: the FOX 3 movie box of Rawhide, Garden of Evil, and The Gunfighter available from AMAZON is not only available at a bargain price, but is a terrific, dynamic trio of western movies from the 40s and 50s.)

Semper Fi.

Warner Bros will soon be releasing this Boxed Set of 6 DVDs which should please most fans of Classic Western movies:

1. Escape From Fort Bravo, stars William Holden, 99 minutes, Released 1953, Color.
2. Many Rivers to Cross, Stars Robert Taylor, 94 minutes, Released 1955, Color.
3. The Law and Jake Wade, Stars Robert Taylor & Richard Widmark, 86 minutes, Released 1958, Color.
4. Saddle the Wind, Stars Robert Taylor, 84 minutes, Released 1958, Color.
5. The Stalking Moon, Stars Gregory Peck, 109 minutes, Released 1968, Color.
6. Cimarron, Stars Glenn Ford, 147 minutes, Released 1960, Color.

The boxed Set will be released August 2008.

I admit, I'm a western junkie. If there's a good buy on old westerns I'll jump on it. In the end, these reviews are all about personal taste, so here's mine: The Law and Jake Wade is the best of the bunch - Robert Taylor, Richard Widmark, love it. Next for me is Cimarron merely because I'm a big Glenn Ford fan. Perhaps the best movie in the bunch is Saddle the Wind - Taylor again, but I've got it 3rd because I've never been a big John Cassavettes fan. Fourth, Many Rivers to Cross, Taylor, Eleanor Parker in something that's as much a comedy as a western. Stalking Moon with Gregory Peck was a decent movie, but after watching it once, I figured probably never again so it ended up in a garage sale. Escape from Fort Bravo with William Holden - to be honest, I also sold it and can't remember much about it, so it's #6. About the only extras are subtitles and theatrical trailers. Final assessment: some good, some so so, some not so good, but for about $2.50 each, it was well worth the purchase.

This is great deal for the selection Warner Bros. has offered! All of these movies are great Western Classics staring from Robert Taylor, Gregory Peck, Richard Widmark, William Holden and Glenn Ford. All the quality of them are great except for others were they aren't a good, but still good. Taylor is awesome in three movies starring along with Widmark, Eleanor Parker, Patricia Owens and John Cassavetes. Out of these six movies none of them are bad as in the story of the movies. Cimarron the 60's version, is the only one that I've heard of out from this collection. If you are a fan of Westerns or any of these actors/actress' this collection is for you!

What a great bunch of classic movies, although not all in perfect condition, they are passable. Thank you Warner Bros (this time) for some great titles to add to my western collection. More box sets like this would be appreciated.

The Western Classics Collection was a fantastic Christmas Stocking Stuffer for my friend. He enjoys old Western movies that he saw many years ago in theater matinees. This was a perfect gift for him and he will have many hours of 'thrills and spills' ahead.

I am a a volunteer at the Northern Arizona VA Hospital and they need to have videos for the comicilieries the Vets live in. We provide entertainment for vets that that don't but the VA hospital don't have the funds to provide other movies. We've collected videos from various periods.

In recent months the VHS movies andthe player wasn't working well so I provided a blu-ray for the center.

If any of you can contribute videos your older dvds that would be great.

Vets appreciate movies and it occupies their time and reduces bordom.

I'm putting together the warner home video western collection
and abbot and costello collection.