69. Shane(1953) directed by George Stevens Next: #68. An American In Paris
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I was a little apprehensive. This is the third George Stevens movie on the countdown (A Place in the Sun and Giant, so you don't have to go back and look them up), and I wasn't tremendously impressed with either of them. This was a classic, archetypal Western, I had heard...you can take that for whatever it's worth.
The PremiseShane (Alan Ladd) is a former gunslinger travelling around and trying to escape his past. He stops for a drink of water at the Starrett homestead and winds up embroiled in a battle involving homesteading rights, grazing-vs.-plowing land issues, and not surprisingly, a little bit of gunslinging.
Notes and Stuff- I was told to look for evidence of Alan Ladd's diminutive height. He stands on boxes and such, to make him look more like the archetypal Western hero and less like a jockey. I forgot to look. And if you think I'm watching this twice in a row, you're nuts.
- But tall or not, he stays for dinner, winds up helping Joe Starrett chop wood, and then defending his family from evil. Next time, he should bring a small gift and save himself the trouble.
- I'll ask the next cowboy I see, but if anyone knows, kindly clue me in. Does sleeping with a hat over your face really work?
- The general store in town is a hoot. A surly staff, a tense atmosphere that could break out into a brawl at any moment...it reminds me of my local Walgreen's just before they open up a second register.
- Every meeting needs an old coot to play the harmonica at critical moments. I think there'd be a few more living dot-coms if there were.
- The bar fight scene (an archetypal bar fight scene if ever there was one) is fun, in a silly way. The looks on the kid's face while he's watching and eating his peppermint stick are cool - he looks like me during the 8th inning of a 5-4 Red Sox game.
- This is a lucky kid, though. Shane moves in and teaches him how to fire a gun. Ten times cooler than when Joe Namath showed up for a day to give the Bradys football pointers.
- Incidentally, I'm thinking of starting a medical column about how to prevent and care for hip injuries. I believe I'll call it "Hip Pointers".
- Jack Palance's character is just pure, concentrated evil, isn't he? Lucky for us, he wears a black hat, so we know.
- The cinematography is good (I'll spare you my regularly-scheduled kvetch about letterboxing.) Those are some nice Tetons, huh?
- Too much of this film, though, takes place at twilight. The colors are a little washed out and I kept reaching for my remote's picture adjuster.
- Did saloons have to install those breakaway railings on the tops of stairs? Every time there's a bar fight, someone hits the railing and falls through. It's so...archetypal.
Best Line
Shane: A gun is a tool, Marian. No better, no worse than any other tool. An axe, shovel or anything. A gun is as good or as bad as the man using it. Remember that.
SummaryFor the third straight George Stevens movie, I want to know more. I want to know who Shane is, for instance: what he's running from, what he's done, that kind of thing. Being a mysterious hero only goes so far - trust me. But for that, this was an interesting movie. A good set-up for the most part, a clearly identifiable hero and villain, and a climactic ending that's as satisfying as it is inevitable. Wow, I sounded like a real film critic there! Seriously, though, Shane is worth a look-see.
CastAlan Ladd as the mysterious hero, Van Heflin and Jean Arthur as the country folk, Brandon DeWilde as the wide-eyed kid, Jack Palance as the guy in the black hat, and Emile Meyer as the mean old coot.
