7.5 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 3.5 | |
Overall | 3.5 |
A marshal tries to bring the son of an old friend, an autocratic cattle baron, to justice for the rape and murder of his wife.
Starring: Kirk Douglas, Anthony Quinn, Carolyn Jones, Earl Holliman, Brad DexterWestern | 100% |
Thriller | Insignificant |
Drama | Insignificant |
Romance | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.78:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.85:1
English: Dolby TrueHD 2.0 Mono
German: Dolby Digital Mono
French: Dolby Digital Mono
English, English SDH, French, German
Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Digital copy
Slipcover in original pressing
Region A, B (C untested)
Movie | 4.0 | |
Video | 4.5 | |
Audio | 4.0 | |
Extras | 1.5 | |
Overall | 3.5 |
There's a lot to like about Director John Sturges' (Bad Day at Black Rock, The Magnificent Seven, The Great Escape) Last Train from Gun Hill, a tightly wound and decidedly dark Western about wrongdoing and revenge, about unjustifiable actions and the search for justice by any means necessary. What makes the film so good is its straightforward narrative simplicity. A wrong is done and one man sets out to make it right. The film navigates tricky waters between depravity and consequence and between loyalty and broken friendships in the wake of unthinkable loss. It's one of the more dynamic Westerns of its time, an unapologetically grim but very well made motion picture that both challenges its audience's essence and entertains its viewers at a base level.
Paramount has done it again. The latest entry in the "Paramount Presents" line, this one a VistaVision original, is another faithfully filmic and beautifully organic and accurate 1080p Blu-ray that pushes the format to its limits for excellence. Grain management and delivery are exemplary. The picture retains a very fine grain presentation that is consistent in density and true to the picture's film roots. Detailing is excellent. The picture's clarity excels throughout, whether considering essential facial features or period Western attire. But it is perhaps around Gun Hill – the classic wood-and-dust Old West town – where the image is at its absolute best, revealing all of the worn and weathered exterior and interior textures to natural screen command. The picture never wants for additional depth or detail definition. Color reproduction is exemplary, too. While the film certainly favors a predominantly earthy push there are plenty of examples of bold and brilliant colors, including natural greens in the film's vital opening minutes and, later, examples of blood and bright clothing filling the frame with satisfyingly vivid tonal output. Skin tones appear healthy and accurate. Black level depth is excellent. There are next to no serious print issues or encode failures. This is a terrific Blu-ray from Paramount.
The audio delivery quality impresses. While the Dolby TrueHD 2.0 mono soundtrack lacks multichannel fullness the essential elemental definition is very good, including, dominantly, orchestral score which plays with adequate front end width (though lingering more in a middle area between center and left/right rather than fluidly wide and full). Various action elements -- particularly heard later in the film when a variety of gunfire, raging fires, and the like -- play to a level of harmony and clarity that is surprisingly good for a film of this age and a sound design that wasn't engineered with today's audio capabilities at its disposal. It's well balanced along the sum total of its pieces, whether heard individually and discretely or as part of a collection of audio elements playing simultaneously. Also, the track is well capable of handling essential sound supports like jangling spurs and creaking leather quite well in scenes that allow for these sorts of authentic ambient elements to play as, practically, any given shot's most distinctive sonic feature. Dialogue is clear and well prioritized and images perfectly to a natural front-center position.
Last Train from Gun Hill includes a new critic retrospective and vintage trailers. This release is the 18th in the "Paramount Presents" line and
includes
the slipcover with fold-open poster artwork. A digital copy code is included with purchase.
Last Train from Gun Hill is a rich, vivid picture that takes classic Western staples and molds them into a story of great character depth and confrontation. It's narratively engaging, visually arresting, and very well performed. It's one of the better Westerns of its time. Paramount's Blu-ray, which is part of its prestigious "Paramount Presents" line, delivers striking video and high quality lossless audio; the technical presentation is sublime. The supplements are on the thin side but the Maltin retrospective is excellent, albeit brief. Highly recommended.
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