Tennessee Johnson Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		2.5
Video		5.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		2.5
Overall		2.5

Tennessee Johnson Blu-ray Movie Review

From rags to switches.

Reviewed by Randy Miller III March 4, 2021

Historical dramas should always be taken with a grain of salt... but Tennessee Johnson, William Dieterle's 1942 film about the legacy of first-impeached President Andrew Johnson, might have you chugging a bottle of soy sauce.

That's it. That's the intro.

Although far from the worst President in United States history, Johnson -- once a runaway tailor's apprentice born to illiterate parents, who himself learned to read fluently at age 18 with the help of his 16 year-old wife Eliza -- offers inarguable proof that anyone, under the right circumstances, can ascend to the highest office in the country. During Johnson's formative years as a tailor in Tennessee, his lack of formal schooling made him an ideal voice for the poor and eventually led to a run as the mayor of Greenville (1834–35), a ten-year stint as U.S. Representative (1843–53), the governor of Tennessee (1853–57), and a U.S. Senator (1857–62) before serving under Abraham Lincoln as his second vice president for one month in 1865, when Lincoln's assassination awarded him the presidency.

It's a condensed and charmed sequence of events that, for the most part, is efficiently mirrored in William Dieterle's film, which also features a few truly great performances, fine cinematography, and a smooth, easy pace that unfolds organically. The turbulent life of its intriguing central figure, as capably portrayed by Van Heflin (3:10 to Yuma), makes Tennessee Johnson a naturally engaging drama that shifts gears once he's thrust unexpectedly into the White House in April 1865, tasked with rebuilding the country and carving out a path for all 11 formerly Confederate states in the wake of the Civil War. That's almost exactly where Tennessee Johnson goes off the rails for historical accuracy by ignoring his hot temper, refusal to compromise, and of course the white supremacist beliefs that bolstered his opposition to the 14th and 15th Amendments, not to mention the fact that the man owned eight slaves and vetoed the 1866 Civil Rights Act. Tennessee Johnson glosses over those events or skips them entirely, instead building to his 1868 post-impeachment Senate trial for "high crimes and misdemeanors" -- which failed by a margin of one vote -- and a heroic speech by Johnson that never actually happened. (Johnson skipped the trial due to fears about his hot temper -- the same temper that led him to call for the hanging of two abolitionists during a disastrous speaking campaign later that year.)

As a historically accurate drama, Tennessee Johnson fails miserably. It's not as wrong-headed as The Birth of a Nation, but might be morally worse: Johnson takes the subtler approach with a story that, if watched by someone who didn't know history, could actually register as truthful... despite its soft-pedal opening crawl that at least suggests the film's dubious creative liberties. But as a pure drama, it's fine. Sometimes great, even. And the performances are extremely solid, from Van Heflin himself to Ruth Hussey (as his wife Eliza) and, of course, the legendery Lionel Barrymore (as U.S. Representative Thaddeus Stevens, who was incidentally one of the subjects of Johnson's hanging proposal).

Blatant moral missteps aside, Tennessee Johnson obviously still has the right to exist in film history and on home video in the 21st century, as does Song of the South and every Tom and Jerry cartoon featuring Mammy Two-Shoes. Ever the dutiful preservationists, those fine folks over at Warner Archive have once again stepped up to the plate to deliver another polished Blu-ray with excellent A/V specs that make this flawed but fascinating film shine like new.

Tennessee Johnson Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Reportedly sourced from a recent 4K scan of the best surviving elements, Tennessee Johnson looks flat-out fantastic on Warner Archive's new Blu-ray, earning an easy five-star rating for the studio's unyielding commitment to purist-friendly transfers. Its understated cinematography is captured in detail with terrific depth and clarity, from Johnson's humble beginnings in rural Tennessee all the way to the White House. Contrast levels and shadow detail are uniformly great, as is the natural layer of film grain that gives almost each and every frame a rich, silvery luster that's not always properly conveyed by screen captures. It looks flat-out beautiful during key stretches but even its more modest moments hold up as a shining example of careful restoration work, from the complete absence of dirt and debris to its fine, film-like texture, which shows no signs of edge enhancement, excessive noise reduction, or other such defects.

As usual, Warner Archive has uploaded a few YouTube videos showing off the new transfer, including the three and a half-minute opening sequence, a stirring speech on the Senate floor (above), and the theatrical trailer.

Tennessee Johnson Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Though a bit less immediately impressive due to its age and format, this DTS-HD 2.0 Master Audio mix preserves the film's one-channel roots with a capable split mono track. Dialogue and background effects are balanced well, with only a few stray audio defects and the original score's somewhat thin high end preventing a smoother and more satisfying experience. Even so, it's a perfectly enjoyable track for the most part and one that doesn't suffer from most typical era-specific issues like clicks, hissing, and popping, and there were no obvious sync issues to report.

Optional English (SDH) subtitles are included... but only during the main feature, not the extras.

Tennessee Johnson Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

This Blu-ray ships in a keepcase with original one-sheet poster art and a few period-specific bonus features.

• Screen Guild Radio Broadcast (29:30) - This condensed old time radio production stars Gary Cooper (filling in for Van Johnson) as well as Ruth Hussey and Lionel Barrymore, both reprising their supporting roles.

• Classic MGM Shorts

• Tom & Jerry: Baby Puss (7:57) - A terrific 1943 short from Tom and Jerry's Hanna-Barbera years that features Tom playing house with his owner's daughter, Nancy, before he gets roasted by Jerry and a few alley cat pals. This one's a personal favorite from one of the absolute best franchises in animation's Golden Age, and it's also serendipitously available on that Tom and Jerry collection linked above.
• Heavenly Music (21:41) - This Oscar-winning live action short, directed by Josef Berne, features a bandleader's attempts to enter the Hall Of Music in Heaven. It stars Frederick Brady, Mary Elliott, Eric Blore, and more, but watch for Billie "Buckwheat" Thomas as the trumpet-playing Gabriel too.

• Theatrical Trailer (1:53) - This rousing vintage promotional piece can also be seen here.

Tennessee Johnson Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

William Dieterle's Tennessee Johnson features great performances, fine cinematography, a solid pace, and some of the most egregious historical inaccuracies ever passed off as plot devices. (And not the fun kind, like Inglourious Basterds.) It's fatally flawed from a moral perspective but still has a right to exist, and is nonetheless enjoyable for its base-level entertainment value. But it's also the kind of film that would really benefit from a commentary or historical featurette... which, unfortunately, is just not in the cards for most Warner Archive releases. Instead, we just get a great looking and sounding Blu-ray that will please die-hard fans but, for obvious reasons, is still tough to recommend.