Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		3.5
Overall		3.5

The Far Country Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman November 7, 2019

A couple of supplements on The Far Country kind of half jokingly refer to the film as a “a northern” rather than “a western”, and while the supposed geography of the film is indeed Alaskan, the basic setup of a cattle drive interrupted by a conflict between a conflicted good guy and some pretty unconflicted bad guys is the stuff of countless oaters (to use a term that one supplement on this disc also utilizes). The Far Country continued the now acclaimed collaboration between star James Stewart and director Anthony Mann, both of them reunited with screenwriter Borden Chase, who also penned the screenplays for the previous Stewart-Mann films Winchester '73 and Bend of the River . As such, there’s a “well oiled machine” aspect to The Far Country that keeps things moving at an appealing pace, but which may also strike some fans of westerns in general and the Stewart-Mann films in particular as feeling at least occasionally rote.

As with several other films where Stewart and Mann collaborated, Stewart’s character is a guy with a shaded if not exactly shadowy past. Jeff Webster (James Stewart) arrives in Seattle in the late 19th century and meets up with his cohort Ben Tatem (Walter Brennan), but not before there’s a brief vignette hinting at Jeff’s past “issues” and potential ruthlessness. Jeff and Ben decide to set out to find their fortune by driving a herd of cattle to the Yukon, but almost immediately they encounter trouble on the paddlewheeler they board, which is where Jeff meets cute with Ronda Castle (Ruth Roman), a woman with a past of her own whose story will continue to play into the tale as it progresses.

Along the way, Jeff has the temerity to interrupt a hanging organized by a crooked judge named Gannon (John McIntire), which in turn creates a whole host of new problems, problems which seem to be at least temporarily mitigated when Ronda reenters the picture (literally and figuratively) to buy the herd, making Jeff and Ben wealthy in the process. The fact that Ronda seems to be aligned with Gannon hints at future issues developing. Meanwhile, Jeff has also caught the eye of a spunky French girl named Renee Vallon (Corinne Calvet), and the “romantic” angle of the film plies the well trod territory of a guy having to choose between the “nice girl” and the “bad girl” (guess how that one turns out).

If the basic plot machinations of The Far Country can be pretty predictable, the film has a really wonderful array of performances, with a host of colorful supporting turns, including McIntire, who’s kind of deliciously sleazy, and other notables like Royal Dano, Jay C. Flippen, Kathleen Freeman and Harry Morgan. The “shades of gray” in terms of morality is also handled very well, not just with regard to Jeff, but also perhaps even more so with regard to Ronda, who may be consigned to “bad girl” status more due to the vagaries of 1950s Hollywood “types” rather than any inherent evil motivations, and who is here shown to have more than a bit of a soft spot when it comes to Jeff and his goals.

The Far Country also benefits from some nicely realized location footage, evidently done in Jasper National Park in Alberta, Canada. The film can’t quite escape from its relatively modest budget (high by Universal standards, but paltry compared to some other studios’ bankrolls at the time, at least according to some of the supplements on this disc), but it’s handsomely mounted and delivers consistent entertainment value despite some of its more cliché ridden aspects.

The Far Country Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The Far Country is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Arrow Academy with AVC encoded 1080p transfers in 1.85:1 and 2.00:1 (this is a two disc release, with the 1.85:1 aspect ratio version on Disc One, and the 2.00:1 aspect ratio version appropriately on Disc Two). Arrow's insert booklet contains the following information on the restoration:

The Far Country has been exclusively restored by Arrow Films and is presented in both original aspect ratios of 1.85:1 and 2.00:1 with mono sound.

The original 35mm camera negative was scanned in 4K resolution at NBC Universal's Studio Post facility. The film was graded and restored at Silver Salt Restoration, London. The original mono mix was remastered from the optical negatives at Deluxe Audio Services, Hollywood.

Aside from expected framing differences between the two aspect ratios (screenshots 1 - 14 are from the 1.85:1 version, and screenshots 15 - 19 are from the 2.00:1 version), I noticed no other major variances, with everything from palette reproduction to grain structure looking pretty identical to my eyes between the two. Densities do seem just a trifle anemic at times, with the palette looking a bit on the wan side on occasion, though primaries like reds tend to pop fairly well. A lot of the night or day for night footage has a pretty decided blue undertone which can defeat fine detail levels at times, but even in more brightly lit sequences, there's noticeable softness to the overall presentation. Some of the process and/or matte photography isn't particularly effective (see screenshot 10). All of this said, the transfer boasts a really healthy organic appearance, and in close-ups in brighter lighting fine detail is typically quite excellent. Some damage does remain, including a couple of major blemishes in some opticals like dissolves.

The Far Country Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The Far Country features an LPCM Mono track which is occasionally a bit boxy sounding, especially in terms of some of the effects like gunfire, but which provides more than capable support for the film's dialogue, glut of ambient environmental effects and the score which evidently had a bunch of uncredited assists from Universal staff at the time, including Henry Mancini (according to the IMDb). Fidelity is generally fine throughout the presentation, and there are no wide variances in reproduction of dialogue between studio set pieces and what seems to have been live location recording out in the wilds of Jasper.

The Far Country Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Note: As mentioned above in the video section, this release comes on two discs featuring two different aspect ratios. All of the non- commentary supplements are found on Disc 1, which has the 1.85:1 aspect ratio.

• Audio Commentary by film scholar Adrian Martin is commendably available on both aspect ratios.


• American Frontiers: Anthony Mann at Universal (1080p; 33:06) is a very well done overview of Mann's work at the studio, and includes a number of interesting analyses from a bunch of different people including Alan K. Rode and C. Courtney Joyner.


• Mann of the West (1080p; 23:50) is another appealing interview with Kim Newman, who gives his insights into Mann's career.


• Theatrical Trailer (1080p; 2:18)


• Image Galleries include:

  Production Stills (1080p; 16:30)

  
  

  Art Concepts (1080p; 3:30)

  
  

  Posters and Lobby Cards (1080p; 7:10)

Additionally, Arrow has provided its typically well appointed insert booklet.

The Far Country Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

A lot of The Far Country is frankly pretty resolutely predictable, and yet the film still glides by on a wealth of finely tuned performances and some really evocative location photography. The Far Country probably doesn't have the built in "hook" of, say, Winchester '73, but it's never less than enjoyable, and it's easy to see why the film was a substantial hit in the mid-1950s when it was originally released. Arrow has assembled another package with solid technical merits and some very appealing supplements. Recommended.