6.1 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 3.5 | |
Overall | 3.5 |
Ben and Howdy are aging cowboys who dream of retiring in Tahiti while they bust broncos out of Sedona for slick operator Jim Ed Love, whose untameable roan horse proves to be their greatest challenge.
Starring: Glenn Ford, Henry Fonda, Chill Wills, Edgar Buchanan, Kathleen FreemanWestern | 100% |
Comedy | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 2.40:1
Original aspect ratio: 2.35:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Mono (48kHz, 24-bit)
English SDH
Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region A (B, C untested)
Movie | 3.0 | |
Video | 4.5 | |
Audio | 4.0 | |
Extras | 0.5 | |
Overall | 3.5 |
The Rounders is an easygoing Western "buddy comedy" that cruises along amiably on the chemistry of stars Henry Fonda and Glenn Ford. Written and directed by Burt Kennedy (The Train Robbers), the film did better than expected for MGM, which released it in March 1965 as the bottom half of a double bill topped by a now-forgotten musical. A TV series adaptation appeared on ABC the following year, but it was short-lived. The film is the latest addition to the Warner Archive Collection's growing library of Westerns on Blu-ray.
The Rounders was shot in anamorphic widescreen and Metrocolor by Paul Vogel, who had
previously won an Oscar for the black-and-white images of Battleground. Despite being filmed
in such scenic locations as Arizona's Coconino National Forest, The Rounders doesn't present its
expansive landscapes with the grandeur of a John Ford Western. The colors are dialed down, and
the framing is less majestic. As scenic as these environs may be, they are familiar territory to Ben
and Howdy, for whom they long ago lost their novelty (which is why the two cowboys' fondest
hope is to relocate somewhere completely different).
For this 1080p, AVC-encoded Blu-ray from the Warner Archive Collection, a recently manufactured interpositive was scanned at 2K by
Warner's Motion Picture Imaging facility, followed by necessary color-correction and cleanup.
The resulting image is appealing but low-key, much like the film's two protagonists. Sharpness
and detail are excellent in closeups and medium shots, but they fall off slightly in many long
shots, which probably reflects limitations of the source. The palette contrasts rich (but not too
rich) earth tones with a bright blue (but not too blue) sky. Blacks are solid, and the film's grain
patterns are well-resolved and free of untoward digital manipulation. WAC has mastered The
Rounders with an average bitrate of 31.99 Mbps, which is slightly lower than their usual average
but allows the 84-minute to fit comfortably on a BD-25.
The Rounders' mono soundtrack has been taken from the original magnetic master, cleaned of any age-related interference or distortion and encoded on Blu-ray as lossless DTS-HD MA 2.0. It's a modest, serviceable audio mix for a film that, despite being a Western, is short on action. A few guns are fired, but their sonic impact is minimal. The emphasis is on dialogue, which is clearly rendered, and on the jaunty score by Jeff Alexander (Jailhouse Rock), which plays with good fidelity and acceptable dynamic range.
The sole extra is the film's trailer (1080p, 2.35:1; 2:43), which has been remastered in 1080p and plays up the film's setting in "the New West". WAC's 2009 DVD of The Rounders was similarly bare.
The Rounders isn't a grand adventure in the style of Ford, Hawks or Sturges, but it makes for
agreeable viewing, especially if you're a fan of its two leading men (and if you're not, what's
wrong with you?). WAC's Blu-ray provides the first native 1080p rendition of this sleeper hit,
and it's a solid presentation that is highly recommended.
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