Conagher
by Reynaldo Villalobos
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DVD Cover Information
Actor: Barry Corbin, Billy Green Bush, Katharine Ross, Ken Curtis, Sam ElliottDirector: Reynaldo Villalobos
Brand: ROSS,KATHARINE
Producer: Sam Elliott
Writer: Sam Elliott
Writer: Katharine Ross
Cinematographer: James R. Bagdonas
Producer: John A. Kuri
Writer: Jeffrey M. Meyer
Writer: Louis L'Amour
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Subtitled); French (Subtitled); Spanish (Subtitled); English (Original Language); French (Dubbed); Spanish (Dubbed)
Format: Closed-captioned, Color, Dubbed, DVD, NTSC, Subtitled
Picture Format: 1.33:1
Running Time: 94 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2005-05-17
Audience Rating: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Model: T6765
Studio: Turner Home Ent
Product features:
- Conagher is both a hard-riding actioner and a character-driven look at Western life. Katharine Ross plays Evie Teale, widowed after coming West and forced to prove her mettle in many ways. Sam Elliott plays Conagher, a cowhand who, when not tracking rustlers, drifts in and out of Evie's life. Something about that frontier woman keeps drawing him back. But can Evie ever keep him from drifting out a
Movie Reviews of Conagher
Movie Review: Sam Elliot's Tribute To Louis L'Amour: The Best TV Film Adaptation Of A L'Amour Book To Date
Summary: 5 Stars
This review is for "Conagher" DVD (DVD Release Date: 2005)
Adapting an extremely popular book into a screenplay for a movie is almost alway a nearly impossible task--especially if one considers the fact that one script page, which is probably one fourth to one half of a book page at best, is equal to about one minute of film time. Louis L'Amour's novel, "Conagher," considered by many to be one of the best novels written, is around 192 pages (one reviewer states it is 152 pages). The film, again made for television on a small budget, is 117 minutes. Thus the writers--Sam Elliott (also a star and producer), Jeffrey M. Meyer, and Katharine Ross (also a star of the film)--had to condense the novel from 192 pages to approximately 48 pages; or a screenplay of about 117 pages. That means that over 100 pages of novel had to be deleted or heavily summarized. What the screenwriters provided was a phenomenal capsulization of Louis L'Amour's brilliant novel. (Please note that I am not a big fan of Louis L'Amour books, although I have read about a fourth of them. "Hondo" and "Sitka" are the other two books that I truly enjoyed.) Could "Conagher" have been a better movie? Absolutely--if they had made it into a mini-series, and had the budget to go with it! Could "Conagher" be any better, given the limitations under which it was produced? Not in my mind.
Other reviews have done an excellent job of discussing the performances of most of the actors--although some fail to "understand" or appreciate the beauty of Katherine Ross' performance--but less has been said about the sets. These buildings are the real things; the type of buildings I find in "ghost towns" and out on the plains of Montana and other western states. In deed, I cannot believe that other productions have not utilized--to my knowledge--the sets from this film. The photography is also excellent, capturing the vastness of the plains, and an intrinsic harmony that people of the land, like Conn Conagher and Evie Teale, feel in their souls. (That said, I do want to point out that many "westerners" never garnered that harmony--one that is close to what Native American Indians had as well--but rather they have "adapted" an appreciation and ideal of what the land represents).
I am sure that "Conagher" is a film that will be hard for some to fully appreciate because it--in spite of the necessity to limit itself, as discussed above--moves at its own pace. The film is about two people and the intersections of their lives in a "tough" and "lonely" west, that happens to incorporate some standard themes of the western genre. The only real weakness in the film--partially because the movie sought to stay "faithful" to the book--is its portrayal of the "Indians" in the film. In fact, I think that this is one part of the story that the writers should have left out; albeit, it helps to "demonstrate" Evie's "toughness" and "sand" as a character.
While this has nothing to do with the film itself, I found the DVD transfer to be rather poor. It takes a lot for me to comment about the quality of a transfer, as I understand the inherent problems of television films; conversely, Turner network usually takes much more "pride" in their work. Moreover, given the rather unique "status" of "Conagher," I feel that a Director's cut, clean of commercial breaks, with added scenes of the cowboy's daily routine (those "things" that made Conagher "happy"), Evie's turmoil and "happiness," and greater focus on the connections between the two characters would greatly enhance this film.
If this review was not helpful to you, I would appreciate learning the reason(s) so I can improve my reviews. My goal is to provide help to potential buyers, not get into any arguments. So, if you only disagree with my opinion, could you please say so in the comments and not indicate that the review was not helpful. Thanks.
Summary of Conagher
Not being one to settle down, cowhand Conn Conagher drifts in and out of widow Evie Teale's life.Genre: Westerns
Rating: NR
Release Date: 17-MAY-2005
Media Type: DVD
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