Shenandoah
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Movie Reviews of Shenandoah
Movie Review: Anti-war western
Summary: 3 Stars
"Shenandoah" is a 1965 anti-war film concerning the Civil War. It stars James Stewart with an enormous supporting cast that includes Doug McClure, Glenn Cornett, Patrick Wayne, Katherine Ross, and Rosemary Forsyth and a host of characters like Paul Fix (physician), Strother Martin (train engineer), Denver Pyle (preacher), George Kennedy (Union officer), and Harry Carey Jr. (rebel soldier)
This was Jimmy Stewart's (1908-97) 68th film. He needs little introduction. He ranks #3 on the AFI list of greatest male stars. He was nominated for an Oscar 5 times, winning for "The Philadelphia Story" (1940), although he's probably better known for "It's a Wonderful Life" (1946). He made nearly 100 films between 1934 and 1991, and was equally at home in westerns ("The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance", "Cheyene Autumn", Winchester 73"), comedies ("The Shop Around the Corner", "Take Her She's Mine"), and drama ("Rear Window", "The FBI Story").
This was Katherine Ross' (1940) film debut, having appeared on "Gunsmoke" in an episode directed by Andrew McLaglen. She's best known for her Oscar nominated performance in "The Graduate" (1967) and her BAFTA winning role in "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid" (1969).
The film is directed by Andrew McLaglen (1920), the son of famous film actor Victor McLaglen who was a staple in films with John Wayne and often directed by John Ford. In fact he got his start in "The Quiet Man" (1952) starring his dad, Maureen O'Hara, and John Wayne and directed by John Ford. McLaglen specialized in westerns and war films, and also spent a lot of time directing TV series like "Gunsmoke" and "Have Gun Will Travel".
Photography is by William Clothier (1903-96) who is best known for his frequent work with John Wayne. Clothier and Wayne worked together on 21 films, and with John Ford they worked on 4 films - "Fort Apache" (1948), "The Horse Soldiers" (1959), "Liberty Valance" (1962), and "Donovan's Reef" (1963). Clothier was nominated for two Oscars - "The Alamo" (1960) and "Cheyenne Autumn" (1964). Clothier's motto was "anything for a shot". He often worked with McLaglen.
The music is from Frank Skinner (1897-1968), and this was one of the last of Skinner's more than 200 film compositions. He was nominated 5 times for an Oscar, for films like "The Houise of Seven Gables" (1940) and "Arabian Nights" (1942).
Coming as it does in 1965, the anti-war sentiments of the film are loud and clear. "Shenandoah" was #9 in the box office for 1965 - the top grossing films were "The Sound of Music", "Doctor Zhivago", "Thunderball", "A Thousand Clowns", and "The Great Race". The Oscar winners were "Sound of Music" (Picture, Director), "Cat Ballou" (Actor), and "Darling" (Actress). Other westerns released that year include "For a Few Dollars More", "Major Dundee", "The Rounders", and "The Sons of Katie Elder".
You need to be a big fan of Jimmy Stewart to enjoy this film since he is in virtually every scene. As such, the film moves at a slow pace, to capture Stewart's particular brand of acting. The NY Times called it "a pretty good Civil War drama - an altogether respectable one" but noted that it "is also too long...and...hits and hangs onto many a static snag." The Cleveland Press praises Stewart as "an iconoclast" but said "The film is good but misses greatness."
One of the main problems with this film is that it fails to use the enormous talent who are there for a few brief seconds, say a few meager lines, and then disappear.
Fans of Jimmy Stewart will enjoy this film, but for others, there are far better westerns, and even narrowing the field to Civil War dramas, there are so many better films (e.g., "The Outlaw Josey Wales", "The Horse Soldiers", "Dances with Wolves", "GWTW", "They Died with Their Boots On").
Movie Review: Saved By Performances and Disney-esque Sentimentality
Summary: 3 Stars
Replace the allegedly anti-Semitic, alcoholic ax wielder from "The Patriot" with taciturn Jimmy Stewart, and you've basically got "Shenandoah," a well-meaning film whose strength lies in its performances and sentimentality and certainly not in its plotting.
Cribbed a bit from the better "Friendly Persuasion," the plot concerns an irascible Southern farmer (Stewart) who stubbornly -- and correctly -- refuses to let his sons join the lost cause that is the American Civil War. His stand is less a moral than a selfish one, and there are several effective moments where is proven right, not the least of which is the slaughter of the command of a young officer who just minutes earlier challenges Stewart's stand. Stewart's point that Virginia didn't lift one finger to help raise his children is an economical and rational defense to the argument that their lives are nonetheless owed to the state.
There are other scenes that rather maddeningly come close to making this a better film than it is: an otherwise capable officer's (Doug McClure, who could be played by a prettied-up Matt Damon in a bio-pic) nervous asking for Stewart's daughter's hand in marriage, Stewart's demands of a sympathetic union colonel (a self-effacing George Kennedy), his fury at the young sentinel who shoots one of his sons, a brief but bloody battle, and the quiet horror when murderous scavengers inevitably invade his all-but-deserted home.
Unfortunately, they're blunted by some rather dopey elements, including Stewart allowing his youngest son (rather annoyingly referred to as "the boy") to trundle about the countryside wearing a discarded confederate cap along with his gray clothes (you can see where that's going), his leaving his home virtually defenseless when horrific battles are occuring just miles away, and the baffling conclusion son Glenn Corbett comes to upon seeing the decimated troop his father kept him from joining.
In fact, I found myself at the end less moved by the power of the story and more irritated as to how Stewart's character, despite his ego, determination, and self-righteousness could not see that had he simply told the kid to take that hat off, none of the tragedy in the story would have happened. I generally prefer older movies because they're so much smarter and more natural than newer ones -- but not this time.
Stewart and the rest of the cast are quite good, though Patrick Wayne is so toothy in his role that you might be torn between sorrow and relief by the ultimate fate of his character. And, despite its thematic heaviness, the film often has much lighter moments more appropriate for a Disney film, which ironically may be what finally holds everything together. Watch for a young Katherine Ross in a supporting role, and try to ignore some of the historical liberties. (While I'd give the film five stars for its performances, the brainlessness of the plot knocks it down to three.)
Movie Review: UNIVERSAL - PLEASE! - NO MORE SUBSTANDARD TRANSFERS!
Summary: 3 Stars
Shenandoah is one of a handful of thrilling western epics that James Stewart appeared in during the mid-1950's. It's full of sweeping expanse, wagons-west adventure and stark, beautiful cinematography that makes one wish for a western landscape that, in reality, never truly existed. Universal Studios has developed a rather nasty track record with their catalogue titles ever since the introduction of DVD. In a nutshell, the powers that be seem to think that "title attraction" alone is enough to guarentee sales, hence rarely does Universal put its best foot forward or, heaven forbid, go all out with a special edition of some of their great classic films. Long story short - if they can give us full frame editions of "Death Becomes Her", "Babe" and "The Sting" they will. If they can slip in non-anamorphic widescreen transfers of "The Deer Hunter" and "Backdraft" they will! Clearly, this is a studio that places profit above integrity and "Shenandoah"'s transfer quality is no exception.
The transfer is riddled with age related artifacts, scratches, faded color and edit match cut lines that pretty much destroy the continuity of this viewing experience. Aliasing, edge enhancement and shimmering of fine details are all present and annoying. There's some minor pixelization that breaks apart background detail as well. The audio is strident, scratchy and uninspiring. Extras - NONE! - What a shock!
BOTTOM LINE: Universal thinks customers won't mind these imperfections, a.k.a. - they don't mind giving them to you. So here's a thought - voice your protests in letters and emails. Because DVD and classic film libraries around the world really aren't benefiting from this sort of shoddy workmanship. In the end we're all losers!
Movie Review: Not Our War
Summary: 3 Stars
Other reviewers have commented on the story so I'll not go into too much detail about Jimmy Stewart playing a widower looking after his family as the Civil War barks at his doorstep.This film features a number of typical Andrew McLaglen scenes - for example the punch-up between the men of the family and some government officials who have come to take their horses.
I find it interesting that the film starts off with its tongue planted firmly in cheek and those scenes are generally amusing to watch. It is not long, however, before the film's tone changes when the youngest son (Boy) is taken prisoner simply because of an event that takes place near the beginning of the film (I won't spoil it for anyone who has yet to see the film). From that moment on the film becomes much darker in tone and events take their toll upon the family.
It is an enjoyable film, Jimmy Stewart (as ever) turns in a fine performance.
The picture quality is excellent with only one small scene looking slightly below par (I would rate it 95% in comparison with the rest of the film). There are no features bar a trailer.
This DVD release is ruined, however, by the fact that it is cropped. The film is 4:3 but for this release it has been matted to 1.85:1 and then enhanced. So come on, Universal - give us a proper print of this film for DVD.
4 stars for the film, 2 stars for the DVD release = 3 stars
Movie Review: Unremarkable, depressing and ultimately unsatisfying American Civil War drama
Summary: 3 Stars
"Shenandoah" tells the tale of a large family caught in the crossfire of the American Civil War. The family's patriarch played by James Stewart is determined to ignore the war even as it rages around his Virginia farm but in the end he and his family cannot avoid it.
This somewhat artificial situation is a lens through which the viewer can experience the agony of the civil war. Being made in 1965 the film still has older western conventions such as the courtship, the wedding and a big fist-fight but also features some "modern" touches such as its downbeat tone and lack of any real resolution. Unfortunately the director never takes this combination anywhere particulary interesting so we are left with an unremarkable, depressing and ultimately unsatisfying film. Stewart is excellent and the film is not without merits but one can't help wondering what Peckinpah could have made of this material.