Search - The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance on DVD

MPAA Rating: NR Content Advisory: Mild Violence, Western Violence Movie Release: 1962 DVD Release: 06/05/2001 Format: DVD - Black and White,Enhanced Wide Screen Letterbox for 16x9 TV - Closed Captioned Edition: Special Collection Audio Tracks: English Subtitles: English SwapaDVD Credits: 1 Number of Discs: 1 Run Time: 2 hrs 3 mins Studio: Paramount Members Wishing: 5 Genres: Western, Revisionist Western, Outlaw (Gunfighter) Film See Also: The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance [Paramount Centennial Collection]

Like Pontius Pilate, director John Ford asks "What is truth?" in The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance--but unlike Pilate, Ford waits for an answer. The film opens in 1910, with distinguished and influential U.S. senator Ransom Stoddard (James Stewart) and his wife Hallie (Vera Miles) returning to the dusty little frontier town where they met and married twenty-five years earlier. They have come back to attend the funeral of impoverished "nobody" Tom Doniphon (John Wayne). When a reporter asks why, Stoddard relates a film-long flashback. He recalls how, as a greenhorn lawyer, he had run afoul of notorious gunman Liberty Valance (Lee Marvin), who worked for a powerful cartel which had the territory in its clutches. Time and again, "pilgrim" Stoddard had his hide saved by the much-feared but essentially decent Doniphon. It wasn't that Doniphon was particularly fond of Stoddard; it was simply that Hallie was in love with Stoddard, and Doniphon was in love with Hallie and would do anything to assure her happiness, even if it meant giving her up to a greenhorn. When Liberty Valance challenged Stoddard to a showdown, everyone in town was certain that the greenhorn didn't stand a chance. Still, when the smoke cleared, Stoddard was still standing, and Liberty Valance lay dead. On the strength of his reputation as the man who shot Valance, Stoddard was railroaded into a political career, in the hope that he'd rid the territory of corruption. Stoddard balked at the notion of winning an election simply because he killed a man-until Doniphon, in strictest confidence, told Stoddard the truth: It was Doniphon, not Stoddard, who shot down Valance. Stoddard was about to reveal this to the world, but Doniphon told him not to. It was far more important in Doniphon's eyes that a decent, honest man like Stoddard become a major political figure; Stoddard represented the "new" civilized west, while Doniphon knew that he and the West he represented were already anachronisms. Thus Stoddard went on to a spectacular political career, bringing extensive reforms to the state, while Doniphon faded into the woodwork. His story finished, the aged Stoddard asks the reporter if he plans to print the truth. The reporter responds by tearing up his notes. "This is the West, sir, " the reporter explains quietly. "When the legend becomes fact, print the legend." Dismissed as just another cowboy opus at the time of its release, The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance has since taken its proper place as one of the great Western classics. It questions the role of myth in forging the legends of the West, while setting this theme in the elegiac atmosphere of the West itself, set off by the aging Stewart and Wayne. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

John Wayne - Tom Doniphon
James Stewart - Ransom Stoddard
Vera Miles - Hallie Stoddard
Lee Marvin - Liberty Valance
Edmond O'Brien - Dutton Peabody

The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance represents one of the best examples of pristine digital restorations of older black-and-white films. The Western landscape of this 1.66:1 anamorphic widescreen transfer shines with light and sharpness. This picture stems from an excellent print and lacks the usual dirt specks inherent in even the better transfers from the time period. Although much of the action takes place indoors within confined areas, the visuals are stunning in their simplicity, especially during the shots shrouded in shadow. This picture is miles above previous VHS versions, and makes this disc worthwhile even to fans who already own the video. The 5.1-channel Dolby Digital transfer fails to fully utilize the rear speakers effectively, but it does provide a very good listening experience. One especially effective scene is the political convention, where cheers ring from all segments of the sound field for each candidate. While the age of the source material limits this audio track, it still succeeds in providing a clear and powerful viewing experience. This disc also contains a restored English mono transfer that contains a surprising amount of force and clarity. It falls a bit short of the other track, but it still sounds excellent, considering. The lone extra feature on this disc is the theatrical trailer, which comes in a decent widescreen transfer. It runs for a lengthy period and includes many of the pivotal scenes in the film with large, exclamatory text crossing the screen in a style typical of the time. ~ Dan Heaton, All Movie Guide