Search - The Red Badge of Courage on DVD

MPAA Rating: NR Content Advisory: Questionable for Children, War Violence Movie Release: 1951 DVD Release: 02/04/2003 Format: DVD - Black and White - Closed Captioned Audio Tracks: English, French Subtitles: English, French, Spanish SwapaDVD Credits: 1 Number of Discs: 1 Run Time: 1 hrs 9 mins Studio: Warner Home Video Members Wishing: 5 Genres: Historical Film, Historical Epic

The backstory of The Red Badge of Courage involves the toppling of MGM's old Louis B. Mayer regime in favor of Dore Schary and his young Turks. It is also the tale of how an intended epic was ruthlessly whittled down to a lower-berth programmer. Since this story has already been related in detail in Lillian Ross' -Picture (not to mention several John Huston biographies), the focus here will be what shows up on screen in Red Badge of Courage. Based on the novel by Stephen Crane, the film stars real-life war hero Audie Murphy as a Civil War soldier who must redeem himself in his own eyes after an act of cowardice. When he finally gets his opportunity, he realizes that he is no less frightened than before; it is simply that he has learned to push on in spite of that fear. A comparative newcomer to films, Murphy acquits himself magnificently in the difficult title role; equally impressive are political cartoonist Bill Mauldin as "The Loud Soldier," John Dierkes as "The Tall Soldier" and Royal Dano as "The Tattered Man." When Red Badge of Courage tested poorly in preview, the studio sliced it down to 69 minutes and added a narrator (James Whitmore) to clarify the more obscure plot passages. Further hurting the film was Bronislaus Kaper's overbaked musical score, which seemed more suited to a gung-ho John Wayne flick than a comparatively intimate tale of personal fortitude. Though the finished product plays like a Reader's Digest adaptation, a few brilliant passages remain, notably the sequence in which a commanding officer ingratiatingly lies to his troops for the sake of morale. Like Orson Welles' The Magnificent Ambersons, Red Badge of Courage is a truncated classic -- but a classic, all the same. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Audie Murphy - Henry Fleming the Youth
Bill Mauldin - Tom Wilson the Loud Soldier
John Dierkes - Jim Conlin the Tall Soldier
Royal Dano - The Tattered Soldier
Arthur Hunnicutt - Bill Porter

The first impression of the DVD for John Huston's 1951 production of The Red Badge of Courage is how good the transfer looks. It is presented in the original aspect ratio of 1.37:1 and the black-and-white photography looks fabulous. Brief moments where the black level appears slightly off do not hamper this fine presentation, mainly because the majority of the film is so clean. Grain is almost non-existent and detail is perfectly realized. Nothing has apparently been done to enhance the soundtrack, however. The original Dolby Digital mono track certainly doesn't create any atmosphere, but the dialogue and sound effects are clear and distinguishable. The supplements won't impress anyone. While it's nice to have the vintage theatrical trailer (and a page for the cast and crew listings) included, it must be assumed that Warner Bros. didn't see this as a big enough title to offer more. A documentary or historical commentary about this troubled production, from studio intervention to poor test screenings, would have been a significant accompaniment to the film, but just isn't available here, although, with the film only 69-minutes long, the disc space was unquestionably available. ~ Trent Fordham, All Movie Guide