Alfred Hitchcock - The Masterpiece Collection (Psycho / Vertigo / Rear Window / The Birds / Shadow of a Doubt / Family Plot / Frenzy / The Man Who Knew Too Much / Marnie / Rope / Saboteur / Topaz / Torn Curtain / The Trouble with Harry)

Product Description

14 of the finest works from the universally acclaimed Master of Suspense come together for the first time in one collection. These captivating landmark films boast three decades of Hollywood legends, including James Stewart, Grace Kelly, Anthony Perkins, Sean Connery and Doris Day. The premium packaging and collectible book make Alfred Hitchcock: The Masterpiece Collection the must-own, definitive anthology of gripping works by a true genius.

System Requirements:

Running Time 1630 Min

Format: DVD MOVIE

Amazon.com

Masterpiece indeed. With 14 films, each supplemented with numerous documentaries, commentaries, and other bonus materials, Alfred Hitchcock - The Masterpiece Collection will be the cornerstone for any serious DVD library. Packaged in a beautiful, conversation-starting velvet box, the individual discs inside come four to a case, decorated with original poster art.

No doubt opinionated fans will argue about what should fall under the rubric of "masterpiece" in Hitchcock's body of work, but with the bona fide classics Vertigo, Psycho, and The Man Who Knew Too Much, there's plenty of timeless movie magic here. Eye-popping transfers and gorgeous sound make this set one of the must-have releases of the year.

Should the Hitchcock fan have the energy for more after imbibing on the movies themselves, a bonus disc provides additional documentaries. These include a revealing interview in which the master of suspense discusses, among other things, how much he dislikes working with method actors, going so far as to name names (we're talking about you, Jimmy Stewart and Montgomery Clift). In an American Film Institute lifetime achievement ceremony, the master of suspense is praised by the likes of Stewart and Ingrid Bergman, and seems to be suffering from severe boredom as celebrities pile on the flattery. Then Hitchcock opens his mouth to accept the award, delivering an endlessly witty stream of perfect bon mots that prove once again that he was a master of high comedy as well. Revealing documentaries about the making of Psycho and The Birds round out the feast of extras. The 36-page booklet, filled mostly with stills and poster art, provides little new information about the films.--Ryan Boudinot

Films Included in Alfred Hitchcock - The Masterpiece Collection

Saboteur
Robert Cummings stars as Barry Kane, a patriotic munitions worker who is falsely accused of sabotage, in this wartime thriller from Alfred Hitchcock. Plastered across the front page of every newspaper and hated by the nation, Kane's only hope of clearing his name is to find the real villain. The script as a whole is a clever one--Algonquin wit Dorothy Parker shares a screenwriting credit, and her trademark zingers make for a terrific mix of humor and suspense. Saboteur is a pleasure whether you're a die-hard Hitchcock fan or just someone who likes a good nail-biter. --Ali Davis

Shadow of a Doubt
Alfred Hitchcock considered this 1943 thriller to be his personal favorite among his own films, and although it's not as popular as some of Hitchcock's later work, it's certainly worthy of the master's admiration. Scripted by playwright Thornton Wilder and inspired by the actual case of a 1920's serial killer known as "The Merry Widow Murderer," the movie sets a tone of menace and fear by introducing a psychotic killer into the small-town comforts of Santa Rosa, California. Through narrow escapes and a climactic scene aboard a speeding train, this witty thriller strips away the façade of small-town tranquility to reveal evil where it's least expected. And, of course, it's all done in pure Hitchcockian style. --Jeff Shannon

Rope
An experimental film masquerading as a standard Hollywood thriller, Rope is simple and based on a successful stage play: two young men (John Dall and Farley Granger) commit murder, more or less as an intellectual exercise. They hide the body in their large apartment, then throw a dinner party. Will the body be discovered? Director Alfred Hitchcock, fascinated by the possibilities of the long-take style, decided to shoot this story as though it were happening in one long, uninterrupted shot. Since the camera can only hold one 10-minute reel at a time, Hitchcock had to be creative when it came time to change reels, disguising the switches as the camera passed behind someone's back or moved behind a lamp. James Stewart, as a suspicious professor, marks his first starring role for Hitchcock, a collaboration that would lead to the masterpieces Rear Window and Vertigo. --Robert Horton

Rear Window
Like the Greenwich Village courtyard view from its titular portal, Alfred Hitchcock's classic Rear Window is both confined and multileveled: both its story and visual perspective are dictated by its protagonist's imprisonment in his apartment, convalescing in a wheelchair, from which both he and the audience observe the lives of his neighbors. Cheerful voyeurism, as well as the behavior glimpsed among the various tenants, affords a droll comic atmosphere that gradually darkens when he sees clues to what may be a murder. At deeper levels, Rear Window plumbs issues of moral responsibility and emotional honesty, while offering further proof (were any needed) of the director's brilliance as a visual storyteller. --Sam Sutherland

The Trouble with Harry
A busman's holiday for Alfred Hitchcock, this 1955 black comedy concerns a pesky corpse that becomes a problem for a quiet, Vermont neighborhood. Shirley MacLaine makes her film debut as one of several characters who keep burying the body and finding it unburied again. Hitchcock clearly enjoys conjuring the autumnal look and feel of the story, and he establishes an important, first-time alliance with composer Bernard Herrmann, whose music proved vital to the director's next half-dozen or so films. But for now, The Trouble with Harry is a lark, the mischievous side of Hitchcock given free reign. --Tom Keogh

The Man Who Knew Too Much
Alfred Hitchcock's 1956 remake of his own 1934 spy thriller is an exciting event in its own right, with several justifiably famous sequences. James Stewart and Doris Day play American tourists who discover more than they wanted to know about an assassination plot. When their son is kidnapped to keep them quiet, they are caught between concern for him and the terrible secret they hold. When asked about the difference between this version of the story and the one he made 22 years earlier, Hitchcock always said the first was the work of a talented amateur while the second was the act of a seasoned professional. Indeed, several extraordinary moments in this update represent consummate filmmaking, particularly a relentlessly exciting Albert Hall scene, with a blaring symphony, an assassin's gun, and Doris Day's scream. The Man Who Knew Too Muchis the work of a master in his prime. --Tom Keogh

Vertigo
Although it wasn't a box-office success when originally released in 1958, Vertigo has since taken its deserved place as Alfred Hitchcock's greatest, most spellbinding, most deeply personal achievement. James Stewart plays a retired police detective who is hired by an old friend to follow his wife (a superb Kim Novak, in what becomes a double role), whom he suspects of being possessed by the spirit of a dead madwoman. Shot around San Francisco (the Golden Gate Bridge and the Palace of the Legion of Honor are significant locations) and elsewhere in Northern California (the redwoods, Mission San Juan Batista) in rapturous Technicolor, Vertigo is as lovely as it is haunting. --Jim Emerson

Psycho
For all the slasher pictures that have ripped off Psycho (and particularly its classic set piece, the "shower scene"), nothing has ever matched the impact of the real thing. More than just a first-rate shocker full of thrills and suspense, Psycho is also an engrossing character study in which director Alfred Hitchcock skillfully seduces you into identifying with the main characters--then pulls the rug (or the bathmat) out from under you. Anthony Perkins is unforgettable as Norman Bates, the mama's boy proprietor of the Bates Motel; and so is Janet Leigh as Marion Crane, who makes an impulsive decision and becomes a fugitive from the law, hiding out at Norman's roadside inn for one fateful night. --Jim Emerson

The Birds
Vacationing in northern California, Alfred Hitchcock was struck by a story in a Santa Cruz newspaper: "Seabird Invasion Hits Coastal Homes." From this peculiar incident, and his memory of a short story by Daphne du Maurier, the master of suspense created one of his strangest and most terrifying films. The Birds follows a chic blonde, Melanie Daniels (Tippi Hedren), as she travels to the coastal town of Bodega Bay to hook up with a rugged fellow (Rod Taylor) she's only just met. Before long the town is attacked by marauding birds, and Hitchcock's skill at staging action is brought to the fore. Beyond the superb effects, however, The Birds is also one of Hitchcock's most psychologically complicated scenarios, a tense study of violence, loneliness, and complacency. What really gets under your skin are not the bird skirmishes but the anxiety and the eerie quiet between attacks. Treated with scant attention by serious critics in 1963, The Birds has grown into a classic and--despite the sci-fi trappings--one of Hitchcock's most serious films. --Robert Horton

Marnie
Sean Connery, fresh from the second Bond picture, From Russia with Love, is a Philadelphia playboy who begins to fall for Tippi Hedren's blonde ice goddess only when he realizes that she's a professional thief; she's come to work in his upper-crust insurance office in order to embezzle mass quantities. His patient program of investigation and surveillance has a creepy, voyeuristic quality that's pure Hitchcock, but all's lost when it emerges that the root of Marnie's problem is phobic sexual frigidity, induced by a childhood trauma. Luckily, Sean is up to the challenge. As it were. Not even D.H. Lawrence believed as fervently as Hitchcock in the curative properties of sexual release. --David Chute

Torn Curtain
Paul Newman and Julie Andrews star in what must unfortunately be called one of Alfred Hitchcock's lesser efforts. Still, sub-par Hitchcock is better than a lot of what's out there, and this one is well worth a look. Newman plays cold war physicist Michael Armstrong, while Andrews plays his lovely assistant-and-fiancée, Sarah Sherman. Armstrong has been working on a missile defense system that will "make nuclear defense obsolete," and naturally both sides are very interested. All Sarah cares about is the fact that Michael has been acting awfully fishy lately. The suspense of Torn Curtain is by nature not as thrilling as that in the average Hitchcock film--much of it involves sitting still and wondering if the bad guys are getting closer. Still, Hitchcock manages to amuse himself: there is some beautifully clever camera work and an excruciating sequence that illustrates the frequent Hitchcock point that death is not a tidy business. --Ali Davis

Topaz
Alfred Hitchcock hadn't made a spy thriller since the 1930s, so his 1969 adaptation of Leon Uris's bestseller seemed like a curious choice for the director. But Hitchcock makes Uris's story of the West's investigation into the Soviet Union's dealings with Cuba his own. Frederick Stafford plays a French intelligence agent who works with his American counterpart (John Forsythe) to break up a Soviet spy ring. The film is a bit flat dramatically and visually, and there are sequences that seem to occupy Hitchcock's attention more than others. A minor work all around, with at least two alternative endings shot by Hitchcock. --Tom Keogh

Frenzy
Alfred Hitchcock's penultimate film, written by Anthony Shaffer (who also wrote Sleuth), this delightfully grisly little tale features an all-British cast minus star wattage, which may have accounted for its relatively slim showing in the States. Jon Finch plays a down-on-his-luck Londoner who is offered some help by an old pal (Barry Foster). In fact, Foster is a serial killer the police have been chasing--and he's framing Finch. Which leads to a classic Hitchcock situation: a guiltless man is forced to prove his innocence while eluding Scotland Yard at the same time. Spiked with Hitchcock's trademark dark humor, Frenzy also features a very funny subplot about the Scotland Yard investigator (Alec McCowen) in charge of the case, who must endure meals by a wife (Vivien Merchant) who is taking a gourmet-cooking class. --Marshall Fine

Family Plot
Alfred Hitchcock's final film is understated comic fun that mixes suspense with deft humor, thanks to a solid cast. The plot centers on the kidnapping of an heir and a diamond theft by a pair of bad guys led by Karen Black and William Devane. The cops seem befuddled, but that doesn't stop a questionable psychic (Barbara Harris) and her not overly bright boyfriend (Bruce Dern, in a rare good-guy role) from picking up the trail and actually solving the crime. Did she do it with actual psychic powers? That's part of the fun of Harris's enjoyably ditsy performance. --Marshall Fine

Customer Reviews:

Necessarily flawed.......2007-09-14

The best this set rates is 3 stars.

Am I the only one wondering why a deal couldn't have been worked out with MGM/UA so that NORTH BY NORTHWEST could have been included here rather than the boring TOPAZ? And why not the great WARNER BROS. titles like DIAL M FOR MURDER, instead of MARNIE for instance? Wouldn't THE WRONG MAN be so much better than ROPE and STRANGERS ON A TRAIN a superior choice to TORN CURTAIN?

Let's tell it plainly here. This is not so much a "masterpiece collection" as it is the best Hitchcock titles that UNIVERSAL/MCA has in their vaults (along with some less-than-great filler). With such a massive project as this, I think some sort of accomodation could have been reached with the copyright holders of the films I've mentioned above. And if such an arrangement had been achieved, wouldn't those four substitutions TRULY make this DVD set Hitchcock's masterpiece collection?

ALFRED HITCHCOCK PRESENTS - SEASON THREE is a superb collection of TV episodes from the Master of Suspense.

A GREAT SET FOR THE PRICE! MISSING SOME GREAT FILMS!.......2007-09-08

I didn't have any of these films on DVD so,..... When I saw it on sale for around $65.00 I thought it was a great deal for 14 films with some extra material. I would have liked to see a few different films in this set,but they ended up putting most of those in another DVD set with the exception of "LifeBoat" and "Notorious". I think all "Hitches" missing films should be put into similar sets. This is a nice set, but wait to see it at the right price. These will be dropping way down before you know it. The transfers look very good!

Pick this along with the Signature Collection and you're done!.......2007-08-23

First things first - This collection is brilliant and the packaging is also good. Its a velvet box containing 4 DVD boxes, each box containing 4 or 3 discs/films and a booklet with a short writeup on each film.

When it arrived, one of the 4 sets was missing, and one was duplicated.
That is: I had 2 sets of the same films, and one set was missing.

I wrote back to the Amazon Customer Support and got an immediate reply saying they will replace it.

This set does not include certain must-have classics like
Strangers On A Train
North By North West
Dial M For Murder
Foreign Correspondent etc.

All this is available in the Signature Series which I picked up from here.

So if you buy these 2 box sets, you're done!!!

5 Stars for the movies, 1 Star for the packaging.......2007-08-13

I would love to have most of the DVDs in this collection, but I won't get it because of the poorly-designed packaging. I don't want 4 DVDs crammed into one case with the artwork reproduced one-quarter size and overlapping. I want each DVD in its own case with full-sized artwork on the cover. If the idea was to make it more compact, the space saved is insignificant. I think the real reason is corner-cutting to save a few bucks. The other Hitchcock set did it the right way- 1 DVD per case. This is very disappointing. For a lot of us, aesthetics count for a lot. Actually, my ideal preference would for all box sets to be packaged chronologically, in the order each film was released.

Poor packaging........2007-06-01

This is a great set minus the annoying packaging. As someone mentioned earlier the DVD cases are fitted to go in a certain order and if they don't go in in that order then they get stuck and the edges of the DVD cases get frayed. The corners of the cases get frayed anyway because the cases are a paper and cardboard-based binding with the plastic DVD holders glued on to them. So I put them in spine first now. Open and close them enough times and you get those white, worn edges on the spine. Another problem with the cases is that the plastic glued on part that hold the DVDs in place are notorious for getting de-glued. Yet another thing. . .one disc is now not holding in the case properly. How could I remedy this problem? Buy an entire new set??? The door on the velvet box doesn't snap shut in anyway so if you hold the wrong side down. . .the DVDs will fall out. So watch out. The velvet box looks and feels nice but it collects dust very easily and is not easily cleanable. I tried to brush off some of the dust and the silvery logos and such began to flake off.

Michael Shayne Mysteries Vol. 1 (Michael Shayne: Private Detective / The Man Who Wouldn't Die / Sleepers West / Blue, White, and Perfect)

Average customer rating:

LLoyd Nolan as Michael Shayne
Review of Michael Shayne Vol 1
Classic B-Movies
Michael Shayne
action thriller

Michael Shayne Mysteries Vol. 1 (Michael Shayne: Private Detective / The Man Who Wouldn't Die / Sleepers West / Blue, White, and Perfect)
Starring: Lloyd Nolan , Marjorie Weaver , Joan Valerie , Walter Abel , and Elizabeth Patterson
Director: Eugene Forde , and Herbert I. Leeds
Manufacturer: 20th Century Fox
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Drama | Genres | DVD | Video

Classics | Drama | Genres | DVD | Video

Suspense | Mystery & Suspense | Genres | DVD | Video

Mystery | Mystery & Suspense | Genres | DVD | Video

Classics | Mystery & Suspense | Genres | DVD | Video

General | Mystery & Suspense | Genres | DVD | Video

DVDs Under $14.99 | Today's Deals in DVD | Special Features | DVD | Video

( M ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video
Similar Items:

ASIN: B000LC4ZDK
Release Date: 2007-03-20

Amazon.com

This very welcome box set turns up the heat on one of detective films' cold cases. Created by Brett Halliday, Michael Shayne appeared in 31 books between the 1940s and '70s. He is not as popularly known as other screen shamuses, but he's good company. As portrayed by Lloyd Nolan (best known as curmudgeonly Dr. Chegley on the groundbreaking sitcom Julia), Shayne is not as hard-boiled as Sam Spade or as sage as Charlie Chan. But, as one shady character observes to someone whom Shayne has just pasted, "You know better than to mix with Shayne." He's a working-class mug ("His office is in his hat, his home is in his car," he remarks), usually "down on his luck" and short on cash. As Michael Shayne, Private Detective (1940) opens, the furniture from his office is being repossessed. Still, Shayne has ethics enough to turn down $5,000 for a suspicious-sounding case. ("$5,000 will buy a lot of ethics," he's told). He's got some odd habits, from twirling his keychain to singing the odd Irish ditty. In each film, Shayne manages to get himself into some "screwy scrapes." In Private Detective, a "gag" backfires when an attempt to scare a gambling heiress straight results in a murder with Shayne's gun at the scene of the crime. In The Man Who Wouldn't Die (1942), Shayne pretends to be a wealthy woman's husband to get the lowdown on a body that won't stay buried. In Sleepers West (1941), he's on the right track when he accompanies a murder witness by train to San Francisco. Blue, White and Perfect (1942) is a real gem that finds Shayne embroiled in wartime espionage, smuggled diamonds and dodging his jealous, matrimonial-minded girlfriend.

These lively B-films each clock in at less than 80 minutes. What they lack in budget they more than make up for in shadow-drenched, dark, and stormy atmosphere, Shayne's moxie and inestimable support from some great character actors, such as Clarence Kolb (the crooked mayor in His Girl Friday) and Douglass Dumbrille (the nasty racetrack owner in A Day at the Races), who appear in Private Detective. For a collection of obscure films, this box set has all the trimmings, with three original featurettes that provide efficient primers on Halliday, Shayne, and Robert McGinnis, the artist who created luscious and lurid covers for the Shayne paperbacks. There is also an interactive trivia guide that makes the six-degrees connections between cast members and the film-noir world. This is volume 1, to which we can only say, "Come back, Shayne." --Donald Liebenson

Description

Disc 1 Side A: MICHAEL SHAYNE, PRIVATE DETECTIVE (1942) Disc 1 Side B: THE MAN WHO WOULDN'T DIE (1942) Disc 2 Side A: SLEEPERS WEST (1941) Disc 2 Side B: BLUE, WHITE, & PERFECT (1942)

**Plus Featurettes **Packaging designed by Michael Shayne and artist Robert McGinnis

Customer Reviews:

LLoyd Nolan as Michael Shayne.......2007-07-07

The perfect fit of role and star, action a-plenty, twists, turns, and surprises, snappy dialogue, excellent cast support, upper level grade B production values, realistic settings, and transfer print quality as good as or better than you may have expected. What's not to like??

I haven't seen any of the Hugh Beaumont/Michael Shayne movies but I can't wait to watch the remaining three in the Lloyd Nolan series.

If you are fan of this era, a fan of mystery/detective movies with a side serving of good humor and a fan of this star who is perfect for this role, then you really don't want to miss this set.

Review of Michael Shayne Vol 1.......2007-06-28

I think these movies made in the 1940's were fun to watch. I particularly enjoyed LLoyd Nolan playing the lead role. I also enjoyed seeing old glamorous movie stars like Lynn Bari and Mary Beth Hughes in action again.

Classic B-Movies.......2007-06-12

I am a fan of Lloyd Nolan. He has always shined in B-movies. And his signature role as Michael Shayne is no different. His wit and timing are nothing short of outstanding. I hope that another boxed set of these films are released soon.

I would even like to see the one's with Hugh Beaumont. It would be nice to see Beaumont play a character besides Ward Cleaver on Leave It To Beaver. But, Lloyd Nolan is still the best to play this character.

Michael Shayne.......2007-06-08

The Michael Shayne mysteries are not only clever, but very funny. Lloyd
Nolan is great and the best Michael Shayne there ever was. Can't wait
till Volume 2 comes out.

action thriller.......2007-05-16

this dvd box set of michael shayne is very good and well worth buying for any film buff who likes lloyd Nolan. he plays the part very good and is comical also. the rest of the cast also are well worth watching, I do hope 20th centry Fox turn out more of Mike Shayne in the near future, I have been waiting for this series to come on dvd and now they are out Im more than pleased I purchased them. I realy do say this that Mike shayne is excellent and well worth the price of this set. and Lloyd Nolan takes the part well and I highly recommend it. well worth buying if you Like Nolan

Average customer rating:

WOW
The Man Who Shot Liberty Valence
John Ford and John Wayne's eighth and penultimate Western together, an elegy for the passing of the Old West!
the man who shot liberty valance
Best Western Ever!!

The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance
Starring: John Wayne , James Stewart , Vera Miles , Lee Marvin , and Edmond O'Brien
Director: John Ford
Manufacturer: Paramount
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Westerns | Genres | DVD | Video

Action & Adventure | Westerns | Genres | DVD | Video

Outlaws | Westerns | Genres | DVD | Video

4-for-3 All DVDs | 4-for-3 DVD | Stores | DVD | Video

All Titles | John Wayne Store | Stores | DVD | Video

1960s | John Wayne Store | Stores | DVD | Video

Westerns | Today's Deals in DVD | Special Features | DVD | Video

DVDs Under $7.49 | Today's Deals in DVD | Special Features | DVD | Video

( M ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video
Similar Items:

ASIN: B00005ASGG
Release Date: 2001-06-05

Amazon.com essential video

"When the legend becomes fact, print the legend." That's more than the code of a newspaperman in The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance; it's practically the operating credo of director John Ford, the most honored of American filmmakers. In this late film from a long career, Ford looks at the civilizing of an Old West town, Shinbone, through the sad memories of settlers looking back. In the town's wide-open youth, two-fisted Westerner John Wayne and tenderfoot newcomer James Stewart clash over a woman (Vera Miles) but ultimately unite against the notorious outlaw Liberty Valance (Lee Marvin). Ford's nostalgia for the past is tempered by his stark approach, unusual for the visual poet of Stagecoach and The Searchers. The two heavyweights, Wayne and Stewart, are good together, with Wayne the embodiment of rugged individualism and Stewart the idealistic prophet of the civilization that will eventually tame the Wild West. This may be the saddest Western ever made, closer to an elegy than an action movie, and as cleanly beautiful as its central symbol, the cactus rose. --Robert Horton

Customer Reviews:

WOW.......2007-08-09

The Duke, Lee Marvin, Jimmy Stewart. Man they don't make 'em like that anymore. Too bad, it definitely stands the test of time.

The Man Who Shot Liberty Valence.......2007-08-07

I am a fan of John Wayne and enjoy his movies. This is one of his best

John Ford and John Wayne's eighth and penultimate Western together, an elegy for the passing of the Old West!.......2007-07-07

The critics panned THE MAN WHO SHOT LIBERTY VALANCE when it was first released in April 1962, Not least because it went over much of the same ground explored in FORT APACHE (1948). But the general public thought otherwise and the test of time has proved the latter right. Shot in black and white, with two obviously over-aged stars and mostly studio-bound the only concession to its day was the wide-screen aspect! Gene Pitney also had a huge hit with a song of the same name released at the same time but omitted from the soundtrack because John Ford was said to have hated it!

This dark-tale is of the Old West versus the advancing 20th Century. A train draws into the small western town of Shinbone the only passengers to get off, are Senator Ransom Stoddard (James Stewart) and his wife Hallie (Vera Miles) they are accosted by local reporter for `The Star' young Charlie Hasbrouck (Joseph Hoover) followed by his editor Maxwell Scott (Carleton Young). Stoddard reveals that they are in town for the funeral of an old friend Tom Doniphon (John Wayne). In the funeral parlour they find Doniphon's coffin guarded by his faithful black servant Pompey (Woody Strode). Scott persuades the Senator to give his account. Meanwhile ex-town-marshal Link Appleyard (Andy Devine) takes Hallie on a buckboard ride out to Toms burnt out old house, here they find masses of cactus roses in bloom, Link steps down and picks one for her.

Now back in Shinbone the story is then revealed in flashback - A gang led by Liberty Valance (Lee Marvin) ambushed Stoddard's stagecoach. He tries to defend a fellow female passenger but suffers a savage beating in the process and is left for dead. Tom Doniphon brings him to his girl friend Hallie Ericson at PETER'S PLACE (a venue for home cooking) at Shinbone after finding him on the trail! On discovering who attacked him Doniphon told Stoddard "Liberty Valance's the toughest man south of the Picketwire [River] - next to me". Stoddard is a lawyer by profession and is determined to bring Valance to justice he elicits the reluctant help of Marshal Link Appleyard and Shinbone Star founder and editor Dutton Peabody (Edmund O'Brien) in the meantime he helps out washing dishes and serving tables at PETER'S PLACE, he also runs a class teaching people to read and write, whilst telling them that `the pen is mightier than the sword'. One night Valance and two of his henchmen Floyd (Strother Martin) and Reese (Lee Van Cleef) burst into PETER'S PLACE hijack a table and generally causing trouble, Floyd gleefully points out to Valance, that he has spotted Stoddard waiting on tables. Valance trips Stoddard causing him to drop Doniphon's steak dinner on the floor. Doniphon and Valance square up for a gunfight after Doniphon ordered Valance to pick up the steak, but Stoddard picks up the steak to ease the situation, all concerned know sooner or later Valance will be back.

As the tension continues to mount Stoddard is helping out Editor Peabody who allows Ranse to hang his Attorney at Law sign outside the Star Newspaper Office, he is also going off and practicing with a six gun twice a couple of times a week. Tom Doniphon tells Hallie that he going north of the Picketwire [River] for some time horse-trading on his return he reports trouble brewing with the big ranchers who have recruited Liberty Valance and his henchmen to mess up the coming Territorial Convention for Statehood, Stoddard and Peabody are finally selected as the two delegates required whilst Valance was completely rejected. In an editorial Peabody blackens Valances name. Later Valance, Floyd and Reese beat Mr Peabody to within an inch of his life, Ranse sends the marshal to find Valance for a final showdown. Although Liberty wounds Ranse with his first shot - Ranse somehow manages to get off a shot, Valance falls to the ground and is pronounced "dead" in the street by Doc Willoughby. Stoddard is plagued by guilt and is only relieved when Doniphon fills in the missing details. Following the shooting of Valance, the wounded Stoddard is elevated to super hero known to all as "The man who shot Liberty Valance" he also wins Hallie's hand in marriage and goes back East to pursue a life in politics. Whilst having lost Hallie, a disappointed Tom Doniphon steps aside and retreats to into reclusive obscurity.

Stoddard having completed his story to the press was surprised when the editor tears up the script Ranse asked Scott "You're not going to us the story Mr Scott". "This is the West, Sir". Scott said. "When the legend becomes fact, print the legend". Finally Hallie left a cactus rose on Toms coffin as a symbol of their lost love. So with Donophin buried and their business concluded in Shinbone the Stoddards catch the train back to Washington they are welcomed onboard once again by the conductor Jason Tully (Willis Bouchey) Ranse thanks Jason for all his help and Jason replies "Nothing's too good for the man who shot Liberty Valance".

A fine cast with some great performances all round although the likes of Lee Marvin, Edmound O'Brien, Ken Murray and John Carradine "Ham it up a little". Whilst the two leads were in reality too old for their parts with the love interest Vera Miles being some twenty-odd years their junior, she however gives a beautiful restrained performance as the woman torn between two men! Ford too was on top form with the domestic scenes in Peter's Place cooking and serving up the dinner plate sized steaks to a full house followed up by the enevitable washing up - BRILLIANT!

It was near the end now for the most successful Director / Star relationship in making Western Movies. Ahead lay. "The Civil War" chapter of HOW THE WEST WAS WON (1962) and finally a non-Western DONOVAN'S REEF (1963). But Big John Wayne was far from finished, increditably over the next dozen or so years, another twenty-one films lay ahead, fourteen of them Westerns including his Oscar winning TRUE GRIT!

This Widescreen Collection DVD includes Sub Titles, Theatrical Trailer and Scene Selection. This film really deserves the full treatment of a Special Two Disc Edition with extras including Gene Pitney's title song. Nevertheless a must for all Western fans, others should enjoy it too!

the man who shot liberty valance.......2007-06-27

The first time I saw "The Man who shot Liberty Valance" was on TCM.I was amazed at the casting of this fine old western and decided to buy it for my library of old movies. I was not disappointed. John Wayne, Jimmy Stewart, along with Lee Marvin made this far better western than most movies were in it's day! It is fun to see all of these actors in their prime, doing what they do best! Thumbs up!!

Best Western Ever!!.......2007-04-23

John Wayne and Jimmy Stewart come together to lead one of the most dynamic casts of characters ever put into a western movie.

Who really shot Liberty Valance?

In a story that speaks to true inner strength and humility, the question is answered after the strangest turn of circumstances sees Jimmy Stewart (Ransom Stoddard) rise from humble (almost cowardly) beginnings to become a very well-respected man of the community. It's only later in life that he learns he's made his name on the actions of John Wayne's character...

I don't want to spoil the movie for anyone who hasn't seen it, but one thing you learn in this movie is that things are not what they first seem. And that makes the movie WAY ahead of its time!

I am stoked to see it available on DVD.

Average customer rating:

I had to own this classic
Great movie, poor DVD
The Man Who Would Be King
ITS A CLASSIC!!!
Top boys own yarn

The Man Who Would Be King
Starring: Sean Connery , Michael Caine , Christopher Plummer , Saeed Jaffrey , and Doghmi Larbi
Director: John Huston , Ed Apfel , and Lawrence Tetenbaum
Manufacturer: Warner Home Video
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Action & Adventure | Genres | DVD | Video

General | Drama | Genres | DVD | Video

DVDs Under $14.99 | Today's Deals in DVD | Special Features | DVD | Video

( M ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video
Similar Items:

ASIN: 630469864X
Release Date: 1997-11-19

Amazon.com

A grandly entertaining, old-fashioned adventure based on the Rudyard Kipling short story, The Man Who Would Be King is the kind of rousing epic about which people said, even in 1975, "Wow! They don't make 'em like that anymore!" When director John Huston (The Maltese Falcon, The Treasure of the Sierra Madre, The African Queen) first started trying to make the film, with Gable and Bogart, the project was derailed by the latter's death. It was a few decades before Huston was able to finally realize his dream movie--and with an unimprovable cast. Sean Connery and Michael Caine are, respectively, Daniel Dravot and Peachy Carnahan, a pair of lovably roguish British soldiers who set out to make their fortunes by conning the priests of remote Kafiristan into making them kings. It's a rollicking tale, an epic satire of imperialism, and the good-natured repartee shared by Caine and Connery is pure gold. In today's screen adventures, humor is usually imposed on the material by a writer or director trying to make some kind of cleverly self-aware comment ("Hey, we know it's a movie!"), but that sort of jokiness can create so much ironic distance that it pushes the audience right out of the picture. Huston lets the humor emerge naturally from the characters, for whom we wind up caring more deeply than we ever expected. The digital video disc includes a wonderful documentary on the making of the film. --Jim Emerson

Customer Reviews:

I had to own this classic.......2007-08-30

I love this movie and owned it in VHS. I purchased the DVD as an upgrade.

Great movie, poor DVD.......2007-07-23

I love this movie but found the DVD very disappointing. The (mono) sound quality is particularly bad. Maybe that's the fault of the original, but I doubt it was quite this bad - this was not a low budget movie, and many other movies of the same age and much older sound far superior.

The Man Who Would Be King.......2007-07-05

Director Huston had wanted to do this project for years (originally with Gable and Bogart), but only got the chance in the mid-seventies. It's hard to think of better casting for the two rogue adventurers than Connery and Caine, whose real-life friendship helped spark a genuine, often amusing on-screen chemistry. A deft combination of humor and suspense, the film's climax is unforgettable. Plummer lends solid support as author Kipling. A later Huston treasure-trove.

ITS A CLASSIC!!!.......2007-06-27

Sean Connery? Good! Micheal Caine? Good! and with a Gurkha! My Dad summed it up one school night in my youth. "Your staying up for this one son, its a classic!" Two retired British Army NCO's, Mason's, Alexander the Great, Khafiristan, Martini rifles, and did I mention the Gurkha? This movie brought a fine Rudyard Kipling tale to life with all the action and adventure, gain and loss that you can ask for. "Let's go find safety in battle." is in my top ten of best movie lines. I recommend this movie for anyone who stares off in the distance from time to time wondering if there are any adventures left out there.

Top boys own yarn.......2007-06-06

This great film based on the Book by Kipling is a superbly made ripping yarn. Two rogue British ex-soldiers decide they would like to take over a country. This of course isn't as simple as it seems, even some 100+ years ago.

How they go about this is portrayed brilliantly by Caine and Connery. Made a few years after his last Bond film, Connery dominates the screen the whole time, but Michael Caine pushes him close and produces an at times marvellous comedic performance. I am sure Caine was influenced indirectly and directly by John Huston in this regard.

The other reason for this films greatness is of course John Huston. The direction is a lesson to all modern directors on how to grip an audiences attention whithout the need for CGI or an explosion every five minutes. Full credit to however was responsible for the sound as this makes a huge contribution towards the end.

Somehow I had missed this movie until this year. Now I've seen it I want to see it again and again. Strongly recommended.

Average customer rating:

The man who never was
The man who never was
FUN OLDER FILM
Guile and Cunning...
The Man Who Never Was

The Man Who Never Was
Starring: Clifton Webb , Gloria Grahame , Robert Flemyng , Josephine Griffin , and Stephen Boyd
Director: Ronald Neame
Manufacturer: 20th Century Fox
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Action & Adventure | Genres | DVD | Video

Espionage | Action & Adventure | Genres | DVD | Video

General | Drama | Genres | DVD | Video

Classics | Drama | Genres | DVD | Video

Drama | Kids & Family | Genres | DVD | Video

DVDs Under $7.49 | Today's Deals in DVD | Special Features | DVD | Video

( M ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video
Similar Items:

ASIN: B0007ZEOQE
Release Date: 2005-06-07

Amazon.com

A real beauty of a true story provides the basis for The Man Who Never Was, a gripping World War II picture that has no combat scenes, no great vistas of troops. The time is 1943, as the Allies prepare the invasion of Sicily and desperately need a diversionary ploy to make the Germans suspect another invasion target. The solution is simple but ingenious: a dead man's body will be left in the sea to float ashore on the coast of Spain; made to look like a British pilot, he will be carrying papers suggesting an Allied attack on Greece. When the papers fall to the Nazis, they'll swallow the bogus story…or will they? The film's final third tracks an Irish spy for the Axis (Steven Boyd, in one of his first roles) as he travels to London to investigate loose ends.

Clifton Webb gives a crisp, disciplined performance as Ewen Montagu, the officer in charge of the scheme. The film errs only in some melodrama involving Gloria Grahame, the histrionic roommate of an Intelligence worker. Other than that, director Ronald Neame brings his steady, classy approach to bear on a good yarn, and saves special grace for the treatment of the unfortunate dead man who unwittingly loaned his body to a stunt that saved hundreds, if not thousands, of lives. The film's final haunting shots capture the ethereal shiver of its title. --Robert Horton

Description

Clifton Webb stars in this fascinating account of a daring intelligence operation designed to mislead the Nazis prior to the 1943 Allied invasion of Sicily. In an effort to convince the Germans to redeploy their defenses, Lt. Commander Montagu (Webb) creates a false English officer and fabricates letters that indicate the British intend to land in Greece. Montagu than plants these documents on a dead man and orchestrates the "discovery" of this "officer" on the coast of Spain, Knowing the papers will fall into German hands. What follows is a taut cat-and mouse game as British Intelligence waits for Berlin to respond, then races to stay one step ahead of the Nazi agent dispatched to determine if the dead man is genuine. This true story of ingenious deception is a riveting tale of wartime espionage.

Customer Reviews:

The man who never was.......2007-09-02

A movie version of a real WW II history, that save many lives. at the time of production the name of the dead body was a military secret, recently was declassified, and the body belong to a mental institution patient with no relatives. The facts of the preparation of the body are accurate the romantic part is fiction to adorn the film.
hose who need to know the sacrifices made by allied countries to defeat he axis, including the creation of of a fake Maj. Martin RM, the creation of a life around him. For those who love WW II history is a must see.

The man who never was.......2007-07-30

One of the best WWII movies ever made. Beautifully done. Webb is very believable.

FUN OLDER FILM.......2007-05-17

I really enjoy the 'behind the scenes' stories of WWII. This is a great movie depicting one of the real heroes.

Guile and Cunning..........2007-04-09

"The Man Who Never Was" is a nicely-done movie dramatization derived from the book of the same name by former British Intelligence Officer Ewan Montagu. Montagu (played in the movie by Clifton Webb) was tasked in 1943 to divert German forces from the defense of Sicily, the next Allied objective. Montagu and his team came up with the disturbing but unique idea of planting false papers on a dead body disguised as an Allied officer, then allowing the body to wash ashore in Fascist Spain in the hopes that the information would be passed to the Germans.

The first two thirds of the movie follows the efforts of Montagu's team to find a suitable body and prepare its legend as one Major William Martin, Royal Marines, carrying letters to high officers in the Mediterranean Theater. Amid the disruptions of blitz-torn London, the team deals with details such as procuring a special canister in which the body can be placed, packed in dry ice, for movement by submarine to the Spanish coast. The team invents a girlfriend for the young officer; a roommate (played by Gloria Grahame) of Montagu's secretary obligingly writes the love letters that the dead Martin will carry with him.

This operation, codenamed MINCEMEAT, was a high-risk venture in that there was no assurance that the body would wash ashore, that the materials would be passed to the Germans, or that the Germans would consider the documents credible. In the actual event, the success of the deception was not truly apparent until after the war. The last third of the movie fills this dramatic gap by having a fictional Irishman spying for the Germans (played by Stephen Boyd) check on Martin's bonafides in London. The team finds out about the spy late in the game and must persuade British Internal Security not to arrest him. An emotionally-charged meeting with the roommate, grieving over the loss of her real boyfriend, turns out to be the key to the spy's mission.

This movie is highly recommended as an entertaining and dramatic tale of wartime guile and cunning, based for the most part on a real life event.

The Man Who Never Was.......2007-03-08

An old-fashioned, well told tale of a true story from WWII. This movie tells the story of Major William Martin, a man who did not exist, yet made a significant contribution to the Allied war effort. Clifton Webb, a rather prissy actor, makes a very good, unsuspectedly cerebral Commander Montague, but Gloria Graham as a brash American librarian is the character who sticks with you ... her contribution to the war effort is unwitting and almost as important as Major Martin's. A great escape from a crappy news day movie, a journey back to another time.

Average customer rating:

ok, but should have just rented it
Where is the story?
Really a 3 and a half star movie.
Kinda lame
Sad and mesmerizing

The Man Who Cried
Starring: Christina Ricci , Oleg Yankovsky , Claudia Lander-Duke , Danny Scheinman , and Anna Tzelniker
Director: Sally Potter
Manufacturer: Universal Studios
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Drama | Genres | DVD | Video

Period Piece | Drama | Genres | DVD | Video

Drama | Military & War | Genres | DVD | Video

DTS | Fully Loaded DVDs | Features | DVD | Video

( M ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video

DVDs Under $9.99 | Today's Deals in DVD | Special Features | DVD | Video

Holocaust | Jewish Heritage | Specialty Stores | DVD | Video
Similar Items:

ASIN: B00005R87R
Release Date: 2002-01-02

Amazon.com

Fans of the testudinate pace and art-house vibe of writer-director Sally Potter's other works (Orlando, The Tango Lesson) will likely enjoy The Man Who Cried. Fegele (Christina Ricci) is a Russian Jew separated from her father as a child. Raised as "Susie" by an English family, she makes her way to Paris, where although the city's multiculturalism is vibrant, the Nazis are already on the rise and the secret of her origin becomes increasingly dangerous. The cast of The Man Who Cried is excellent; Cate Blanchett, Johnny Depp, John Turturro, and Harry Dean Stanton all do fine jobs in what could have easily degenerated into an accentfest. Depp and Ricci do very well with minimal dialogue--both go through the entire movie almost without speaking. The film moves at a leisurely pace and is beautifully shot. Not a film to show to a roomful of action movie fans, but it's well suited to people who like their films a little more European in flavor. --Ali Davis

Customer Reviews:

ok, but should have just rented it.......2007-05-14

If you're buying this because you're a Johnny Depp fan I recommend renting it first. It's set in the time of the jewish persecution and WWII. Personally I'm a bit tired of this and it is all repetative for me. This film was interesting in that it had a dark pensiveness and mystery about it, but still not worth purchasing. Just another sad story of persecution. The acting was good and there was an element of wonder, and the ending was happy though bitter sweet.

Where is the story?.......2007-05-01

Dress Johnny Depp as a Gypsy and put him on a poster and I would have been happy. That was the highlight of this movie for me. This incredible cast is amazingly wasted. How on earth can a movie like this lack a story or any kind of meaningful point? Somehow, it does.

Really a 3 and a half star movie........2007-04-08

"The Man Who Cried" starts, literally, from a child's point of view, and even as it pulls back to follow her journey to young adulthood, it never loses the child's sense of life's mystery and enigma. The first few minutes of the movie establish, with very few words and notable compression, the central events, beginning in the late 1920s, of a little Russian Jewish girl's early life, her separation from her father (who emigrates to America) and the violent circumstances under which she leaves her home and arrives in England. The little girl who started life as Fegele finds herself with a new name, Suzie, in an alien world where the only familiar sight is the gypsies who pass by her school. This, a photograph of her father, and the memory of the songs he sang are all that is left to her of her old life. The desire to reach America to find her father never leaves her.

Suzie (played as an adult by Christina Ricci) matures into a pretty girl with a lovely voice who leaves England to become a showgirl in Paris, where she meets Lola (Cate Blanchett), a Russian emigree, Dante (John Turturro), an Italian tenor, and most important, Cesar (Johnny Depp), a Gypsy horseman whose center is as still as hers. The lives of these characters interweave as the Germans approach, then occupy Paris. Suzie must decide whether to use the ticket Lola has given her to reach America, or to stay in occupied Paris.

The first minutes of this film are as good as any I've ever seen. (Claudia Lander-Duke, who plays Fegele/Suzie as a child, is particularly moving.) Though I don't think the movie subsequently ever again quite equals these moments (or that the plot quite supports itself toward the end), the haunting, almost dreamlike, atmosphere created by the wonderful photography, and the central relationship of Suzie and Cesar make the film well worth watching.

Kinda lame.......2007-03-13

There is something missing in this movie. I dunno, I just don't care about these people. I really want to, but I just don't connect with them. It's a beautiful movie, I must give it that.

Sad and mesmerizing.......2007-03-04

Christina Ricci is so believable as a lost Russian Jewish girl misplace in England where she is adopted by a Christian family who is in my opinion sadistic and vile. Cate Blanchett is excellent as a blonde show girl who falls in love with a man (John Turturo) who sees Mussolini as the Italians savior, and then leaves him because her heritage makes her a prime target for the Nazi's who are coming to power.

Johnny Depp, is seems can play any part well. He speaks little but his expressions speak volumes which for me is a sign of a great actor. I found myself feeling like a person across the room drawn into his presence.

The story line is wonderful for those of us who appreciate history and the lessons it has to teach about evil and how no matter how hard we may believe that the evil we see elsewhere can never come to our land, it can.

The music is mesmerizing as is the cinematography. Yes, its slow at times, but I appreciated this because it added some intellectual magic to the movie. Its a terribly sad movie, with an ending that is different. But feeling sadness isn't all bad.

Average customer rating:

Delightful Escapist Fun: An Everyman as Super-Agent
Murray Makes "Too Little" Just Right
Classic
horrible reviews for a hilarious film
Bill Murray at his comic best!

The Man Who Knew Too Little
Starring: Bill Murray , Peter Gallagher , Joanne Whalley , Alfred Molina , and Richard Wilson (II)
Director: Jon Amiel
Manufacturer: Warner Home Video
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Comedy | Genres | DVD | Video

4-for-3 Comedy | 4-for-3 DVD | Stores | DVD | Video

4-for-3 All DVDs | 4-for-3 DVD | Stores | DVD | Video

DVDs Under $7.49 | Today's Deals in DVD | Special Features | DVD | Video

( M ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video
Similar Items:

ASIN: 0790734796
Release Date: 1998-03-25

Amazon.com

Only die-hard Bill Murray fans will likely consider this movie for their home-video library, but it's not without its rewards. You can see why someone as comically astute as Murray would agree to play a dimwitted American who can't tell the difference between improvised theater and a real-life espionage plot. There's certainly plenty of potential for belly laughs, and Murray milks the opportunities like the old pro that he is. Here he plays an American tourist in London who thinks he's been recruited into a street-theater act called "Theater of Life"; actually, he's stepped into a complicated spy scheme that plays like a cross between Hitchcock and the Marx Brothers. Joanne Whalley costars as the femme fatale who may or may not be a double agent, and along the way there's enough comical confusion to foil any number of idiotic villains. The movie stretches its one-joke premise to desperate extremes (Murray thinks he's in a play, so he's oblivious to genuine danger), and 95 minutes is more than enough time to exhaust the comedic possibilities. But, as always, Murray finds a way to mine gold from a few clever bits, and he cuts loose with some inspired lunacy during a climactic scene involving a hidden bomb and a troupe of dancing Cossacks. It's not Murray's finest hour, but give him credit for making the best out of a challenging situation. --Jeff Shannon

Customer Reviews:

Delightful Escapist Fun: An Everyman as Super-Agent.......2007-05-24

I just had to add my two cents' worth to the comments of other viewers who disagreed with the lukewarm (at best) professional review, above.

Bill Murray is brilliant and Joanne Whalley is surprisingly funny in this wonderful, escapist farce about the "guy least likely to..." who somehow, surprisingly, foils all the bad guys, saves the world, and wins the girl -- and has nothing but fun doing it! Who among us hasn't longed to stumble into our own hidden potential for excellence and beat the odds, at one time or another?

This movie may ultimately have all the critical social commentary and stimulating intellectual content of a warm bubble bath, but it's just as relaxing to slip into when life's beating you down and you need something frothy and comforting to take the edge off.

I'm not a die-hard Bill Murray fan, by any means, but I've had this movie in my VHS library for years, in case I need some remedial wish-fulfillment fun at the end of a gruelling week.

Murray Makes "Too Little" Just Right.......2007-03-19

We're not talking classic here. But if you're trapped in the house on a Saturday afternoon after an ice storm(which me and my wife were) this is just what the doctor ordered. There's nothing special about the material where an American space cadet in London thinks he's taking part in an interactive theatrical production when in fact he's embroiled in international espionage. It's star Bill Murray who elevates the material. Murray gets all the juice out of his character, a wannabe actor who works at a Des Moines blockbuster, and runs with it. I found his Wally Ritchie a more engaging presence than the one he was nominated for an Oscar for in "Lost in Translation". Joanne Whalley as a high-priced call girl and Alfred Molina as a Russian assassin also offer terrific support. Not "Caddyshack" or "Groundhog Day" but a terrific entry to the Murray catalogue.

Classic.......2007-02-06

I have been looking for this dvd for quite a while because it is Bill when he is best and the review didnt disappoint any bit.

horrible reviews for a hilarious film.......2007-01-25

Wallace Richie (Bill Murray) works at Blockbuster in Des Moines, and to celebrate his birthday he visits his bigshot brother and banker in London. But brother James must host important German clients to seal a deal, so he enrolls Wallace in a reality television show called "The Theater of Life" where contestants play scripted roles. Wallace mistakenly answers a phone call from a real hit man, remains oblivious throughout the film of the mistaken identity, and the rest of the film is about reality mistaken as fiction and vice versa. This film got horrible reviews, but I thought it was hilarious.

Bill Murray at his comic best!.......2007-01-14

This is one of my all-time favorite movies, and yet I often forget about it. Bill Murray is absolutely hilarious as Wallace Ritchie, and he is surrounded by a fun cast of clueless villians, beautiful women, and incompetent government officials. I love the chase scene, where he knocks down all of the traffic cones - "I've always wanted to do that!" Definitely a classic.

Average customer rating:

Good not Great!!
"Don't you realize that Americans dislike having their children stolen?"
Good remake
One of Hitchcock's "entertainments," and a pleasant two hours it is
A thrilling climax at London's Royal Albert Hall...

The Man Who Knew Too Much
Starring: Patrick Aherne , Frank Atkinson , Yves Brainville , Hillary Brooke , and