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James Stewart Westerns on DVD The Rare Breed 
Don't have a cow, boy! James Stewart stars with the wonderful Maureen O'Hara in this tale of cow boys and English girls and fish out of water. Stewart is Sam Burnett, an aging cowboy hired to “steer” a rare English Hereford bull to its new home in Texas. O’Hara is Martha Evans who, with daughter Hilary (Juliet Mills), has brought the Hereford (named Vindicator) with the intention of its giving the good ol’ Texas Longhorn a run for the money. This plan is met with derision by the Yanks, but the bull sells and the first part of the movie follows its journey to its new home, accompanied by Burnett and, much to his chagrin, the two ladies. There are schemes within schemes, though, including some “shady business practices” that threaten to scuttle the ladies’ mission before it’s hardly begun. But thanks to Martha’s indomitable spirit they manage to bully their way to the bull’s destination and new owner, a displaced Scot named Alexander Bowen (played, in an over the top performance, by Brian Keith). Then there’s the love triangle! Bowen decides to marry Martha (whose daughter has already fallen in love and decided to remain in Texas), but Martha and Sam love each other - though neither will admit it. It’s the bull that pulls them together (gee, isn't it the bull that usually destroys relationships?), eventually, though we won’t spoil the story by spilling the beans here. Suffice it to say that The Rare Breed is big and entertaining, with classic performances by a classic cast. The DVD’s pretty good, too. Universal has wisely released it with anamorphic widescreen video (16x9 TV compatible) and the picture quality is very good indeed. Colors are rich and the images are sharp, which is exactly how it should be. The only problem with such a good picture quality is that you can really see just how many of the so-called outdoor shots were filmed on a sound stage! The Dolby Digital 2 channel mono audio, not surprisingly for a film of this vintage, is unremarkable. Extras include the original theatrical trailer The Rare Breed, from Universal Home Video 
Kind of a “Mr. Smith Goes West,” Destry Rides Again teams James Stewart with Marlene Dietrich in this comedy drama that really must be seen. Stewart is Tom Destry, son of a famous lawman who cleaned up the frontier town of Bottleneck. Dietrich is Frenchy, a siren saloon singer who steals the show - and the hearts of pretty well everyone who comes near her. It’s been a while since Destry Senior, who we never see, did his clean up act in Bottleneck and the town is now a hotbed of corruption again. With the demise of the latest sheriff, the powers that be (all of whom are also corrupt) name the town drunk - who was the original Destry’s deputy - to the job. He enlists “little Destry” expecting a new version of the old man. But this Destry marches to his own drummer, and one look at the tall, gangling dude has everyone in Bottleneck laughing. Destry doesn’t carry a gun (it could get him hurt), but he has other assets such as a strong, sure wit, strength of character, and the guts to back himself up. Needless to say, everyone has underestimated Destry and in his own quiet way he kicks major league posterior until the town is tamed once more. Stewart is as Stewart does, which means he’s usually great, and in this film he’s no different. Dietrich is outstanding in her role, which includes her famous singing of the "Boys in the Backroom" and other barroom ditties. Supporting players include Mischa Auer and Una Merkel, the latter of whom participates in a cat fight that’s one of the film’s highlights. The DVD is very good. Universal has released this black and white feature in its original, full frame aspect ratio of 1.33:1, which will please owners of “old fashioned” TV’s because they won’t have to suffer through those black bars. Owners of widescreen TV’s, however, will have to stretch and/or zoom the picture to fit the 16x9 screen lest they risk burning in the gray bars to each side of the squarish picture. The picture quality is very good, sharp and contrasty. Audio, Dolby Digital 2 channel mono, is about as one would expect from a 1939-vintage flick. There are no extras. Destry Rides Again, from Universal Home Video 
Before there was Mel Gibson’s The Patriot, there was James Stewart and Shenandoah, a remarkably moving story of a Virginia family caught in the crossfire of the American civil war. Stewart is Charlie Anderson, patriarch and farmer, a man who chose not to get his family involved in the war. Though a Southerner, he doesn’t believe in slavery - and he doesn’t believe in war, either. He’s challenged enough with being a single father raising a large family and has neither the time nor the inclination to get involved in politics and/or death. Charlie loves and cherishes his family above all other considerations. He’s intelligent, strong, firm, and fair, but when his youngest son, Boy (whose birth also caused Charlie’s beloved wife’s death), is captured by Union soldiers who think he’s a Rebel soldier he’s forced out of his inaction. He and most of his family head out looking for the young boy and, though they don’t find him, they do find and free a trainload of southern POW’s as they’re about to be taken north by train. Among the prisoners is Sam (Doug McCLure), who had just married Charlie’s only daughter - only to be called up before any sort of honeymoon could be had. There are several emotionally charged situations in Shenandoah, including a horrifying atrocity that befalls the Andersons left behind to care for the farm (a scene that’s all the more frightening because most of it happens off screen, leaving you to imagine the worst that probably happened), yet the movie seasons its emotional wallops with some surprising humor. Stewart is outstanding as Charlie Anderson, bringing his own quiet dignity to the role. His scene at the family cemetery at movie’s end - a quiet plot that now holds more family members than he’d ever have dreamed - is enough to make the most macho tear up if he’s a father and/or husband. Besides Doug McClure, the supporting cast includes Glenn Corbett, Rosemary Forsyth, Patrick Wayne, and a very young Katherine Ross. Director Andrew V. McLagen crafts a beautiful, haunting movie that’s as powerful today as when it was made. Universal’s DVD features an anamorphic widescreen (16x9 TV compatible) that, despite its flaws (some grain, crackles and other distortion), is generally sharp and features wonderfully rich colors. Audio is Dolby Digital mono and is about what one would expect from a 1960’s vintage movie. Unfortunately, this important film has been given short shrift when it comes to extras. All you get is the theatrical trailer. We’d love to see a special edition with some meaty extras. But we’re also happy to have this marvelous movie finally on DVD. Shenandoah, from Universal Home Video
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