Directed by James Neilson
Starring James Stewart, Audie Murphy, Dan Duryea, Dianne Foster, Elaine Stewart, Brandon de Wilde, Jay C. Flippen, Robert J. Wilke, Hugh Beaumont
This is one some of us have really been waiting for — Night Passage (1957) is finally coming to Blu-Ray, where it most certainly belongs. Elephant Films out of France have announced its hi-def debut for March 2017.
Shot in Technirama, a high-fidelity combination of VistaVision and anamorphic widescreen, this picture is as sharp as the movies ever got. And with loads of incredible location work in Durango, Colorado, it’s stunning.
The movie itself, while it’s no masterpiece, has been unjustly maligned. You’ll find the story behind all that in a post from a few year ago. It’s still one of my favorite pieces, thanks in large part to the terrific discussion that cropped up in the comments.
Thanks to Allen Smithee for the news.
What can I say… Lord, I love this movie!
A couple of things: it looks gorgeous, and the score was great. Murphy was never better, and I think de Wilde was a great talent. By the time Stewart was loading his leading lady into a mining car, I knew this picture had everything! Best of all, Stewart wasn’t haunted, brooding, crazed…
I think the reason this film gets a bad rapp is because there is an inherent sweetness to it absent from the Mann pictures. The tenderness between de Wilde and Stewart, or Murphy and Stewart, would never play in a Mann film. That undercurrent of sweetness is just not, sadly, part of the current zietgist, and we have no time for it. A shame really, because it is this quality that sets Night Passage apart and makes it special. (Heresy, I know, but I prefer it to the Mann films!)
I was just so impressed by the polish of this movie, the visuals, the deft playing (heck, I like Dureya), and the whole emotional tenor of the thing. A true Western gem!
Thanks for chiming in, Bob. The back and forth this movie generates always makes me feel good — this is when this blog really shines.
The last time I watched Night Passage, I’d made peace with Duryea’s performance — and found it very funny, especially with how well Murphy bounced off of him.
The relationship between the brothers, Stewart and Murphy, always gets to me. The relationship between brothers, and the idea of redemption, are pretty common themes in 50s Westerns — and things I’m drawn to in these movies. This one does a terrific job with both.
I agree with this, Bob.
I’ve always felt that the bad vibe this movie received may have been connected to the fact that Mann backed out of the project and therefore it must be inferior in some eyes.
Personally, it has always been a western I liked a lot. Murphy at his absolute peak.
HELP! I need help in remembering the title to a western – Two cowboys (older guy and younger guy) accompanied by a girl and an injured indian journey thru tribal land and are hunted by other indians and some bad guys. The movie ends in a shoot out along a river with the good guy sitting on top of a large rock firing down at the bad guys. I thought Audie Murphy was co-star, but maybe I’m wrong. Probably released around 1950 – 1955.
I figured out the name of the movie – NAKED SPUR. My father in law was asking me about it and insisted it starred Jimmy Stewart.
Agreed with all of the positive comments, especially about Murphy, who is just wonderful, but if Mann disagreed about his casting as Stewart’s brother, then he and I are in accord. Something should have been juggled in the scenario to make something more sensible, or reasonable, a bout these two men. Other than that, there is no question that Neilson is more than a step down. He misses the humor in the Irish comedic set piece, he allows Duryea to bore the hell out of everyone, and he misses directorial beats throughout, especially when Stewart is revealed by the traitorous railroad man. Despite those things, it is still a terrific picture and I will certainly pick up the Blu Ray.
Marvelous western. Excellent shootout at the finale. Agreed it’s not a classic but it inhabits the same realm as Broken Lance, The Last Wagon, From Hell to Te
xas et al..