The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance - 4K Blu-ray Review

[Michael Scott]

The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance



Movie:
4K Video:
Video:
Audio:
Extras:
Final Score:



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Movie
John Ford is pretty much synonymous with the word “westerns”. With a massive career spanning nearly 70 years, he has put out some of the biggest Westerns that the silver screen has ever seen, many of them starring John Wayne (who is also synonymous with the word “western”). However, very few ever match the star power and sheer genius story telling that is found within The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance. Famously shot in black and white during the early 60s due to the fact that both Stewart and Wayne were 55 and 53 playing themselves 30 years earlier, and it would have really broken believeability in color, it stands as one of Ford’s final films, and easily his coup de grace.

Paramount released the film on Blu-ray back in 2015, then re-released it in 2017, and now FINALLY gets a new 4K remaster and joins the Paramount Presents lineup 5 years later. Interestingly enough, Paramount has stepped outside of the norm for this release. The Paramount Presents line has primarily been for 4K remasters that they put out on Blu-ray, and IF a 4K UHD disc is struck, the Blu-ray is released under the Paramount Presents lineup, and the 4K UHD disc is released separately (ala Days of Thunder). And to top it off, Paramount has really stepped away from combo packs recently, something of which I’ve been rather critical of. HOWEVER, not only is The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance the first 4K UHD part of the Paramount Presents lineup, it also includes the remastered Blu-ray as well in combo pack form, something which actually had me sitting up and taking notice, as I heartily approve of this change of pace for paramount.

The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance is actually a lot deeper of a film than most people give it credit for. In fact, it’s probably one of the most introspective and subversive classic westerns out there. It tells the story of Ransom Stoddard (Jimmy Stewart), who acts as a sort of unreliable witness to his past. He’s come back to the ramshackle town of Shinbone (I got a chuckle out of that name) to attend the funeral of his old friend Tom Donifan (John Wayne). Now a senator and an ex governor of the state, Stoddard tells the story of how he became who he was to a reporter, unveiling the secret of his past that shot him to stardom, and has been weighing on his heart.

Arriving in Shinbone as a young lawyer some 30 years earlier, Stoddard is robbed, humiliated, and basically nearly killed by the outlaw Liberty Valance (Lee Marvin). Valance is basically allowed to run roughshod over the town due to the fact that he’s one of the fastest guns around, and his men (which includes legendary spaghetti Western actor Lee Van Cleef) basically terrorize everyone they come across. The drunken Marshall (played by veteran character actor Andy Devine, whose unique voice is most notable as Friar Tuck in the animated Robin Hood Disney flick) can’t do anything about him, and the only person who’s faster than Liberty refuses to get involved. Wanting to live by the law and do things right, Stoddard sets up a law practice in Shinbone and attempts to open a school and push the territory towards State hood, all the while figuring out how to arrest Liberty Valance. With the help of the beautiful and meek Hallie (Vera Miles) and Tom Doniphon (e.g., the one man who Liberty Valance is afraid of) hetries his best, but at the end of the day the law of the west still presides, leading up to an epic showdown between the mild mannered lawyer and the killer that everyone is terrified of.

Spoiler alert. While it’s not exactly a secret by the title alone, I’m going to have to make the ending twist known for some of what’s to come, so be warned and skip ahead to the summary at the bottom of the page if you need to.

Now this is where The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance gets interesting. The first 2/3rds of the film is your typical western hero’s journey. Stoddard starts out as the weakling who has his ideals and morals, but no true strength. He’s got book smarts, but no street smarts. As the film progresses he becomes more and more sure of himself, practicing with a gun when he knows he doesn’t stand a chance. The only person who can stand a chance (Tom Doniphon) refuses to get involved, but honestly starts to show respect for his gumption. This all culminates in the infamous scene where Stoddard stands up to Valance and puts a bullet in him despite taking his battle wounds. At this point he becomes the hero of Shinbone, which skyrockets him to fame, fortune, the girl of his dreams and a career that he always wanted. At the same time Donophin, who has also been vying for Hallie, crumbles to pieces and allows Doniphon to take Hallie from him, knowing it’s for the greater good. But here’s the kicker...it’s all based upon a lie. The end few moments of the movie has Stoddard breaking down over killing Liberty Valance. A move he would have considered outside the law when he first came, only for Doniphan to tell him that HE shot Liberty over Stoddard’s shoulder in order to save the bumbling lawyer’s life. A twist that allows Stoddard to live with the fact that his hands are clean, and that the statehood needs him to at the helm.

At the same time it opens up an entire host of questions and suppositions that the audience is allowed to make. At face value it starts to open up a can of worms over Stoddard’s heroism. Is he really the hero of the film anymore? He knowingly took a lie and staked his entire career on it. He didn’t murder a man in the street, but he is willing to let people think he did in order to further himself. Suddenly Doniphan’s crumbling sorrow is seen in a whole new light. At first you’re wondering why Doniphan does nothing. He’s a man’s man, willing to stand up to Liberty Valance when it suits him, but allowing him to run roughshod over the town when it doesn’t. He’s sort of a symbol of American individualism, wanting to be part of society, but also wanting to be his own man. Even his failed semi courtship of Hallie is done on HIS terms, and he seems to skulk in the shadows like a coward. He loves Hallie in his own way, but he builds the structure of his own demise, killing Liberty Valance in the shadows to save Stoddard’s life, but in the process he sets Stoddard up to win Hallie. Thus sending him into a downward spiral where he burns down the home he was building for Hallie after doing so.

You have to ask. Is Doniphan a tragic hero and Stoddard the fallen one? The one who had high ideals and morals, but in the end is willing to sacrifice them for the greater good (or at least HIS perception of the greater good) only to have that knowledge eat away at him over the years. However, this is all based upon the premise that Doniphan was telling the truth, or that Stoddard was as well. Consider the fact that the only account of the WHOLE story is told from Stoddard’s memory. There are distinct hints throughout the movie that the lawyer/senator/governor may be an unreliable witness, and also take into account that Doniphan may have simply told Stoddard what he wanted to hear. Stoddard is literally willing to walk away from politics over the shame of killing Liberty Valance, and Doniphan swoops in to assure him that his conscience is clear, and that HE shot Liberty. It’s hinted at, but never truly shown that Doniphan’s admission of guilt may simply have been him trying to assuage the lawyer’s guilt and push him into his destiny, and that Stoddard may truly HAVE killed Valance. A sort of final gift from a man who saw his girl taken away and his last vestige of happiness go down the drain, but is still willing to back his friend up.

Either way, The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance has an enormous amount to unpack, and is a truly fabulous western that allows the audience to sort of make up their own mind about what happened, as well as tackling subjects such as heroism, cowardice, and deconstructing western cliches. Subversive, filled with GREAT performances by all involved, and one of my favorite westerns to revisit. Each time I revisit the film I get a little more out of it, and have a chance to deconstruct what really happened back in Shinbone all over again. A true masterpiece.




Rating:

Not Rated by the MPAA




4K Video: Video:

The Blu-ray encode for the 2013 film was a great transfer by all accounts nearly a decade ago, and actually still looks really good today. However, this new 4K remaster looks incredible. They used the new master for the included Blu-ray as well, and it is JUST as spectacular, slightly edging out the 2013 Blu-ray with it’s refined look. The black and white photography is immaculate, with razor sharp details midst the natural grain elements, and stunning inky blacks that simply blow the 1080p disc out of the water. The very first thing I thought to myself when I popped in the new Blu-ray was just how much the blacks are better on the 4K UHD, even though it’s quite impressive on Blu-ray as it is. You can see the details on Jimmy Stewart’s face after he shoots Liberty, and every bit of boardwalk and wooden housing shows up with pinpoint precision. The HDR and Dolby Vision really do enhance not only the blacks, but the white levels as well, allowing us to see better in dimly list scenes, as well as make out more accurate details in the daylight shots. There still is the infamous scene where Ransom is staring down at Mr. Peabody’s body that looks washed out and murky, but that particular scene has looked that way as long as I’ve seen the film, and seems to be source related.

One thing I did notice was that film historian and preservationist, Robert Harris, was displeased with how the grain seems to have been scrubbed slightly and considers it a slightly botched transfer. Personally, I nearly always agree with Robert Harris’s opinion on things of that nature, but respectfully I have to disagree, as while there may have been some light grain scrubbing, it’s so slight that you can hardly tell, and the benefits of the transfer far outweigh any minor issues with the grain (which really DOES look fantastic).



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Audio:

The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance recycles the same 5.1 Dolby TrueHD track (and the restored Mono 2.0 Dolby Digital original audio) from the 2013 Blu-ray, which means it’s just as good, and has the same few minor problems as well. The 5.1 track is quite good, but it’s not perfect. Vocals are generally clean and clear, and the dynamics have been boosted from the Mono mix, that’s for sure. However, some surround activity and balance issues make it sound a bit wonky from time to time. Personally I like the original audio mix a bit better, but it has some minor hiss and crackles, and the dynamics are dramatically squashed in comparison. It’s a bit of a trade off choosing which mix to listen to, but even so, both mixes are definitely quite nice.













Extras:

• 4K BLU-RAY/BLU-RAY COMBO RELEASE
• BRAND NEW 4K RESTORATION OF THE FILM BY PARAMOUNT PICTURES
• HDR PRESENTATION OF THE FILM
• NEW Filmmaker Focus – Leonard Maltin on The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance
• Feature commentary by filmmaker Peter Bogdanovich, along with his archival recordings with John Ford and James Stewart
• Selected scene commentary with introduction by Dan Ford, along with his archival recordings with John Ford, James Stewart and Lee Marvin
• The Size Of Legends, The Soul Of Myth
-- Chapter 1: Changing Of The Guard
-- Chapter 2: The Irascible Poet
-- Chapter 3: The Hero Doesn't Win, The Winner Isn't Heroic
-- Chapter 4: Most Things Happen By Accident
-- Chapter 5: The Great Protector
-- Chapter 6: Spotlight – Lee Marvin
-- Chapter 7: Print The Legend
-- Original Theatrical Trailer
• Collectible packaging featuring a foldout image of the film's theatrical poster and an interior spread with key movie moments

Final Score: ​

The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance is a bonafide John Ford classic, with fantastic performances by all involved. It has it all, gunfights, John Wayne, Jimmy Stewart, a classic man e mano battle, and one of the coolest twists that subverts most of western cliche’s in one fell swoop. The new 4K remaster looks great on both the Blu-ray and the 4K UHD, and Paramount outdid themselves by actually making it a combo pack that INCLUDES both restored format types (something which really shocked me considering Paramount has been doing away with combo packs recently). All in all, this is one of my favorite Paramount Presents discs, and a must buy for anyone who loves classic westerns (or just classics in general). Great Buy.


Technical Specifications:

Starring: Jimmy Stewart, Lee Marvin, Lee Van Cleef, John Wayne, Andy Devine
Directed by: John Ford
Written by: James Warner Bellay, Willis Goldbeck, Dorothy M. Johnson (based on the story by)
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1 HEVC
Audio: English: Dolby TrueHD 5.1, English DD 2.0 Mono, German, Spanish (Latin), Spanish (Castilian), French, Italian, Japanese DD 2.0 Mono
Subtitles: English, English SDH, Danish, German, Spanish (Spain), Spanish (Latin America), French, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Dutch, Norwegian, Polish, Simplified Chinese, Finnish, Swedish
Studio: Paramount
Rated: NR
Runtime: 123 minutes
Blu-ray Release Date: May 17th, 2022

Recommendation: Great Buy

 

[tripplej]

Thanks for the review. I can't remember seeing this so I will have to check it out.