#516: FORD, John: Stagecoach (1939)

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FORD, John (United States)
Stagecoach [1939]
Spine #516
Blu-ray


This is where it all started. John Ford's smash hit and enduring masterpiece Stagecoach revolutionized the western, elevating it from B movie to the A-list and establishing the genre as we know it today. The quintessential tale of a group of strangers thrown together into extraordinary circumstances, Stagecoach features outstanding performances from Hollywood stalwarts Claire Trevor, John Carradine, and Thomas Mitchell, and, of course, John Wayne, in his first starring role for Ford, as the daredevil outlaw the Ringo Kid. Superbly shot and tightly edited, Stagecoach (Ford's first trip to Monument Valley) is Hollywood storytelling at its finest.

96 minutes
Black & White
Monaural
1:37:1 aspect ratio
Criterion Release 2010
Director/Writers


Original story by Ernest Haycox.
Screenplay by Dudley Nichols.
John Ford was 55 when he directed Stagecoach.

Other Ford films in the Collection:

#320: Young Mr. Lincoln (1939)
#732: My Darling Clementine (1946)

The Film

Film Rating (0-60):

60

The Extras

The Booklet

Thirty-six page booklet featuring an essay by critic David Cairns and Haycox’s Stage to Lordsburg, the short story that inspired the film.

Commentary

By western authority Jim Kitses (Horizons West).

Bucking Broadway

A 1917 silent feature by Ford, with new music composed and performed by Donald Sosin.
Video interview 1

Journalist and television presenter Philip Jenkinson’s extensive 1968 interview with Ford.
Video appreciation

Of Stagecoach with director and Ford biographer Peter Bogdanovich.
Video interview 2

With Ford’s grandson Dan Ford about the director and his home movies.
Video piece

Featuring journalist Buzz Bissinger, about trader Harry Goulding’s key role in bringing Monument Valley to Hollywood.
Video homage

To legendary stuntman Yakima Canutt, with celebrated stunt coordinator Vic Armstrong.

Video essay

By writer Tag Gallagher analyzing Ford’s visual style in Stagecoach.

Screen Director’s Playhouse

From a 1949 radio dramatization of Stagecoach with Wayne, Trevor, and Ford.

Theatrical trailer

Extras Rating (0-40):

39

60 + 39 =

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