Rating: 
Summary: "FAST, FAST ON THE DRAW."
Review: THIS ONE IS AS CLASSIC AS CLASSIC CAN GET.LITTLE GUY ALAN LADD TURNS IN A BIG PERFORMANCE AND UNDOUBTEDLY
THE ONE HE IS MOST REMEMBERED FOR. HIS SEEMINGLY PASSIVE CHARACTER DRIFTS INTO THE TERRITORY AND ACCEPTS WORK AS A 'HIRED HAND' FOR A BLUE COLLAR FARMER, WHO IS ONE OF MANY BESIEGED SODBUSTERS. BRANDON DEWILDE PORTRAYS THE UNFORGETTABLE FARMER'S SON 'JOEY' WHO GROWS TO IDOLIZE THE DELIBERATE STRANGER CLOTHED IN BUCKSKIN AND STRAPPING A CONCHO PISTOL RIG WITH HOLSTERED IVORY STOCKED, NICKEL PLATED PEACEMAKER .45. THERE IS A SCENE IN THE FILM THAT IS LIGHT YEARS AHEAD OF ITS TIME FOR 1953. JOEY'S MOM WHO IS ALSO TAKEN WITH SHANE SCOLDS THE MAN FOR GIVING HER YOUNG SON TIPS ON HANDLING FIREARMS. SHANE ELEQUENTLY RESPONDS AS THOUGH HE IS SPEAKING DIRECTLY TO THE FUTURE BRAIN DEAD ANTIGUN PROPONENTS. "A GUN IS JUST A TOOL." HE SAYS "LIKE A SHOVEL, OR AN AXE. IT IS NO BETTER OR NO WORSE THAN THE MAN WHO USES IT."
THIS IS SUCH SIMPLE LOGIC THAT TOTALLY ELUDES THE POLITICALY CORRECT, WIMPY LIBERALS OF MODERN AMERICA. SHANE BECOMES MIRED IN THE ON GOING LAND FUED BETWEEN CATTLEBARON 'RIKER' AND THE HARDWORKING FARMERS. THERE IS A MEMORABLE FIST FIGHT BETWEEN SHANE AND A 'RIKER' TOUGH PLAYED CONVINCINGLY BY VETERAN CHARACTER ACTOR BEN JOHNSON. WITH EVERY SOLID PUNCH FROM SHANE, ONLOOKING 'JOEY' TAKES A SNAPPING BITE FROM A CANDY CANE. IT IS PURE DIRECTORIAL GENIUS. MODERN FILMAKERS CANT TOUCH SUCH ELEGANCE IN ACTION. BUT THE CLOUDS TURN DARK AS 'RIKER'S' HIRED GUN SHOWS UP IN THE LANKY EVIL EYED FORM OF 'WILSON' DEMONICLY PORTRAYED BY JACK PALANCE. WILSON GOADS ONE COCKY SODBUSTER INTO A GUNFIGHT WHERE THE ASSASIN RUTHLESSLY BLASTS THE MAN BACKWARD SKIDDING THROUGH STREET MUD. THE WHOLE FILM EVOLVES FROM A PLACID BEGINNING TO A SINISTER SHOWDOWN WHERE SHANE WHO IS A REPENANT GUNMAN HIMSELF FEELS OBLIGATED TO RID THE WEST OF RIKER'S PESTILANCE. IN THE LAST CLASSIC CONFRONTATION SHANE TURNS THE TABLES ON WILSON WHO COOLY DRAWS BUT NOT QUICK ENOUGH. SHANE BLOWS THE VILLIAN INTO ETERNITY AND THEN TAKES OUT RIKER AND ANOTHER BACK SHOOTER. AS SHANE DEPARTS HE SYMBOLICLY TWIRLS HIS PISTOL INTO ITS HOLSTER AS THOUGH EXCLAMATING HIS 'JUST' FEAT. OUTSIDE THE SALOON WHERE THE SHOOTOUT OCURRS SHANE DISCOVERS THAT JOEY WITNESSED THE WHOLE THING. SHANE TELLS JOEY THOUGHTFULLY THAT HE (SHANE) CANT RETURN HOME WITH THE BOY. IN SAVING THE RIGHTFUL FARMERS HE HAS CROSSED THE LINE AND CAN NO LONGER LIVE AMONG THEIR RANKS. "THERES NO GOING BACK FROM A KILLING." HE SAYS REGRETFULLY, AND THEN RIDES OFF INTO THE DARKNESS WITH JOEY CALLING HIS NAME RELENTLESSLY. AND AS THE BOY CRIES OUT FOR HIS HERO, WE TOO CRY OUT FOR THIS TYPE OF QUALITY ENTERTAINMENT THAT MUCH LIKE 'SHANE' SEEMS TO HAVE RIDDEN OFF INTO THE SUNSET.
Rating:
Summary: Has it been 50 years?
Review: Out of curiosity, I began to draw up a list of similarities between this film and Pale Rider. After a few minutes, I concluded that the basic situation is the same: a stranger appears, becomes involved with the good folks, frees them from oppression by the bad folks, and then rides off. Also, characters in Pale Rider (1985) have ancestral counterparts in the earlier Shane (1953): Shane/the Preacher, Joe Starrett/ Hull Barret, Joey Starrett/Megan Wheeler, Wilson/Stockburn, and Ryker/Coy LaHood. There are even a few similarities between Marion Starrett and Sarah Wheeler as well as between Chris and Club. Then I asked myself, "So what?" Both are classics, each worthy of admiration for its own contributions to one of the most popular film genres, the western. With his film set amidst Wyoming's magnificent Grand Tetons, George Stevens establishes and then carefully develops the core conflict between the homesteaders and a cattleman/land baron, Rufus Ryker. When Ryker is unable to buy them out or drive them off, he hires Jack Wilson to goad them into gun fights they cannot win. Long before the climactic scene in Grafton's bar, we know that Shane must face Wilson. Moreover, Shane realizes that he can never "retire" from the life that has prepared him for that showdown. (Nor can the character portrayed by Clint Eastwood in Pale Rider.) Some reviewers of this film have criticized the choice of Alan Ladd to play the lead role, noting his diminutive stature (5'5" or thereabouts) and limited acting ability. Obviously Stevens was obliged to use a stand-in for Ladd in a few scenes, notably the great brawl in Grafton's bar. As to Ladd's acting ability, I think it was adequate to the needs of the role he portrayed but the most memorable performance is Jack Palance's as Wilson. His use of body language to communicate menace is unforgettable. I also wish to comment on Van Heflin's often overlooked contributions as he portrayed a decent, loyal, trusting, and caring man. Joe Starrett embodies all of the virtues which -- in combination with a strong back -- must have been required of those who settled in the western territories. I cannot imagine anyone but Heflin in that role nor, for that matter, anyone but Ladd playing Shane. NOTE: The rating is of the film itself; when this DVD is reissued, I hope the supplementary materials are significantly improved.
Rating:
Summary: Alan Ladd at his best in this classic western
Review: Shane is one of the all-time best westerns ever made. Period. It tells the story of the battle between the cattle ranchers and the sodbusters as they battle over land. Amidst the battle, a gunfighter shows up who wants to move on from his bloody past. He sides with the sodbusters as they try to peacably solve the problems with the Reikers, the cattle ranchers. Obviously, they won't go so quietly and problems arise that must be dealt with. This may be a familiar story, but the movie still shines above most of the rest. There are great performances set on the beautiful landscape of the American west. This is an excellent story that can be watched over and over again. Alan Ladd plays the role of Shane to perfection. The viewer believes that the gunfighter wants to leave his past behind and start over again. His role of the noble gunfighter could not have been done any better. Van Heflin stars as Joe Start, the farmer who befriends Shane upon his arrival. Jack Palance is excellent as the gunman hired to drive the farmers off their land with his usual raspy voice and squint that frightens everyone. Brandon De Wilde is great as little Joey, the kid who comes to idolize Shane during his stay. The ending between Shane and Joey is still one of the most famous and recognizable scenes in movie history. Jean Arthur, in her last role, is wonderful as Start's wife and once again succeeds in another great role. This is a classic movie that most viewers will love. It might not have a lot of action but when it does come it is that much more startling. Great western that every movie lover should see!
Rating:
Summary: Remains one of the truly great Westerns
Review: Fifty years after its first release, SHANE remains one of the most highly regarded Westerns of all time. At worst, people seem to regard it as one of the better Westerns, and many regard it as the very best. If you don't like or enjoy ritual in a film--and many Westerns are extremely ritualistic (Sergio Leone took this to extreme levels in his spaghetti Westerns)--you won't like SHANE. The entire film is structured around a host of rites and rituals that structure the relations of all the characters in the film. Some of the rituals are a tad heavy-handed, like the scene in which Shane and Joe Starrett dig up the tree trunk in the yard. More effective are the rituals of survival that have become an indelible mode of existence for Shane and Jack Wilson. One of the great joys of the movie is watching Shane negotiate his physical surroundings, the intense awareness he evidences at every second of everything around him. Rituals and games are closely related to one another, and the movie as a whole is a vast game between the farmers and the rangers. As a whole, this is a first rate cast, with Alan Ladd handing in the finest performance of his career. Was there ever a more despicable villain in a Western than Jack Palance's Jack Wilson? (Trivia: Palance actually could not ride a horse at the time he made this film. Notice the various work-arounds during the course of the film, including his walking into town leading his horse, walking along in front of it, done because Palance looked so awkward in the saddle.) The supporting cast is deep and rich, and many of the performers turn in memorable performances, in particular Elisha Cook Jr. as Stonewall. Brandon De Wilde as Joey, the young boy who idolizes Shane, and through whose eyes the entire movies unfolds (in the novel, Joey is the narrator), manages one of the most likable performances by a young kid ever. SHANE was filmed in Teton National Park, well before it was developed to the extent that it is today, and the exterior shots are as glorious as any film ever made. If anything, the mountains are so magnificent that they actually detract from the story. My only real complaint with the movie is that it isn't as good as the novel. I am not a huge fan of Western novels. Apart from the novel by Jack Schaefer and a couple of books by Larry McMurtry, the only Western novels I really like are those by A. B. Guthrie, who interestingly wrote the screenplay based on Schaefer's novel. Very, very few movies are ever as good as the novel upon which they are based. In particular, the great gunfight at the end is simply not as good as the novel. Still, a great movie, with many, many things to love and admire in it.
Rating: 
Summary: Alan Ladd's Costume Was Terrible!
Review: I saw "Shane" when it was re-released in the mid-sixties. No matter how beautiful the backdrop of the mountains or the performances of the actors, the film had one fatal flaw. Alan Ladd's "Davey Crockett" costume. It was terrible! A gunfighter wearing fringed buckskins? The costume designer should have been shot down by Jack Palance. Ladd should have been dressed in a black suit, dark brown shirt and a black, low crowned hat with the brim turned down. Forget the film, and read the book.
Rating: 
Summary: The novel is better...
Review: If I haven't read the novel by Jack Schaefer I would think this is one of the best westerns ever made. The novel is actually deeper, characters are more compelling, dialogue is crisper. What I particularly disliked about the movie is the portrayal of Shane as a noble Southerner and Jack Palance character as an evil Yankee. There was none of it in the book.
Rating:
Summary: A beautiful film in every aspect......
Review: I could not stop crying at the end when Shane left and I'm 32 yrs old. The story, the morals, the music, the scenery are touching....... This is the way family movies ought to be. It is simply beautiful.
Rating:
Summary: Classic Western
Review: Growing up in the 1960's, television westerns such as Gunsmoke, The Rifleman, Wagon Train, and Bonanza etc., etc, etc, were a major part of my TV viewing diet, and for many years Shane did not seem to match them. But a few years ago I watched Shane from start to finish and discovered what a superb movie it really is. Alan Ladd portrays Shane perfectly as a confident, quiet loner, and his cool, subtle style really brings out the true nature of this movie. What also helps define Shane as a classic western is a strong supporting cast, highlighted by Jack Palance's performance as Jack Wilson. The theme music by Victor Young, the direction of George Stevens, and the screenplay by A.B. Guthrie Jr pave the way for a great western adventure. John Wayne may be the king of movie westerns, but Alan Ladd as Shane is also part of the royal family.
Rating:
Summary: "Prove it"
Review: Shane is a movie with proven formulas that work for the western; good guys, bad guys, homesteaders, cattlemen who made the land suitable for homesteaders (not purposely) and want them gone and the gunfighter who's hired to put down this uprising of intruders. And it's always great to see a bad guy (Ben Johnson) decide to become a good guy. Westerns just don't have the latitude that other types of movies like dramas and mysteries do. Life was simpler then, not easier, but simpler. Compared to other westerns this rates high, especially when you consider when it was made. Alan Ladd (Shane) is a likeable stranger who wants to leave his past behind but can't. Compelled to go on using his guns, he doesn't want to stay in one place long. You know there's going to be a showdown between Ladd and Palance at the end. And Jean Arthur's abhorrence of firearms is a ridiculous. Without them there wouldn't have been a homestead for them to go to in the first place.
Rating:
Summary: Jack Palance's Big Moment
Review: SHANE is usually on anyone's list of favorite Westerns. It is a story about a range war between cattlemen and homesteaders in Wyoming. A loner named Shane (Alan Ladd) rides into the thick of the battle and settles down as a guest of one of the farmers (Van Heflin). Shane is trying to forget his past as a gunman. He is much admired by Van Heflin's son (Brandon de Wilde) and also in a seemingly innocent way by Van Heflin's wife (Jean Arthur). The movie is filled with an abundance of memorable scenes. One is a gunfight between a hired killer (Jack Palance) and a stubborn homesteader named Frank 'Stonewall' Torrey (Elisha Cook, Jr.). It is hard to believe that Palance was not comfortable with horses as suggested by the Internet Movie Database. The big competition for Academy awards in 1953 came from ROMAN HOLIDAY, STALAG 17 and FROM HERE TO ETERNITY. In spite of the tough field, SHANE still managed to win an Oscar for best Color Cinematography and nominations for Best Picture, Director, Supporting Actor (Brandon de Wilde , Jack Palance) and Screenplay.
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