The Sundowners (VCI/1950)
Picture: C
Sound: C Extras: C Film: C+
Does The Western always have to have great meaning to be
good or great? Well, yes if you want
greatness, but the genre at its peak had smaller moments worth noting that
might go underappreciated, and George Templeton’s The Sundowners (1950)
is one of those little films that works better than it should.
The two Cloud Brothers Tom (Robert Sterling) and ‘Kid
Wichita’ James (Robert Preston) are on opposite sides of the law. After years of wrangling, Tom is actually
the bad guy and with kids involved, the years of avoiding suppressed personal
feelings and putting unfinished business on hold can no longer stand. Instead of some phony “happy family
understanding” conclusion we would get thrown at us, this is a film that
follows some formula and conventions, yet is done with some intensity and
consistency that makes it more watchable than the usual formula sludge the
genre was becoming known for at the time.
Add one of the best roles and performances by all-time
Western stand-by Chill Wills and you get a very watchable film form the Eagle
Lion Studio that works well, especially if you are a fan of Westerns. It takes itself more seriously than most
films of its kind did to that time and the screenplay by writer/producer Alan
De May is much better than his High Lonesome (reviewed elsewhere on this
site) for the same company the same year.
Jack Elam also stars, so what more could you want?
The film
was shot in three-strip Technicolor by cinematographer Winton C. Hoch, who gets
some good angles in, with the problematic print shown here is presented at 1.33
X 1 (though was it 1.66 X 1? We cannot say for certain) has softness and
colors that are starting to go. It still has a few good color moments,
however. The Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono is a few generations down, but is not
bad. Extras include a stills gallery with poster art, text bios, a VCI
promo for other Western DVDs and an average episode of Stories of The
Century that is worth a look. The
Sundowners is a pleasant surprise for fans and non-fans might enjoy
it too.
- Nicholas Sheffo
