The new The Searchers 4K set is a wonderful release that does this classic John Ford film starring John Wayne justice.
“When the horizon’s at the bottom, it’s interesting. When the horizon’s at the top, it’s interesting. When the horizon’s in the middle, it’s boring as s—,” was the advice that the legendary director John Ford gave to a young Steven Spielberg. That philosophy is in full display in 1956’s The Searchers, which is one of the finest Westerns ever made and the most interesting collaboration between Ford and star John Wayne.
“Working together for the 12th time, John Wayne and director John Ford forged The Searchers into a landmark Western offering an indelible image of the frontier and the men and women who challenged it. Wayne plays an ex-Confederate soldier seeking his niece, captured by Comanches, who massacred his family. He won’t surrender to hunger, thirst, the elements, or loneliness. And in his five-year search, he encounters something unexpected: his own humanity,” says the synopsis.
First off, The Searchers 4K is absolutely gorgeous to watch. Using a wonderfully restored version of the film from its original negative, the film regularly wows with its American landscapes. Ford shoots the film beautifully, with some of the most stunning shots that can be found in any Western regularly coming up over its nearly two-hour runtime.
What really makes the film special, though, and so interesting to revisit, is how it depicts its main character. Far from the typical hero that Wayne plays, his character in The Searchers is a violent, bloodthirsty racist out for revenge against the Native Americans who killed his brother and kidnapped his two young nieces. Wayne is given plenty to work with and has some iconic moments, such as the line “That’ll be the day,” and its influence through pop culture is easy to see when revisiting.
The Searchers 4K disc only has one special feature, which is an excellent archival commentary track by critic and director Peter Bogdanovich. However, the Blu-ray disc has a ton of fantastic special features that are worth the price of admission by itself.
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