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| Broderick Crawford, John Ireland, Mercedes
McCambridge, John Derek, Joanne Dru |
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Anamorphic
widescreen |
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Dolby Digital
5.1 |
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DTS |
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Trailer(s) |
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Featurette(s) |
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Documentary |
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Audio commentary
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Deleted scenes
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Concept art
/ storyboards |
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Multi-angle
feature |
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Willie
Stark (Broderick Crawford): Now listen to me, you hicks! Listen
to me and lift up your eyes and look at God's blessed and unfly-blown
truth. And this is the truth! You're a hick. And nobody ever
helped a hick but a hick himself.
A
charismatic local campaigner is quickly corrupted when he enters the
real world of politics and runs for governor.
A
somewhat controversial cause célèbre at the time
of its release in 1949, this political drama is one of those Oscar-winning
classics that hasn't aged particularly well. Its exposé of corruption,
nepotism and mob-based tactics in the highest levels of state politics
may have been shockingly revelatory at the time. But they have since
become commonplaces of the genre, making this film more interesting
for historic reasons than for its narrative, which contemporary audiences
will find largely predictable and slow-moving.
Several performances now also come across very dated, but Broderick
Crawford (who won an Oscar for this role but returned to obscurity soon
after) does play the central role of politician Willie Stark exceptionally
well, with a smooth audacity that makes his shift from idealistic crusader
to mob-like dictator credible and compelling. Also impressive are the
montage sequences (directed - uncredited - by Don Siegel), swiftly depicting
the political campaigns in the film. These elements together with Robert
Rossen's usual sure hand at directing make this an entertaining film
even though it hardly has the impact it had half a century ago. |
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Identical
versions are available for Region 1 and Region 2.
The
film is presented in a fullscreen frame ratio of 1.33:1, closely approximating
its original Academy Ratio of 1.37:1. The source print is in good shape,
with only a limited number of scratches and other blemishes. Blacks
are very solid, and contrast levels excellent throughout.
The monaural soundtrack is presented in Dolby Digital 2.0 and is in
good shape: there is very little hiss or pop, and the sound mix has
a fairly wide range for such an old picture. Voices are consistently
clear and fully intelligible.
The
only extra on the disc is the theatrical trailer, which is accompanied
by 'cross-promotional' trailers for other classic Columbia titles available
on DVD. The booklet contains an interesting article on the film by director
Robert Rossen.Good-looking
static menu screens are designed like 1940s campaign material. Navigation
is pleasant and straightforward.
Dan
Hassler-Forest
Reviewed: 2001
Click
here for IMDB info on All
the King's Men.
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