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The three films that Clark Cable did for Fox Studios
are collected here in this lavish box set. ***
THE CALL OF THE WILD (1935; 95 minutes) Jack Thorton
(Gable) is a down-on-his-luck gambler trying to raise enough
money to get to the Alaskan gold fields. While on his travels,
he meets up with Shorty Houlihan, who has a map that shows
where the gold deposits are. The map was supposed to go
to the husband of Claire Blake (Loretta Young), and through
an act of chivalry, Jack comes to protect Claire. As they
get ever nearer to the Yukon, so does their feelings for
one another come to the surface. ***
This film is based loosely on Jack London's novel of
the same name, though it would appear that much of the story
was reworked to match Gable's known Hollywood personality.
Young is a ravishing as ever in the classic Hollywood sense.
Their on screen chemistry is captured quite efficiently,
as they became lovers during the shoot and had a daughter
together. The story here is a bit absurd, but it is only
to be seen as a canvas that allows for love to prevail and
for evil to be punished. ***
SOLDIER OF FORTUNE (1955; 96 minutes) When Jane Hoyt's
husband goes missing, she travels to Hong Kong to try and
find him. She finds no help from the U.S. Consulate, and
must turn to Hank Lee (Clark Gable), a soldier of fortune,
to track her husband down. Lee accepts the job, despite
the fact that a British inspector is trying to trap him
for his illegal activities. Lee soon falls head over heels
for Jane, but realizes that he is in a paradox - in order
to prove himself worthy to her, he must rescue her husband
who has been imprisoned on spying charges. ***
Gable returns to Fox after twenty years for this adventure,
based on the novel of the same name by Ernest Gann. Although
getting up in his years, Gable is still able to pull off
the physical role and look good doing it. Special note must
be made to Leo Tover, the cinematographer, who captures
the vibe, essence and living energy of 1950â?Ts Hong Kong
perfectly, and forever documents the city in this film.
This may be Gableâ?Ts most Rhett Butler-esque role, but
it is the photography and full-orchestral soundtrack that
make this movie truly worth watching. ***
THE TALL MEN (1955; 122 minutes) While on a cattle
drive from Texas to Montana brothers Ben (Clark Gable) and
Clint save Nella from a band of Indians. Nella joins the
two cowboys, and soon romantic sparks fly between Ben and
Nella. Ben, however, only has small aspirations in life.
This causes Nella to let her eyes start to wander toward
the cattle owner, Nathan, who wealth and grand ideas would
allow Nella to lead an easy life. This creates an unspoken
tension in the group, which could threaten the cattle ever
making it to their final destination, and forces Nella into
a position of choosing one tall man over the other. ***
Gable returned to the bosom of Fox a second time in
1955 for this sweeping western romance, and his bigger-than-life
on-screen persona shines brightly with the help of cinematographer
Leo Tover, who is on hand again to bring in breath-taking
views of the west. Jane Russell is on hand looking quite
stunning, and sings two songs filled with classic Hollywood
double-entendre, while Robert Ryan does an excellent job
as the greedy heavy who tries to control Gableâ?Ts character.
Image & Sound:
Special care was given to each film during the restoration
and preservation process, and the finalized work looks fantastic.
The blacks and whites are crisp and clean, and the audio
is clear as a bell. Take note of the before and after comparisons
in the special features to see just what Fox was dealing
with. There are English tracks in both 2.0 stereo and 4.0,
French and Spanish dubs, as well as English and Spanish
subtitles. ---
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