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| Dvdivas
was founded by John Gabbard in 2000. It's purpose has been and
remains to be to provide you, the entertainment community with
the latest dvds and movie reviews. It will continue to be your
link to the most popular dvd movies. |
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"Have
Gun Will Travel"- Season 1
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Reviewed
by: |
Wayne A. Klein |
| Genre: |
Western |
| Video: |
1.33:1 Full
Screen, black and white |
| Audio: |
Dolby Digital
Surround 2.0 (mono) |
| Languages |
English,
Mono |
| Subtitles |
None |
| Length |
Approximately
975 minutes |
| Rating |
NR |
| Release Date |
5/11/04 |
| Studio |
Paramount
Home Video |
| Commentary:
|
None |
| Documentaries:
|
None |
| Featurettes:
|
None |
| Filmography/Biography:
|
Cast |
|
Interviews: |
None |
| Trailers/TV
Spots: |
None |
| Alternate/Deleted
Scenes: |
None |
| Music
Video: |
None |
| Other:
|
Production
notes, Behind-The Scenes Episodic Information |
| Cast
and Crew: |
Richard Boone,
Kam Tong, June Lockhart, Jack Lord, Charles Bronson, Angie Dickinson |
| Written
By: |
Charles Beaumont,
Sam Peckinpah, Gene Roddenberry, Sam Rolfe |
| Produced
By: |
Sam Rolfe,
Julian Claman |
| Directed
By: |
William Conrad,
Ida Lupino, Lamont Johnson |
| Music:
|
Jerry Goldsmith,
Bernard Herrmann |
| The
Review: |
Paladin provides solutions for those
in need in the wild west. Based out of San Francisco, he markets
his services as a hired gun when necessary with a business
card that states "Have Gun-Will Travel" (with a chess piece-called
a "Paladin" as well prominently displayed) but often he negotiates
or settles disputes without having to kill. That's not always
the case, however. Paladin was the voice of reason in a land
frequently ruled by brute force in the Wild West. Richard
Boone gives a nicely textured, sharp performance as Paladin
a Civil War vet, West Point grad and a cultured, intelligent
man. These half hour episodes (actually they run 25 minutes
allowing for the commercials of the time) appeared during
the 1957 debut season (the series ran for six years on CBS).
The writers and directors were among the crème de crème of
Hollywood and included actor/director William Conrad ("Cannon"
and the radio version of "Gunsmoke"), actress/director Ida
Lupino, writers Gene Roddenberry ("Star Trek"), Charles Beaumont
("The Seven Faces of Dr. Lao", "The Twilight Zone"), Sam Peckinpah
(legendary director of "The Wild Bunch") and many others.
***
It's clear that "Have Gun Will Travel"
was a cut above other television shows of the time as well
when the guest star list is examined; Jack Lord ("Hawaii Five-O"),
Angie Dickinson ("Police Woman"), Charles Bronson ("Death
Wish", "The Great Escape", "Once Upon a Time in The West"),
Warren Oates ("The Wild Bunch") and other distinguished actors
of the era. The series dealt with many complex moral and ethical
issues of the time including racism and sexism. While the
action is a bit compact, the amount of drama packed into one
25 minute episodes could equal the best Hollywood could put
out in a two hour movie. ---
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| Image
and Sound: |
Unfortunately,
"Have Gun Will Travel" looks so-so on DVD. Some of the episodes
are amazingly sharp and crisp looking with deep, dark blacks.
The series was shot in black and white so any fading that may
have occurred with time isn't as big an issue. Some of the transfers
appear quite murky sometimes within the very same episode as
a good looking picture. For years the series was in syndication
so episodes were routinely trimmed to allow for more commercials.
As far as I can tell, this set is drawn from the original broadcast
episodes that aired in 1957. Sound is presented in the original
mono and while the noise level on many of the audio tracks can
be quite high, the dialogue is distinguishable. --- |
| The
Extras: |
Since most
of the people that participated in creating, writing and directing
the series are dead, there's little in the way of interviews
that could be offered. However, an effort could have been made
to try and do a featurette on the series and its history on
CBS with snippets from vintage interviews or current interviews
with the few surviving guest stars. Instead, we get a fairly
engaging biography gallery on the various guest stars on the
series presented in text format. Likewise, the behind-the-scenes
episode guide provides a general background about the series
episodes and those involved. What might have been more engaging
would to be have a TV historian comment on the various episodes
and the circumstances around the time the show was written/performed
and aired. There's a copious amount of documents in the CBS
library and, no doubt, at the studio documenting the creation
of the series. Perhaps providing some of these documents along
with a commentary track would have been a worthwhile addition.
--- |
| Commentary:
|
No commentary
track on any of the episodes but, again, it would have served
the studio well to pull various interviews and television appearances
about the series and run that either in a text format or as
a second audio track. |
| Final
Words: |
I suppose
we should be grateful that this groundbreaking and classic series
is available on DVD at all. While "Have Gun Will Travel" was
available on video from Columbia House prior to this, I'm happy
to see it be available in another format. It's a pity that the
transfer and picture quality isn't quite up to snuff. That said,
this is a classic series that any Western fan would probably
want to own. While it lacks the action of some other series
of the time and isn't in color, the performances, writing and
direction make this an essential addition for any TV buff particularly
anyone who remembers watching the series either during its first
run on network television or syndication. |
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