Blu-ray Review A Few Words About A few words about…™ There Was a Crooked Man... – in Blu-ray (1 Viewer)

[Robert Harris]

There Was a Crooked Man..., with Kirk Douglas and Henry Fonda in the leads, is not the typical film that one might expect from one of the most literate of Hollywood legends, Joseph Mankiewicz.

It's a wry western, that winks at the material from which it is made - and might leave some viewers uncertain of where it's going and why.

I've not seen it since 1970, and from my perspective it stands the test of time beautifully, helped at least in part by the gorgeous image harvest, which pops of the screen with crystal clarity and perfectly a honed color palette.

Easiest to quote Vincent Canby's December 1970 review from the New York Times:

Although "There Was A Crooked Man. . . ." is a movie of the sort of taste, intelligence and somewhat bitter humor I associate with Mr. Mankiewicz who, in real life, is one of America's most sophisticated, least folksy raconteurs. "There Was a Crooked Man. . . ." is the veteran movie maker's first Western, but it is somehow illuminated by his awareness of the heritage of old Hollywood, epecially in the roles of Mr. Douglas and Mr. Fonda, who play variations on their mythical movie selves. The mixtures of moods and genres require some patience on our part. It's worth it, I think, for "There Was A Crooked Man . . ." is full of what seem to be (but aren't) the old-fashioned virtues of commercial moviemaking. Mr. Douglas and Mr. Fonda are in splendid shape —Hollywood stars performing with the kind of ease and wit that comes with nondebilitating age. "There Was A Crooked Man . . ." is really a duel between two men, one good, one bad, and it's these smaller, more civilized confrontations, done with irony and wit, that make the film one of the more pleasant things you're likely to see this season."

Written by David Newman and Robert Benton, who were behind Bonnie and Clyde.

Photographed by Harry Stradling, Jr.

A wonderfully fun film in all regards, and a gorgeous addition to the Warner Archive library.

Image – 5

Audio – 5

Pass / Fail – Pass

Upgrade from DVD – Yes

Highly Recommended

RAH

 

[Alan Tully]

Lovely, it's on its way to me in the UK.

 

[commander richardson]

my copy arrived this morning. Taken a quick look and the transfer is wonderful . The DVD was good but the BD is a big improvement.

 

[Randy Korstick]

Never seen this one for some reason and I'm a Western and Kirk Douglas fan. I think its because it doesn't look like a traditional western. Am I right?

 

[Alan Tully]

Good news, this arrived in the UK today. Bad news, my plasma gave up the ghost yesterday. So a new Paramount OLED arrives on Tuesday, I'm then away for a few days, & then it's TV set-up time, so it'll be next weekend before I give it a spin.

 

[cadavra]

Loved it in 1970, still love it and even did a Trailer From Hell for it (below). I once ran my 'Scope 16 for some friends, and at the reel change, one of them complained he didn't like it. I asked why, and he replied, "You never know what's going to happen next." I retorted, "Y'know, most people would consider that an asset rather than a liability."

There Was A Crooked Man | Trailers From Hell

20 years after writing and directing the memorably acerbic All About Eve, Joseph L. Mankiewicz cast Kirk Douglas and Henry Fonda in this equally cynical take on human nature this time with a screenplay from Bonnie and Clyde’s David Newman and Robert Benton. Starring Douglas as a murderous bank...

trailersfromhell.com

 

[benbess]

Although it's an unusual prison Western with comedy touches, I enjoyed this movie, especially because of the paring of Kirk Douglas and Henry Fonda, although it also has good supporting roles for Hume Cronyn, Burgess Meredith, Warren Oates, Alan Hale Jr, and others. The twists and turns were unexpected. A few things during the final scenes were surprising. My overall rating is a B, but picture quality is outstanding. This was the second to last film by Joseph Mankiewicz, and like Cleopatra it was another epic that was cut by the studio. From the trivia section of imdb....

"According to Mankiewicz's biographer, Kenneth Geist, his preferred version of the film ran to 165 minutes; however, "Warners" objected to this and re-cut the film, to his great irritation, to a more manageable 126 minutes. One notable casualty of this re-cutting was the prominently-billed Lee Grant, a very well-known actress at the time, whose appearance is now barely a couple of minutes in length....In the climactic prison uprising, Barbara Rhoades is last seen wearing a corset, a decorative hat and one elbow-length glove. However, interviews with Rhoades, and an actress who'd turned down the role, reveal that the scene went further and Rhoades ended up fully nude....the footage is presumed lost.

A realistic 1880s territorial prison replica was constructed on four acres in the high-desert country of the Joshua Tree National Monument. Designed by Edward Carrere, Oscar-winning designer of such movies as "The Wild Bunch (1969)," it was one of the most massive location sets ever built. The prison's 20-foot-high, four-feet-thick walls enclosed 14 buildings, including a guards' barracks, warden's quarters, mess hall, kitchen, hospital, blacksmith shop, a mule shed, corral, seven guard towers, a solitary confinement cell and a gallows. Unlike a typical movie set, the buildings had to be roofed because aerial footage of the location would be filmed. Some 80 loads of rocks were trucked in (and later removed) to create the enormous hard-labor rock pile in the movie. Since no indigenous plants could be harmed, thousands of desert plants also had to be trucked to the location. The construction of the vast prison set cost $300,000. The prison set took seven weeks to build. When construction began, it was snowing. When it ended, the temperature was 100 degrees. Upon completion of filming, the entire set had to be removed and the area it occupied restored to its original pristine state, so that no trace would be left.

Producer-director Joseph L. Mankiewicz insisted on a real copy of "The Police Gazette" dated 1882 for Kirk Douglas to read in the film. The prop man was able to find one of that date in a Hollywood book store, and it cost only $3.75.

There Was a Crooked Man... (1970) - IMDb

m.imdb.com

 

[Robin9]

Barbara Rhoades is last seen wearing a corset, a decorative hat and one elbow-length glove. However, interviews with Rhoades, and an actress who'd turned down the role, reveal that the scene went further and Rhoades ended up fully nude....the footage is presumed lost.

That scene was in the print I saw when the film first came out. Ms. Rhoades runs across the prison courtyard. My one reservation about the Blu-ray disc is that the scene is missing.

 

[lark144]

That scene was in the print I saw when the film first came out. Ms. Rhoades runs across the prison courtyard. My one reservation about the Blu-ray disc is that the scene is missing.

I'd forgotten all about that. Wasn't exactly my favorite thing in the movie, though. In fact, at the time, I wasn't exactly sure what it was doing there, as I felt it clashed with what else was going on, but so many things in that movie clash, and generally I like the fact they clash--that clashing of moods and plots define the film and make it what it is--so maybe at this remove, I would like that as well.

 

[JMB9]

I am new to the forum. I have been reading A Few Words About for a few months now. Thanks to Mr. Harris for these reviews!

I had never heard of this movie, but it's now on sale for $11.99 on Amazon. I will have to give it a look.