Post by Coopsgirl on Aug 9, 2010 18:03:28 GMT -6
The Virginian was written by Owen Wister in 1902 and it helped to start the uniquely American genre of the Western. This story of the westward expansion of the United States and the problems and people that went along with it was first put onto celluloid in 1914. Since then it has spawned multiple remakes and also a popular television series in the 1960s.
One of those remakes happened in 1929 and was released on Nov 29. It was the first talkie version of the story. Director Victor Fleming, who would also go on to direct both Gone With the Wind and The Wizard of Oz, was already an accomplished film maker by the late 20s. This film however would be different than anything he’d done up to that point as it was not only a full talkie, but it would also have many outdoor scenes. In the days of silent cinema it was very common to film outdoors. It didn’t matter if there were sounds like birds chirping, cars driving by on the road, etc… because the sound was not captured. Most early talkies however were filmed on studio sound stages where everything could be tightly controlled. The cameras themselves were quite loud so cameramen would sit inside wooden boxes where the camera would be housed and microphones would be hidden in props for the actors to speak in to. It’s fun to watch some of those early talkies from late 1927 and 1928 and try to guess where the microphone is hidden.
By 1929 however cameras had been quieted and the boom microphone had been perfected so the actors were now free to roam around normally as the mic could follow them. Both of these developments made the filming of The Virginian possible. Another event that made this version of the story possible was the birth of a baby boy in Montana 28 years earlier. Gary Cooper was cast in the title role and this marked his return to Westerns after a two year absence. Mary Brian (a Texas gal like me!) was cast as the school teacher and his love interest Molly Wood, Richard Arlen (real life best pal to Gary) was cast as his misguided friend Steve, and Walter Huston portrayed the villain Trampas.
The genuine camaraderie between Steve and the Virginian (he’s never given a proper name in the film or in the novel) due in part to Gary and Richard’s friendship as well as their acting skills really adds a lot of depth to the film and makes Steve’s death by hanging after he is found guilty of cattle rustling by the Virginian a truly heartbreaking sequence. Mary did a fine job of portraying an Eastern lady who takes the position as a school teacher in the small town of Medicine Bow, Wyoming (a real place) and although she is completely out of her element, she falls for the tall, handsome cowboy and learns what life is like in the West. Walter Huston also did a fantastic portrayal of Trampas who aims to take down the Virginian but loses his life in the climactic gunfight between them at the end.
Of course the star of the film outshines them all. Gary was perfectly cast as the young man from Virginia who moved west to explore the frontier and help settle new lands. It may seem a little simplistic to today’s audiences but I like that Gary’s character wears light colored clothes and Trampas wears black. There is a clear delineation between good and bad, right and wrong. Gary personifies the good and right way of living and he doesn’t shirk away from unpleasantness when punishments for criminals must be doled out. He’s tough but he has a sweet side too in his interactions with Molly. There is a very cute scene where his character and Molly are talking about Shakespeare’s Rome and Juliet that Molly asked him to read. He tells her that he ain’t ever read poetry before but he liked it okay. Although he didn’t care much for Romeo as he didn’t think he was a real man and he and Molly have a fun exchange about how women love the gallantry of courtship. We also see his mischievous boyish side when he and Steve mix up a bunch of babies waiting to get christened. One of them actually gets christened under the wrong name much to his parent’s frustration.
I like films made in what I call the transition years, 1929-1931, when movie makers were relearning how to make films with sound. Some of them are rough and really not very good, others show progress while still having some rough edges, and then others like The Virginian (and Morocco but we’re not quite there yet) are quite polished and still hold up very well.
Here’s everybody favorite section of these reviews (well it’s my favorite anyway) where my delusions get the best of me and I pretend to have a conversation with Gary about the film.
“You hadn’t made a western in two years when you made The Virginian. Did it feel comfortable to be back in that genre, especially since it was your first full talkie?” “I was really glad that my first talking picture was a western. It was the genre I started in and in those early years I felt most comfortable in those films. Everybody was nervous about talking and they gave all the actors tests where they recorded our voices. I passed so I figured I was okay” Gary explained. “This version of the film was a huge success and solidified your place in Hollywood in the talkie era. I’m sure that felt good.” “At the time I still wasn’t sure exactly how long I would last but I did feel more confident. I know all of us did. Mary, Dick, Walter, and Victor were great and I know we all felt a lot of relief after this one.” “I’m guessing you didn’t want to go back to trying to sell things door to door like you had done years before.” “No I did not” Gary says with a laugh. “Well thankfully you didn’t have to. We sure would have missed a lot of great films.” “Thank you” he says humbly as he blushes right up over his ears.
The Virginian and Molly
The Virginian, Molly, and Trampas
The Viriginian and pal Steve
One of those remakes happened in 1929 and was released on Nov 29. It was the first talkie version of the story. Director Victor Fleming, who would also go on to direct both Gone With the Wind and The Wizard of Oz, was already an accomplished film maker by the late 20s. This film however would be different than anything he’d done up to that point as it was not only a full talkie, but it would also have many outdoor scenes. In the days of silent cinema it was very common to film outdoors. It didn’t matter if there were sounds like birds chirping, cars driving by on the road, etc… because the sound was not captured. Most early talkies however were filmed on studio sound stages where everything could be tightly controlled. The cameras themselves were quite loud so cameramen would sit inside wooden boxes where the camera would be housed and microphones would be hidden in props for the actors to speak in to. It’s fun to watch some of those early talkies from late 1927 and 1928 and try to guess where the microphone is hidden.
By 1929 however cameras had been quieted and the boom microphone had been perfected so the actors were now free to roam around normally as the mic could follow them. Both of these developments made the filming of The Virginian possible. Another event that made this version of the story possible was the birth of a baby boy in Montana 28 years earlier. Gary Cooper was cast in the title role and this marked his return to Westerns after a two year absence. Mary Brian (a Texas gal like me!) was cast as the school teacher and his love interest Molly Wood, Richard Arlen (real life best pal to Gary) was cast as his misguided friend Steve, and Walter Huston portrayed the villain Trampas.
The genuine camaraderie between Steve and the Virginian (he’s never given a proper name in the film or in the novel) due in part to Gary and Richard’s friendship as well as their acting skills really adds a lot of depth to the film and makes Steve’s death by hanging after he is found guilty of cattle rustling by the Virginian a truly heartbreaking sequence. Mary did a fine job of portraying an Eastern lady who takes the position as a school teacher in the small town of Medicine Bow, Wyoming (a real place) and although she is completely out of her element, she falls for the tall, handsome cowboy and learns what life is like in the West. Walter Huston also did a fantastic portrayal of Trampas who aims to take down the Virginian but loses his life in the climactic gunfight between them at the end.
Of course the star of the film outshines them all. Gary was perfectly cast as the young man from Virginia who moved west to explore the frontier and help settle new lands. It may seem a little simplistic to today’s audiences but I like that Gary’s character wears light colored clothes and Trampas wears black. There is a clear delineation between good and bad, right and wrong. Gary personifies the good and right way of living and he doesn’t shirk away from unpleasantness when punishments for criminals must be doled out. He’s tough but he has a sweet side too in his interactions with Molly. There is a very cute scene where his character and Molly are talking about Shakespeare’s Rome and Juliet that Molly asked him to read. He tells her that he ain’t ever read poetry before but he liked it okay. Although he didn’t care much for Romeo as he didn’t think he was a real man and he and Molly have a fun exchange about how women love the gallantry of courtship. We also see his mischievous boyish side when he and Steve mix up a bunch of babies waiting to get christened. One of them actually gets christened under the wrong name much to his parent’s frustration.
I like films made in what I call the transition years, 1929-1931, when movie makers were relearning how to make films with sound. Some of them are rough and really not very good, others show progress while still having some rough edges, and then others like The Virginian (and Morocco but we’re not quite there yet) are quite polished and still hold up very well.
Here’s everybody favorite section of these reviews (well it’s my favorite anyway) where my delusions get the best of me and I pretend to have a conversation with Gary about the film.
“You hadn’t made a western in two years when you made The Virginian. Did it feel comfortable to be back in that genre, especially since it was your first full talkie?” “I was really glad that my first talking picture was a western. It was the genre I started in and in those early years I felt most comfortable in those films. Everybody was nervous about talking and they gave all the actors tests where they recorded our voices. I passed so I figured I was okay” Gary explained. “This version of the film was a huge success and solidified your place in Hollywood in the talkie era. I’m sure that felt good.” “At the time I still wasn’t sure exactly how long I would last but I did feel more confident. I know all of us did. Mary, Dick, Walter, and Victor were great and I know we all felt a lot of relief after this one.” “I’m guessing you didn’t want to go back to trying to sell things door to door like you had done years before.” “No I did not” Gary says with a laugh. “Well thankfully you didn’t have to. We sure would have missed a lot of great films.” “Thank you” he says humbly as he blushes right up over his ears.
The Virginian and Molly
The Virginian, Molly, and Trampas
The Viriginian and pal Steve