{"id":27660,"date":"2012-10-04T21:16:16","date_gmt":"2012-10-05T04:16:16","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=27660"},"modified":"2024-06-30T12:37:27","modified_gmt":"2024-06-30T19:37:27","slug":"shane-1953","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=27660","title":{"rendered":"Shane (1953)"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>&#8220;Call me Shane.&#8221;<\/strong><\/p>\n<table>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/Shane-Poster.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/Shane-Poster-195x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"195\" height=\"300\" class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-27670\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/Shane-Poster-195x300.jpg 195w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/Shane-Poster-83x128.jpg 83w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/Shane-Poster.jpg 500w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 195px) 100vw, 195px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Synopsis:<\/strong><br \/>\nA former gunslinger (Alan Ladd) is invited to stay and work at a farm run by a homesteader (Van Heflin), his wife (Jean Arthur), and their son (Brandon De Wilde) &#8212; but when a local rancher (Emile Meyer) and his associates continue to threaten Heflin and other homesteaders in the area, Shane (Ladd) realizes he may have to resurrect his gun-slinging ways.\n<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<p>\n<strong>Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Alan Ladd Films<\/li>\n<li>Ben Johnson Films<\/li>\n<li>George Stevens Films<\/li>\n<li>Jack Palance Films<\/li>\n<li>Jean Arthur Films<\/li>\n<li>Ranchers<\/li>\n<li><Settlers<\/li>\n<li>Van Heflin Films<\/li>\n<li>Westerns<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Response to Peary\u2019s Review: <\/strong><br \/>\nPeary writes that &#8220;if you want to understand the form of the &#8216;classic&#8217; western,&#8221; <em>Shane<\/em> &#8212; directed by George Stevens, and based on a novel by Jack Schaefer &#8212; &#8220;is the picture to study&#8221;. He notes that the character of Shane (Ladd) fits the archetype of a classic &#8220;westerner&#8221; &#8212; &#8220;a loner who has a mysterious, violent past that he cannot escape&#8221;, someone who &#8220;would like to settle down in the civilized West&#8221; but &#8220;comes to realize he has no future&#8221;. He points out that &#8220;the overlap of this [mythological] West (embodied by gunslingers like Shane) with the beginnings of the civilized historical West is essential to classic westerns&#8221; &#8212; indeed, the particular trope played out here (of &#8220;ranchers versus settlers&#8221;) remains an iconic one in its own right, and can be seen as far back as John Ford&#8217;s silent film <a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=23615\"><em>Straight Shooting<\/em> (1917)<\/a>. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tcm.com\/tcmdb\/title\/16406\/shane#articles-reviews?articleId=150886\">TCM&#8217;s article<\/a> on the film furthers Peary&#8217;s argument about its classic structure, positing that &#8220;<em>Shane<\/em> is the real McCoy &#8212; a powerful cinematic myth with a stoic hero at its center who simply wants to do the right thing&#8221;. <\/p>\n<p>Given its iconic status, it&#8217;s easy to approach <em>Shane<\/em> with a sense of cinematic duty &#8212; but despite overly slow pacing and an occasionally disruptive musical score, for the most part it&#8217;s held up quite nicely. Indeed, there&#8217;s plenty to enjoy and appreciate about <em>Shane<\/em>, which features &#8220;remarkable authenticity&#8221; (check out stills of the sets below), is &#8220;beautifully shot&#8221; by Oscar-winning DP Loyal Griggs, and is &#8220;beautifully acted&#8221; by Ladd, Heflin, Arthur, and others. While some have argued that Ladd was miscast in the title role, I disagree; he shows off an appropriately fit, muscular body, and is entirely believable both during the excitingly brutal extended fight scenes, and during the film&#8217;s many quieter moments, as we see how much he&#8217;s come to care for both Arthur and her adoring son, Joey. <\/p>\n<p>Heflin is equally notable in the critical secondary role as Joe Starrett, a man determined to hold onto his land and fight back against bullies at any cost &#8212; and Arthur (lured out of semi-retirement by Stevens) is a fine, believable choice to play Starrett&#8217;s wife. Meanwhile, other familiar faces &#8212; including Elisha Cook, Jr. as a hot-headed southern homesteader, and Jack Palance as the black-hatted gunslinger brought in to &#8220;take care of&#8221; the homesteaders &#8212; are a welcome presence as well. Unfortunately, De Wilde&#8217;s performance as young Joey is the one dissatisfying outlier; he&#8217;s far too often shown simply staring wide-eyed at the proceedings, and\/or asking whiny &#8220;why?&#8221; questions like a four-year-old. However, his nearly worshipful adoration of Shane is made abundantly clear, which I suppose is what&#8217;s most important in this tale of a larger-than-life western hero.  <\/p>\n<p><strong>Redeeming Qualities and Moments: <\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Alan Ladd as Shane (nominated as one of the Best Actors of the Year in Peary&#8217;s <em>Alternate Oscars<\/em>)<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/Shane-Ladd.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/Shane-Ladd-1024x576.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-27666\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/Shane-Ladd-1024x576.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/Shane-Ladd-128x72.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/Shane-Ladd-300x168.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/Shane-Ladd.png 1600w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Van Heflin as Joe Starrett<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/Shane-Heflin2.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/Shane-Heflin2-1024x576.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-27664\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/Shane-Heflin2-1024x576.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/Shane-Heflin2-128x72.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/Shane-Heflin2-300x168.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/Shane-Heflin2.png 1600w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Jean Arthur as Marian<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/Shane-Arthur.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/Shane-Arthur-1024x576.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-27673\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/Shane-Arthur-1024x576.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/Shane-Arthur-128x72.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/Shane-Arthur-300x168.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/Shane-Arthur.png 1600w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Fine supporting performances<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/Shane-Meyer.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/Shane-Meyer-1024x576.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-27668\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/Shane-Meyer-1024x576.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/Shane-Meyer-128x72.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/Shane-Meyer-300x168.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/Shane-Meyer.png 1600w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/Shane-Palance.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/Shane-Palance-1024x576.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-27669\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/Shane-Palance-1024x576.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/Shane-Palance-128x72.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/Shane-Palance-300x168.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/Shane-Palance.png 1600w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/Shane-Cook-Jr.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/Shane-Cook-Jr-1024x576.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-27677\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/Shane-Cook-Jr-1024x576.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/Shane-Cook-Jr-128x72.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/Shane-Cook-Jr-300x168.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/Shane-Cook-Jr.png 1600w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Loyal Grigg&#8217;s cinematography<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/Shane-Cinematography.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/Shane-Cinematography-1024x576.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-27675\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/Shane-Cinematography-1024x576.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/Shane-Cinematography-128x72.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/Shane-Cinematography-300x168.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/Shane-Cinematography.png 1600w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Authentic production values and sets<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/Shane-Sets.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/Shane-Sets-1024x576.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-27671\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/Shane-Sets-1024x576.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/Shane-Sets-128x72.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/Shane-Sets-300x168.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/Shane-Sets.png 1600w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/Shane-Sets2.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/Shane-Sets2-1024x576.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-27672\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/Shane-Sets2-1024x576.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/Shane-Sets2-128x72.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/Shane-Sets2-300x168.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/Shane-Sets2.png 1600w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Must See? <\/strong><br \/>\nYes, as a justified western classic. Voted Best Picture of the Year in Peary&#8217;s <em>Alternate Oscars<\/em>. <\/p>\n<p><strong>Categories<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Genuine Classic<\/li>\n<li>Oscar Winner or Nominee<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p> (<span style=\"color:red;font-weight:bold;\">Listed in <a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-static\/1001Movies.htm\"><em>1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die<\/em><\/a><\/span>) <\/p>\n<p><strong>Links: <\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt0046303\/\">IMDb entry<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/1953\/04\/24\/archives\/the-screen-in-review.html\">NY Times Original Review<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.filmsite.org\/shan.html\">FilmSite Review<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.digitallyobsessed.com\/displaylegacy.php?ID=393\">Digitally Obsessed Review<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.rogerebert.com\/reviews\/great-movie-shane-1953\">Roger Ebert&#8217;s Great Movies Review<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.tcm.com\/tcmdb\/title\/16406\/shane#articles-reviews?articleId=150886\">TCM Article<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/youtu.be\/zeUr1dOk568\">Tired Old Queen at the Movies Video Review<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;Call me Shane.&#8221; Synopsis: A former gunslinger (Alan Ladd) is invited to stay and work at a farm run by a homesteader (Van Heflin), his wife (Jean Arthur), and their son (Brandon De Wilde) &#8212; but when a local rancher (Emile Meyer) and his associates continue to threaten Heflin and other homesteaders in the area, Shane (Ladd) realizes he may have to resurrect his gun-slinging ways. Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors: Alan Ladd Films Ben Johnson Films George Stevens Films&#8230;<\/p>\n<p class=\"read-more\"><a class=\"btn btn-default\" href=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=27660\"> Read More<span class=\"screen-reader-text\">  Read More<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-27660","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-responses-to-peary"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27660","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=27660"}],"version-history":[{"count":22,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27660\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":98189,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27660\/revisions\/98189"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=27660"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=27660"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=27660"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}