The Searchers [Blu ray] :: Education by Design Store

Customer Reviews

movie review

2008-08-30
my dad loved this when he got the movie, as this is his favorite john wayne western, and he loved the bonus material contained in the box.

The Searchers

2008-08-18
The Duke in one of his best! If you are a John Wayne fan and do'nt have the Searchers in your movie collection, you need to buy this. The Searchers is a very good western for the whole family.

The greatest western ever made...or at least equal to the best,

2008-08-17
It has always had the sobriquet "the greatest western ever made"... well, for once it probably it is true.
Famous director's favorite film... including Spielberg and Bergman to name two just to show you how different are they!
It shows the dark side of John Wayne as a mysterious character (what later Jimmy Stewart will do to perfection with the western films he starred on for director Anthony Mann) obsessed with doing his way in everything and it seems very much embittered by his confederate (no surrendered) background...
ALL the cast is perfect and the script is a marvel... add the masterfully direction... and there you have it. THE PERFECT WESTERN.

I guess it probably is because so many pieces fall in place in an effortlessly way...(or so it seems but beware... I do not think so... and never believed in luck... it has been said that LUCK must found you WORKING!... and that is what is feels to me a solid piece of craftsmanship built over years of shooting westerns...)

A must see.

ADB

A Classic Western

2008-07-19
"The Searchers" is a film that has rightfully been condiered a classic with an ability to transition between playful humor and the darkness of the human heart. John Wayne's character is an ex-confederate veteran with a shadowy past few years. His main accompanying partner is a mixed white-native american portrayed by (Jeffrey Hunter) who was adopted by members of Wayne's family after Comanches murdered the former's family. Their goal is to find a girl abdupted by the Comanches after they killed several of Wayne's realtives. The film covers several years and a number of events ranging from almost comical incidents to violent encounters with both natives and whites.
While the main Comanche chief is a nasty and ruthless villian, other natives the characters meet along the way are peaceful. In fact, the U.S. cavalry doesn't get the very ideallook Ford had given them in his trilogy. In one winter scene, Wayne and Hunter find a village of possibly peaceful natives the cavalry massacred. The main lesson is that there were generally bad and generally fairly good people on both sides in the West.
Wayne's characterization seemes ones of his best that I've seen and yes he is darker than usual. He has racist tendencies (especially towards the Comanches that attacked some of his relatives) and is truthfully rather ruthless at times. Ultimately, the film ends pretty well and Wayne's character shows some signs of changing though not after taking the aduience on a fascinating journey in the American West.

Pleasantly Surprised

2008-07-13
I've avoided this movie for years, but I was plasantly surprised when I finally viewed it. Most people talk about the complexity of John Wayne's character, but I disagree. I feel he wasn't complex at all.... just a cut and dried racist. Near the end of the movie he did become a little complex, but I think it was just a matter of conscience. What I really liked about the movie was the storyline and the scenery. ONe of my favorite movies is The Color Purple and there were scenes in The Searchers that I'm almost certain Speilberg had to have copied for the Color Purple. Especially the shot of the family on the porch at the beginning of the movie. It was so reminiscent of one of the final scenes in the Color Purple.

Old time favorite

2008-06-30
Warner Brothers The Searchers (Blu-ray)
Working together for the 12th time, John Wayne and director John Ford forged The Searchers into an indelible image of the frontier and the men and women who challenged it. Wayne plays ex-Confederate soldier Ethan Edwards, abeliever more in bullets than in words. He's seeking his niece, captured by Comanches who massacredhis family. He won't surrender to hunger, thirst,the elements or loneliness. And in his obsessive,five-year quest, Ethan encounters something he didn't expect to find: his own humanity.

Essential Cinema

2008-06-27
Monument Valley rarely looked better in this VistaVision restoration of John Ford's disturbing Western epic. Though not without its minor flaws, "The Searchers" (1956) is propelled by John Wayne's ambiguous, complex performance as the embittered Ethan Edwards - his best work for the legendary director. The Ford stock company acquits itself admirably. Winton C. Hoch's cinematography deserved an Oscar for this powerful and remarkably influential film.

Moving listings - general

2008-06-26
As a HOH (Hard of Hearing) Individual, I need to know if this
movie is captioned (marked "CC" or "Q."

Not Perfect But Still A Classic

2008-06-23
A sure sign of "The Searchers'" greatness is the array of thoughtful comments here. It is complex, and enigmatic, enough to inspire widely differing views, and the substantive reviews add welcome insights. It is among the greatest Westerns, and the primal AntiWestern; Ford and Wayne's supreme collaboration; and the first half, through the winter homecoming scene, is simply as good as filmmaking gets. (Monument Valley deserves a special Supporting Oscar; such astonishing vistas transcend mere backdrop.) John Wayne is at his peak, though "True Grit," "Shootist" and "Stagecoach" rival this among his best. It is not uniformly brilliant; as many note, the second half drags with a romantic subplot and is no longer very funny. But these scenes reflect Ford's conception of community; its very mundaneness highlights outcast Ethan's problematic character. As a product of its time we may deplore its racial and gender stereotyping; these aspects do not date well and keep it from being in the same class as, say "Seven Samurai" which eternally satisfies on all levels. It's still a remarkable realization of a filmmaker's vision. John Ford's best works often have a core scene which, sans dialogue and solely through visual/musical imagery, sums up the whole film while saying something profound about the human condition. In both "Grapes of Wrath" and "Searchers" these miniatures come near the start and are absolute gems. With so much to absorb, repeat viewings help to grasp its depth; critics in the 1950s clearly missed a lot. But enough profundity! An entertaining film and a great way to spend an evening.

John Wayne Little Celebrated, but Wonderful Film!!

2008-06-07
I Love this Movie. It's my favorite John Wayne ovie. My Dad loves John Wayne and I watched this with him this year. I had to buy it immediately. Great story line, not all guns blazing. Fully developed characters and some humor as well. Can't miss with this one.