This spirited Western stars Kevin Kline,
Scott Glenn, Kevin Costner, and
Danny Glover
as four unwitting heroes who cross
paths on
their journey
to the
sleepy town of Silverado. Little do
they know the
town where their family and
friends reside has been taken over by
sharp-shooting foursome
to save the
day, but first they have
to break each other out of jail, and
learn who their real friends are.
CRITIQUE
I'm a sucker for
good Westerns. The last good Western was Kevin Costner's Open
Range, highly enjoyable yet also rich in characterization,
drama and action. Then there is Unforgiven, probably Clint
Eastwood's best Western movie both as an actor and director (The
Outlaw Josey Wales is also a great effort). Before both of
those films came Lawrence Kasdan's Silverado, which after
its release was called a modern classic.
Silverado is
a very good Western for a couple of reasons. First and foremost
the script by Lawrence and Mark Kasdan is very good, that in terms
of telling a story worth following and including many great scenes
that are both entertaining and dramatic. Moreover, the characters
are introduced well and evolve in interesting ways, though it must
be said if it weren't for the actors playing these characters they
wouldn't feel so real and likeable. Kevin Kline, Scott Glenn and
Danny Glover shine in their roles, and Kevin Costner and Brian
Dennehy (as the Sheriff) provide very good support.
There aren't any
plot twists to the story, but the movie keeps the audience's
attention by creating exciting and smart scenes, as well as a few
dramatic character situations. Another aspect worth noting is the
epic score by Bruce Broughton, which ranges from mostly uplifting
to a few dramatic moments. In terms of directing, Silverado is one
of Kasdan's best works. It's also beautifully photographed and
edited (the movie runs at a steady pace), and the production
values, such as the Western towns, are grand.
THE VIDEO
Sony presents
Silverado in 2.40:1 anamorphic widescreen. This Superbit
presentation looks pretty good. The print is mostly cleaned up
except for the occasional specks here and there, the colors look
clear and vibrant, and definition and sharpness are presented
clearly. Optional subtitles include English, French, Spanish,
Portuguese, Chinese, Korean and Thai.
THE AUDIO
Sony presents
Silverado in Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround and 5.1 DTS Surround. Dialogue is very clear
and easy to understand, and the rear speakers get a very good
workout. The Dolby Digital track offers good bass, definition and
clean audio. I couldn't test the DTS track, but I'm sure it's very
good. A French Dolby Surround track is also available.
THE EXTRAS
Disc 1:
Along the
Silverado Trail: A Western Historians' Commentary features
three knowledgeable, well-spoken and interesting historians who
talk about the film and many other things. All three chip in
nicely with analysis of the film and thoughts about the Western
genre, including the mentioning of the music, the Spaghetti
Westerns, the HBO series Deadwood, and much much more. This is an
interesting track and if you like the film I recommend a listen.
Disc 2:
A Return to
Silverado With Kevin Costner (20:59) features a new
interview with Kevin Costner who talks about Westerns and
specifically this movie remembering certain moments and scenes,
how he got involved with the film, remembers and analyses his
character Jake and how he approached the role, how it was working
with director Lawrence Kasdan and the other actors like Kline and
Glenn, and much more. Several film clips and behind-the-scenes
footage play over parts of the interview. Photos from the set
appear during the end credits.
The Making of
Silverado (36:58) features interviews including
Lawrence Kasdan, Kevin Kline, and others who remember and discuss
the movie, the characters, select scenes, and how the actors and
production prepared for certain things. The interview subjects
also remember stories from the production and overall they appear
to have a good time talking about the movie. This making-of
documentary is interesting to watch and very satisfactory.
A History of
Western Shootouts (7:39) is narrated by John Cleese and looks
at ten films from Sony's library, including The Missing,
The Quick and the Dead, and Silverado. This is
basically a long advertisement (read: filler material) for the
films (now on DVD) with Cleese narrating the basic stories for
each.
Rounding out the
second disc is the Silverado theatrical trailer (2:01) and
Columbia's Top Westerns Trailer (2:10), which advertises
Sony Western films now available on DVD, including Once Upon a
Time in Mexico, Cowboy, Alvarez Kelly,
Geronimo, The Quick and the Dead, Cat Ballou,
Man and Boy, The Man from Laramie, The Missing,
Buck and the Preacher, The Shadow Riders, They
Came to Cordura, Old Gringo, The Mountain Men,
Mackenna's Gold, Bite the Bullet, Desperado
and Silverado.
The packaging for
this gift set is nice but also pretty big for your shelf. In my
case I discarded the box and just kept the DVD keepcase. Inside
the packaging is a 20-page booklet with notes and a set of
playing cards.
FINAL THOUGHTS
Silverado is
as smart and exciting as Westerns can get. Kasdan's direction, the
script and the actors combine to form a memorable and fun movie.
This Superbit Deluxe Edition Gift Set DVD comes highly recommended
as it features good extras, and very good video and audio
presentations.
