DVD Collectors Online

The Duel at Silver Creek, a review by Rogmeister

The Duel at Silver Creek (1952)  77m
Director: Don Siegel
Cast: Audie Murphy, Faith Domergue, Stephen McNally, Gerald Mohr, Susan Cabot, Lee Marvin

Hey, this movie came out the year I was born...this DVD has a terrific-looking print of this 58-year old movie, though it has no extras apart from the theatrical trailer.  The movie deals with a large group of claim jumpers who force miners to give up deeds to their claims...and often repay them by killing them.  Audie Murphy plays a young man whose father is killed...he winds up the deputy of the fast-drawing sheriff.  The action is fast and furious in this oater filled with gunplay and horse chases.  For some reason, most of the main cast members have nickhames...Audie is The Silver Kid, the sheriff is known as Lightning, a couple of the bad guys are Rat Face and Johnny Sombrero and the girls are referred to as Dusty and Brown Eyes.  One fly in the ointment for the good guys is the marshal has suffered a wound and can no longer pull the trigger on his six-gun with his good hand.  Of course, you know the good guys are going to prevail...right?   

(From DCO fourth Alphabet Marathon - discussion/review/banter thread on July 5th, 2010)

True Grit, a review by Dragonfire

True Grit - 2010

I haven't liked a lot of westerns, though I haven't watched that in years.  I have liked the few newer ones that I've seen.  Anyway, after seeing the trailers for True Grit, I decided I wanted to see it.  I might have seen the John Wayne version before, but I couldn't remember if I did.  After seeing the new version, I saw the previous version.  Both movies are really good.  Also today, I bought the book.  I wasn't planning to, but I came across it in Walmart and I decided to get it.  Both versions of the movies are very similar, though there are a few differences here and there. 

The plot is very entertaining.  The story is sort of a revenge story, but it isn't just a revenge story.  Mattie wants justice for her father, not just revenge.  Time is taken early in the movie to set up everything and introduce the characters.  It doesn't take long for more to start happening.  The movie really isn't that violent, but one or two scenes are very violent, with one even being a tad gory.  Rattlesnakes also turn up at one point..I really could have done without that scene. 

While things look a bit more dirty and bleak in this version of the movie, the cinematography is gorgeous.  The sort of bleak look fits perfectly with what is going on.  There are a few hauntingly beautiful moments in the movie. 

The characters are wonderful and complex.  Mattie is one of the best characters I've seen in a movie in a long time. She is a very determined young woman who can talk her way through just about any situation.  She handles some kind of trade deal so well that the poor man looks ready to cry when he figures out she wants to trade again.  Cogburn is a marshal, though he does use some questionable methods.  He isn't a villain, but he isn't completely a hero type character either.  He is quick to shoot and likes to drink.  In fact he drinks so much, he falls of his horse at one point.  He seems incompetent at times, but he has moments that are brilliant.  When he decides on something, he doesn't stop.  He is not a man to cross.  Jeff Bridges is amazing in the part.  Matt Damon does really well as La Boeuf, the Texas Ranger who tends to clash with Cogburn.  Josh Brolin isn't in as much of the movie, but he is really good too.

I loved True Grit and I could see myself adding the movie to my collection.  I may even see it in the theater again.

I did get a review posted on Epinions.

True Grit

By the way, my mom and step dad have also seen this one.  They really like westerns, and have seen the one with John Wayne a lot of times.  My mom fully expected not to like this one...she felt they ruined 3:10 to Yuma in the remake.  Anyway, both of them loved the movie too and my mom actually wants to see it again in the theater.  She has only done that like 4 times total.

(From True Grit - 2010 on January 4th, 2011)

Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles: The Complete Second Season marathon, a review by Achim

2. Automatic for the PeopleMy opinion:
After the first episode opened with a bang the second pulls back a bit and goes in to explore some emotional issues. On the one hand there is mistrust, which obviously is a problematic thing for our little group. Then there is John's desire to be "normal", not having to have the burden of being the hope for humankind's future, which in turn causes conflict with Sarah. Sarah also has to deal with her knowledge of her future death by cancer, or does she...? All this is surrounded by a "problem of the week", which eventually provides some action towards the end.

Quite a solid episode which does some good character progression. Somehow I found Summer Glau's performance a little bit phoned in in this one

(From Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles: The Complete Second Season marathon on January 26th, 2010)