Title: Shane
Year: 1953
Director: George Stevens
Country: US
Language: English
Shane (1953) is a fable of a film; an American Western that echoes our yearning for the lost age of heroes, and the freedom often mythologized of a time long past. George Steven's vision of the Wild West is bold, brazen, and awe-inspiring. I'm surprised it has taken me this long to view Shane (1953), because I found myself captured by the narrative & beautifully constructed setting.
Shane (Alan Ladd) rides into a conflict between cattleman Ryker and a bunch of settlers, like Joe Starrett and his family, whose land Ryker wants. When Shane beats up Ryker's man Chris, Ryker tries to buy him. Then Shane and Joe take on the whole Ryker crew.
Shane was nominated for a number of awards but only ended up leaving with Best Cinematography, which it absolutely deserved. Every frame is gorgeous looking; perfectly capturing the time period with shots of dirty landscapes and dusty towns. The editing, set design, costume design and directing are all also well done. That year From Here to Eternity won Best Picture, but I'd have to imagine that most of the audience would have also been happy with Shane winning.The first film shot in "flat widescreen", a process invented by Paramount Pictures in order to better display the film's remarkable panoramic shots, the film is a dissection of the Western trope of "might vs. right." As Shane says in the film "There’s no living with a killing… There’s no going back from it. Right or wrong, it’s a brand, a brand that sticks. There’s no going back.” It's about a man who lives in a world where peaceful solutions to difficult problems may not be possible. It depicts a grand loss of innocence that audiences were feeling after World War Two.
Director George Stevens had served in the US Army during World War Two. He had filmed the Invasion of Normandy, as well as the liberation of concentration camps. He had seen the graphic realities of violence. In a way, Shane reflects his post-war attitude about the atrocities he had witnessed. "There's no going back from Killing.". Definitely a must-see.
