One day, a man appears on horseback on the beautiful green Wyoming Plateau. With his neat appearance, calm demeanor, and gentle yet sharp eyes, he is nothing like a novice cowboy. There are pioneers who have immigrated from the East, and the land they cleared is legally theirs. The mysterious man gets water from the house of one of the pioneers, Joe Starrett, and is invited to dinner. The man stays overnight in gratitude for Starrett’s hospitality. The mysterious man briefly introduces himself as Shane. Starrett is a small family of three, with his wife Marion and son Joey. The strong-willed Starrett is the representative of the local people, but he has been suffering from Riker, who has been a cattle rancher in this area for a long time. Riker often harasses the pioneers and tries to take their land. Even the workers Starrett had left, unable to endure Riker’s scorn. Starrett, who has told Shane the story, asks Shane to stay at least until winter preparations are complete. Shane, who decided to help Starrett, goes to the town to buy some things, but gets into trouble with Ryker’s gang, but he endures it and returns home because Starrett told him not to cause trouble. The townspeople decide to go to the town as a group because of Ryker’s gang. Shane fights with Ryker’s gang again, but he does not back down and wins. Joey is proud of him as he watches. Joey, who likes guns, has been interested in Shane’s shiny pistol since he first met him. Eventually, Shane demonstrates shooting with a loud noise at Joey’s earnest request, and Joey is impressed by his skills. Joey’s mother Marion develops a growing affection for Shane, and Shane feels the same way. Then, when one of the townspeople is killed by a notorious and ruthless dual-gunman named Jack Wilson hired by Ryker, the townspeople are all scared and try to leave. Because of this, Starrett tries to deal with him, but Shane knocks him out for Marion and steps forward himself. Joey, who was angry at him for fighting his father, realizes Shane’s deep intentions and goes after him to apologize. Shane appears in the town with a gun for the first time. He has a life-or-death duel with Wilson, and Wilson falls backwards with Shane’s gunshot. And thanks to Joey, he kills the rest of the Ryker gang. After everything is over, Joey desperately asks him not to leave. Shane tells the tearful boy that a person who has killed a person cannot stay. He then puts his hand on Joey’s head and says, “Tell your mother that there is no need for guns in this town anymore,” and leaves the town. Leaving behind the echo of the boy shouting, “Come back, Shane!”
◆ commentary:
This is a film that is considered a representative of western films with a lot of lyricism, romantically depicting the friendship between a man and a boy who are trying to protect justice and peace against the backdrop of the desolate West where sand and dust fly. The handsome actor Alan Ladd’s sad smile made many women’s hearts flutter, and the anecdote that he, who is short, wore high heels for his co-star, Jean Arthur, is also famous. In particular, the final parting scene with the boy is one of the most memorable scenes in film history. It was nominated for six categories including the 1953 Academy Awards for Best Picture and Best Director, and won the Color Cinematography Award. In addition, the theme song “The Call of the Faraway Hills” along with the beautiful images were loved for a long time. It won the 1953 Academy Award for Color Cinematography, and was nominated for the 1953 Academy Awards for Best Director, Best Picture, Best Screenplay, and Best Supporting Actor.
◆ Director: George Stevens
Masterpiece
A great craftsman of classical Hollywood who crossed over various genres. Although he may not be considered a master, his films are considered a typical example of the gem-like genre films produced by Hollywood in its heyday. The three films he made, , were called by Andrew Sarris as a “trilogy about the American dream.” This trilogy dramatized the frustrated dreams, ideals, and memories of Americans through a romantic, almost mythical language. However, there is disagreement about whether this trilogy is Stevens’s masterpiece. Some say that his true value is better expressed in the works he released in the 30s and 40s, such as the musical starring Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers, the action-adventure film starring Cary Grant, and the film starring Katharine Hepburn and Spencer Tracy. Anyway, director Stevens, who created memorable works in various genres such as musicals, comedies, westerns, and melodramas, is considered one of the outstanding craftsmen who worked in the midst of the heyday of Hollywood genre films. He is also famous for raising several actresses into top stars. Katharine Hepburn, Ginger Rogers, Irene Dunn, Joan Fontaine, Jean Arthur, and Elizabeth Taylor are actors who debuted in his films and became big stars.
Stevens, whose parents were both actors, established himself in Hollywood at an early age. He began working as a cinematographer at the age of 17 and filmed several comedies by Laurel and Hardy, who were famous silent film comedians, for Hal Roach. He joined RKO in 1934 and gained attention with the success of in 1935, proving that he had a wide range of talents beyond comedy. His subsequent films (1935), (1936), and (1939) were a series of great commercial successes for Stevens. Stevens, who was a perfectionist to the extent of William Wyler, also began to take on the role of producer during this period. (1940), (1941), and (1942) were masterpieces created by excellent scripts, well-polished acting, and delicate directing. After returning from World War II, Stevens presented the so-called ‘American Dream Trilogy’ with a much heavier tone and more serious attitude than before. A portrait of a young man who runs down an evil path for his desires and ends up ruined (1951), a western full of classical elegance and romance (1953), and a story of a young man’s success that reveals the back alleys of the American success myth through (1959). Stevens’ film career began to decline after the trilogy in the 1950s. His son George Stevens Jr., who participated as an assistant director in his last film (1970), dedicated a documentary of his father’s life to the deceased in (1984).
EBS1’s ‘Sunday Cinema’, a program that shows carefully selected classic films, airs every Sunday at 1:20 PM.
Reporter Kim Kyung-eun Photo = EBS Sunday Cinema
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2024-09-08 07:26:21