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How the West Was Won (Ultimate Collector's Edition) | 
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| Directors: George Marshall, Henry Hathaway, John Ford, Richard Thorpe
Actors: James Stewart, John Wayne, Gregory Peck, Henry Fonda, Carroll Baker
Studio: Warner Home Video
Category: DVD
List Price: $59.98
Buy New: $39.99
You Save: $19.99 (33%)
New (30) Used (8) from $25.41
Rating:  109 reviews
Sales Rank: 7683
Format: Ac-3, Collector's Edition, Color, Dolby, Dvd-video, Original Recording Remastered, Restored, Special Edition, Widescreen, Ntsc
Languages: English (Original Language), English (Subtitled), French (Subtitled), Spanish (Subtitled), Japanese (Subtitled), Thai (Subtitled), French (Dubbed)
Rating: G (General Audience)
Number Of Items: 3
Running Time: 162
Aspect Ratio: 2.55:1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1
Dimensions (in): 7.7 x 5.6 x 2.1
MPN: WARD039866D
UPC: 883929026487
EAN: 0883929026487
ASIN: B0018O50W0
Theatrical Release Date: 1962
Release Date: September 9, 2008
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Product Description
Studio: Warner Home Video Release Date: 09/09/2008 Run time: 162 minutes Rating: Nr
Amazon.com
The first feature film to be photographed and projected in the panoramic three-camera Cinerama process, this epic Western is almost as expansive as the West itself, chronicling a pioneering family's triumphs and tragedies in numerous episodes spanning three generations and a half century of westward movement. Divided into five segments directed by veteran Hollywood filmmakers Henry Hathaway, George Marshall, and the legendary John Ford (and including uncredited sequences directed by Richard Thorpe), the film was one of the most ambitious ever made by the venerable MGM studio. Its stellar cast reads like a virtual who's who of Hollywood's biggest stars. Debbie Reynolds plays a sturdy survivor of many pioneering dangers, and the eventual widow of a gambler (Gregory Peck), who is later reunited with her nephew (George Peppard), a Civil War veteran and cavalryman who heads for San Francisco as the transcontinental railroad is being built. Many more characters and stories are woven throughout this epic film, which is dramatically uneven but totally engrossing with its stunning vistas and countless outdoor locations in Illinois, Kentucky, South Dakota, Monument Valley in Arizona, California, Colorado, and elsewhere. --Jeff Shannon
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| Customer Reviews: Read 104 more reviews...
 The birth of widescreen November 30, 2008
A superb restoration (on Blu-Ray) of what is a mediocre film. Not even all of the featured Hollywood stars could rescue this Disneyesque look at America's westward expansion. The most interesting thing was the documentary extra on the Cinerama process and how it influenced all subsequent films. This is how widescreen was born. But the use of Cinerama for this film makes many scenes look awkward, as the characters eyes don't quite meet in a number of scenes, since the camera used three lenses and the actors had to "guesstimate" where, exactly, the other actor would appear on the curved Cinerama screen. Closeups were also impossible. Cinerama was made for big, expansive scenes, of which HTWWW has many. The directors actually had to compose their shots based upon the camera's unique characteristics. While some scenes were gorgeous, even displaying it in HD on my 106" projection screen looked awkward, because it was made for Cinerama's curved screen. All in all, an interesting, if underwhelming, movie.
 Magnificent western saga! November 30, 2008
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
I am very pleased that this wonderful mini-series is finally available on DVD. I live in Colorado, and I was fascinated with Michner's story. The actors are mostly well chosen, and you can't beat the real scenery of the area around Boulder, CO. You might quibble with some 1970's production values, but there's no CG here! Some of the extra's on the DVD version include interviews with surviving actors about the filming experience. This is a very long mini-series, and I recommend viewing it one disk per night. There is just so much to experience. The earlier episodes are the best, and the message of land conservation and wilderness preservation are as topical today as they were 25 years ago. My only criticism is that the packaging is rather flimsy. Two of the disks had fallen off the plastic holders, and were somewhat scratched in the process. This did not interfere with playing. I must say that this series looks absolutely wonderful played on my blu-ray(upgrading to 1080p)onto my hi-def flat screen TV, than it did when it was first broadcast! Great story for families with older students interested in western history!
BluRay really Rocks November 25, 2008
well everybody here has already said it, the movie is great and the bluray transfer is fantastic, great movie all round, this was my first bluray purchase, well worth it.
WOW!!!!! November 25, 2008
WOW!!!! In Blu Ray this special addition is fantastic!
Can't wait to have our Grand Children over to learn and see," How the West Was Won!!!!!!!
GJH
Magnificent restoration November 25, 2008
How the West was Won finally gets the treatment it deserves. For years we have had to watch a third of the picture on our 25" television sets with the old pan and scan trick. Later released on dvd it still was a far cry from the original aspect ratio of 2.89 to 1. Now we can watch it in the "smilebox" version which closely replicates the curve of the Cinerama screen giving us a pretty good idea of how the movie was meant to be seen. The only drawback is that the smilebox version is available only on the blu ray version as an alternative to the letterbox version which looks long and skinny when shown as a "flat" picture at the 2.89 to 1 aspect ratio. The color and the sharpness are amazing and they were able to remove most of the join lines between the panels. As an added bonus the Cinerama Adventure is in itself a wonderful documentary which will enhance your appreciation of the work that went in to developing this motion picture process.
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