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It’s almost certainly surprising as well as delightful when a Western is leagues above your expectations. This is what makes this film outstanding.
To be precise, I did not have any expectations regarding The Big Country. I had no idea who Gregory Peek was, and Burl Ives will always be the jolly narrator of Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer for me.
The movie is astounding, to say the least. I am highly impressed, and frankly relieved too since it borders on thrice the average time for a regular Western film, which by the way, is a straight nightmare to sit through if the movie does not live up to the immense hype surrounding it. Hearing the runtime from my mom was certainly a nightmare after that en dehors torture I had to go through, and as a result, I wanted to toss it below all the other movies I had waiting to watch.
In my opinion, The Big Country makes excellent use of the entire 3-hour screentime and I even believe that it is so genial it single-handedly took me two days of thinking to craft this review only to find out that I have no clue if I ever did it right. But even so, I know the director would appreciate this, and unfortunately for him, I ended up putting each thought into words. No words could do this film justice. You absolutely NEED to see it.
The Big Country starts with James McKay (Gregory Peck) riding into an Old Western town to meet his fiancée (Carroll Baker). He first receives warm welcomes, but soon realizes everything is different.
His father-in-law is a scheming powerful landowner called Henry Terrill aka The Major (Charles Bickford) who has an equally powerful rival rancher Rafe Hannassey (Burl Ives). The Major has a cruel, domineering ranch foreman (Charles Bronson) who fancies young Miss Terrill.
The two old ranchers have been feuding for decades in an attempt to take control over a third ranch that claims to have the only river in the town. Water is needed to sustain cattle and is in high demand, making whoever gets the ranch powerful. They have other ranch hands to help stir trouble for each other’s homes and livestock at every chance they get.
A range war is impending and McKay is stuck in the middle. On top of all that, his fiancée reveals her true intentions, which are rather horrific.
The movie has a lot of action and physical comedy, yet its quietness steals the show. This effect is created through long shots of open ranges and the gentle voice of Gregory Peck. And besides, it is well cultivated and intended.
Soft-spoken does not equal delicate, as Peck’s McKay is skilled with horses, guns, and fists. He just means words when he is using them. He simply does not demonstrate that unless it cannot be avoided.
He is not going to provide the elegant Western character that is required for this type of movie, which is what I thought in the first few scenes. But, you are jolted with the realization of McKay’s powers as a tremendous observer. Everything is delivered through nothing more than Peck’s subtle facial expressions. Though Ives’ hulking figure appearing late to the picture like Sherman through Atlanta while instantly winning the screen and audience with all his focus on the image to the shocking and horrifying last moments is something you can never forget.
My favorite thing about The Big Country is that, as I’ve mentioned, nothing is as it appears. There’s this rugged, old rancher who looks like a bad character, mostly due to the fact that his children are drunken fools. But Rafe has stronger morals than anyone, with the exception of McKay. Ives commends this nuanced performance of a good heart behind a gruff exterior.
He has the best facial hair in the entire movie. The beard (and the acting) steals the show in this tense scene.
For the Best Supporting Actor prize, Ives rightly took home an Oscar and a Golden Globe. Ridiculously, Ives has a total of three wins and only two nominations.
Jean Simmons and Carroll Baker give strong performances as young school teacher Julie Maragon as well as Miss Patricia Terrill. Baker has all the explosive emotions that get on everyone’s nerves while Simmons is, for half of the movie, a person that everyone ignores. But in reality, everyone’s attention goes to her. My only critique of the characters is that even though it isn’t acting, one of them becomes quite irritating in a short span of time, and their counterpart has insufficient material to fill the role in the storyline.
Through its impressive production, The Big Country assures that every character is fleshed out in distinct detail and helps you garner an understanding of their motives. This way, you will never find a character that is simply a filler. Even if it is a grand production, it still manages to feel extremely intimate. JSON-LD Structured Data
Without noticing, you realize that two hours have passed while waiting for something thrilling to happen. It is easy to get engrossed in the plot while everything else happening, aside from the astounding trick riding done at the start, is relatively calm. And the action-packed scene is amazing, There is a fight scene that qualifies as the most unique fistfight one can imagine in a Western film. Everything is shot at a distance during twilight while being surrounded by crickets. The entire scene is bafflingly realistic. JSON-LD Structured Data
No one ever claimed watching a Western would serve as an intellectual experience, and instead of trying to put together intelligent thoughts, you simply enjoy it. You get exceptional rewards for your patience, and plenty of action sequences like a kidnapping, horseback riding, and a battle in the canyon all unfold in an instant. JSON-LD Structured Data
There are Western goods, and then there is something utterly unheard of. The comedy in some of the scenes is laugh-out-loud funny. To give an example, there is a particular scene with McKay trying to ride Thunder. Thunder is a bronc that has broken every single cowboy willing to ride it. You watch this bratty horse while Thunder does its best to buck off McKay and are left stunned since it works so well with the rest of the film.
The Big Country is a masterpiece today, but it was hell to make it.
It only took a single flick of Wyler’s wrist on set for the entire cast to pause, only to resume when he said action again. Simmons did not share her experience of filming until the 1980s. In interviews, she would say that Wyler’s penchant was to endlessly recraft the same scene the night before, the day of, and during the filming of the scene. Peck acknowledges this but gives it the bare minimum of credence in other interviews.
Peck, who for 30 years was a close friend of Wyle, refrained from speaking to him for 3 years following the completion of the film.
Nevertheless, The Big Country has a 100% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, earned Burl Ives those accolades, and allegedly, Playmobil based an entire cowboy line off of the film. The results speak for themselves. Besides, I edit my reviews each and every time I open them, so who am I to comment on Wyler’s method?
After reading this, go ahead and tell me that the film does not impress you in at least some way. Seriously, join my Facebook group and tell me your views. Then look at this absurdly adorable behind-the-scenes footage where the cast and crew do productive things like chess and racing with turtles in the desert.
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