Western Movie Review: Shane (1953)
DVD Synopsis: Acclaimed director George Stevens' legendary rendition of the quintessential Western myth earned six Academy Award nominations, and made Shane one of the classics of the American cinema.
The story brings Alan Ladd, a drifter and retired gunfighter, to the assistance of a homestead family terrorized by a wealthy cattleman and his hired gun (Jack Palance). In fighting the last decisive battle, Shane sees the end of his own way of life. Mysterious, moody and atmospheric, the film is enhanced by the intense performances of its splendid cast.
The story of
Shane is simple enough; good guys on one side fighting bad guys on the other, with a stranger named Shane caught in the middle of it all. It's a simplicity that even extends to the overall tone of the film, yet when it came to
Shane's visual style, 'simple' is exactly what director George Stevens was shooting for.
Throughout Shane, Stevens will hold a single shot for a long period of time, keeping his camera perfectly still and never once cutting away from the action. When discussing the film in a 1974 interview with writers Patrick McGilligan and Joseph McBride, Stevens addressed his use of sustained shots in Shane, and the effect he was hoping to achieve with them.
“In one of those long takes”, Stevens said, “the camera gets rooted in one place almost as if it has discovered something of extraordinary importance. It doesn’t move in to examine it closely; it draws the audience in to make an effort to see more. The audience must explore it, discover why there is this muted telling of some significant point”.
Through simplicity, George Stevens challenged his audience as opposed to merely leading them from one moment to the next, and to his credit, this approach worked. I know, because I myself was watching quite intently, completely caught up in the action on-screen. In the case of Shane, less certainly amounted to much, much more.