• Color, Region 1
      
• 6-disc Box Set
  

        T he official description of this box set starts out with, “Celebrating one of the most enduring stars in Hollywood history is this gift set that will fly high with fans.” In reference to the Clint Eastwood Collection six disc box set on the DVD format, I would recommend disregarding everything following the word “that.” Eastwood is undeniably one of the most influential hardball actors to ever hit the set, but this box set presents irrefutable evidence that not all films are created equal.

Normally I’m one to save the best for last, but I couldn’t help myself - I jumped right, straight into Dirty Harry. A classic if ever there was one, this title is a must-not-miss, even if the audio/video quality is mediocre at best. So what if supplements are sparse? Who cares if all these guys are doing is re-packing old titles in new boxes with a big “Clint Eastwood Collection” stamp on top and re-marketing them as if they’re something new and significantly different? All these attributes combined couldn’t hold down the ferocity of Dirty Harry.

I briskly moved on to In The Line of Fire - I think this is the first film that Clint convinced me he was ready to retire. He plays a Secret Service agent named Frank who, in his older age, is determined to make up for the failures of his younger days as a rookie agent. I remember when this title first came out on DVD in 1997: one among the first three hundred titles ever produced. Here we are, three and a half years later, more than a few generations of DVD players later, nine thousand titles later, and they re-release it in exactly the same condition as when it first came out - devoid of anything interesting other than the film itself. How sad. At least these old Columbia-Tristar titles were known for their excellent video transfer quality. Another favorite in this film is John Malkovich who plays the twisted assassin, Eastwood’s nemesis.

Film-wise, things just kept getting better as I moved on to Unforgiven. This was the first actual Eastwood western flick of the set, ironically the last western he filmed. This title is a real gem with hardcore characters, co-starring Morgan Freeman as Eastwood’s companion, Richard Harris as English Bob, a deadly opponent, and Gene Hackman as the inexorable town sheriff who struggles to have his way with him. This old Warner Brothers’ disc, also released in early 1997 among the first three hundred titles to hit the shelves, also has little in the way of extras. Only a couple trailers and Production Notes, actually. And the title is, like the others, a simple re-release of the same content. I never thought I’d hear myself say, “thank goodness they don’t make `em like they used to!”

Here’s where things got tricky - I was doomed to experiment with smaller, lesser known films which to me always indicates that things could very rapidly approach a total waste of time. After carefully examining the three remaining titles, I chose to check out the more well-known The Outlaw Josey Wales: the least likely to suck rocks, though, having not seen the movie before, I think part of me still anticipated sheer boredom. Well here’s to small miracles - the film lived up to its reputation and was fairly enjoyable. A good, wholesome western flick with its share of blazing guns, cowboys and Injuns. The testimonials claim that ‘Time’ called it one of 1976’s best movies and that over time (no pun intended - har har) has “secured a place as one of the top westerns ever.” If this is one of the top ever, then the top list would have to be pretty freaking long, starting with The Good, The Bad and The Ugly. Oh and yes, this disc too contains absolutely nothing of interest beyond the feature presentation (which is quite worthwhile!).

Well by this point, I was stoked - if such an unexpected satisfaction could be arrived at with ‘Josey Wales’, then I was sure to enjoy the remaining two titles as well - I popped in The Beguiled. You know how in most actors’ careers there’s at least one title where you can’t help but wonder if they’re embarrassed to be associated with it? Well this is it for Clint. He plays a lowly, sneaky army deserter (sort of) who makes his way into the care of a pretty young teacher at an all-girls school. Just his luck to be surrounded by giggling young Betty’s, each of whom would try to out-do the other to try to win the heart of probably the first man ever to enter their sheltered little lives. Much to my dismay, this film was shot nearly ninety percent in the interior of the schoolhouse where Clint was supposedly bed-ridden from his injuries. Insert plenty of melodramatic girlie-drama, some seemingly out of place girl-on-girl action and a quickly recovering Clint discovering all the possibilities to take advantage of, and what you’re left with is this film is the presentation of a despicable character on a confined set with far too little to say that is of any interest. I beg of you, if you have any respect for film, please don’t waste nearly two hours on this one only to lose a small piece of that respect. Remarkably, this unremarkable film had slightly more features on the disc than some of the others with both cast & crew and production notes: wowsers.

Completely disheartened, I reluctantly revved Bronco Billy up to full playback speed. I stared in wonderment at the tacky cover artwork and my stomach reeled at the thought of the dorkiest film title in the West. But once the screen caught my attention, I was chuckling on cue within minutes. Bronco Billy has to be one of the silliest, eclectic assortment of characters assembled in a half-serious, three quarters joking film. It’s a story of a small band of societal rejects who find a new spark of life in their self-made show business, and explores each of the strangers’ places and how they have come to be a part of Bronco Billy’s Wild West tent show. A sort of ridiculous, yet enjoyable show, it is apparently on the top of Eastwood’s own personal favorites, conveying his directorial message. The title has a Profile & Filmography of Eastwood, but nothing else of consequence.

Well I guess five out of six isn’t bad. I figured I’d try another Clint Eastwood Collection disc from outside of the regular box set and obtained Kelly’s Heroes. I also found this film to be quite entertaining. Take Saving Private Ryan and Three Kings, and then beat them to a pulp with M.A.S.H. and you get a rough idea of what it was like to be among Kelly’s Heroes during World War two behind enemy lines - in hot pursuit of gold. The movie dragged onward a bit, clocking in at two hours and twenty minutes, but the cinematography was decent enough (for the time) to be bearable through to the end. This title was produced in 1970, a full year before Dirty Harry came to be. Clint must have learned his strength the hard way: in the battlefield. The movie has a great co-part for Donald Sutherland - the cookey young hippie tankster. Gotta watch out for them crazy eyes. A solid, classic film of adventure - and uhh.. no, don’t look for any significant features here either - even the video transfer is average, poor on the dark scenes, passable on brighter ones.

So that’s my report. Basically there is nothing tremendously significant about the box set other than that it might save you a few bucks to buy `em all strapped together that way. And if you like five out of the six movies like me, then maybe it’s still worth it, but otherwise, ultimately you may just as well be better off picking up the individual titles that you already know you enjoy.