Nevada Smith

UPC: 097360653243

Studio: Paramount

MPAA Rating: NR   Contains:[Questionable for Children]

Summary: Henry Hathaway's film is based on a character from Harold Robbins' The Carpetbaggers, who, in turn, based it on cowboy actor Ken Maynard. Set in the West of the 1890s, the film opens with the torture and murder of the parents of Max Sand (Steve McQueen) by a trio of gunslingers seemingly motivated by their hostility toward the mixed nature of the marriage, since the wife is a Native American. Swearing revenge, the young cowhand enlists the help of itinerant gunsmith Jonas Cord Brian Keith, who teaches him how to shoot while counseling against revenge. Nonetheless, Sand doggedly scours one town after the other before finally running up against one of the murderers, Jesse Coe (Martin Landau). He finally kills Coe in a vicious knife fight, but is severely wounded himself and has to be nursed back to health by Neesa (Janet Margolin), a young Kiowa woman. He next heads for Louisiana where another of the murderous trio, Bill Bowdre (Arthur Kennedy), is serving a prison sentence in a remote swamp. In order to get close to the man, Sand stages a robbery, and is soon among the prison inmates. This was the only film on which McQueen worked with Landau, the only other person admitted to the Actor's Studio out of thousands of applicants in 1957. ~ Michael Costello, Rovi

Category: Western

Features: ccWidescreen version enhanced for 16:9 TVs
English subtitles
Dolby Digital: English Mono, French Mono

Nevada Smith

Format: DVD

Release Date: 04/22/2003

Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1 Cinemascope

Audio: DD Dolby Digital

Runtime: 130 Minutes

Sides: 1

Number of Discs: 1

Language(s) English,French

Subtitles: English

Region: USA & territories, Canada

Chapters: Side #1 --
1. The Murder of Max Sand's Family [10:19]
2. Setting Out for Revenge [12:42]
3. Jonas Cord [5:38]
4. Studying Up [5:29]
5. Going Where the Money Is [6:09]
6. Killing Jesse Coe [7:22]
7. Neesa [4:28]
8. Looking for Names [3:31]
9. "The Word Is Apprehended" [12:25]
10. Enemies and Friends [5:31]
11. Dying in Sin [7:03]
12. Mean as Tom Fitch [12:18]
13. Father Zaccardi [8:04]
14. "Smith... Nevada Smith" [7:39]
15. Aiming to Kill [7:59]
16. "Finish Me!" [8:11]

Michael Costello

Hathaway's revenge Western, minimal enough in its dialogue to seem like a silent at times, is a perfect setting for McQueen's perennially aggrieved persona. Although often primitive in its technique, the austere beauty of the film's Western locations, its leisurely pace, and the methodical nature of the hero's pursuit imbue its inevitable violence with a strangely meditative cast. Unlike action films of recent decades, where revenge is usually swift and sure, Nevada Smith underlines the exhaustive nature of McQueen's search and the sheer physical toll of killing even one man. As the years pass, the film records the ugly transformation of the vulnerable kid into a stone-cold killer. Except for Arthur Kennedy, who is reliably good in the meatiest of the roles afforded the villains, McQueen so dominates the film that the excellent cast really only needs to use a fraction of their talent. Among its spectacular locations are Mount Ritter and Banner Peak in California, and Atchafalaya Basin in Louisiana. ~ Michael Costello, Rovi

Cast and Crew: Strother Martin  Actor 
Ric Roman  Actor 
Henry Hathaway  Director 
Henry Hathaway  Producer 
John Michael Hayes  Screenwriter 
Joseph E. Levine  Executive Producer 
Alfred Newman  Composer (Music Score) 
Steve McQueen  Actor 
Karl Malden  Actor 
Brian Keith  Actor 
Arthur Kennedy  Actor 
Suzanne Pleshette  Actor 
Raf Vallone  Actor 
Janet Margolin  Actor 
Pat Hingle  Actor 
Howard Da Silva  Actor 
Martin Landau  Actor 
Paul Fix  Actor 
Gene Evans  Actor 
Josephine Hutchinson  Actor 
John Doucette  Actor 
Val Avery  Actor 
Sheldon Allman  Actor 
Lyle Bettger  Actor 
Bert Freed  Actor 
David McLean  Actor 
Steve Mitchell  Actor 
Merritt Bohn  Actor 
Sandy Kenyon  Actor 
John Lawrence  Actor 
Stanley Adams  Actor 
George Mitchell  Actor 
John Litel  Actor 
Ted de Corsia  Actor 

Country: USA