The Gary Cooper Collection (Design for Living / The Lives of a Bengal Lancer / Peter Ibbetson / The General Died at Dawn / Beau Geste)
by Ernst Lubitsch, Henry Hathaway, Lewis Milestone, William A. Wellman
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Actor: Franchot Tone, Fredric March, Gary Cooper, Miriam Hopkins, Ray MillandDirector: Ernst Lubitsch, Henry Hathaway, Lewis Milestone, William A. Wellman
Brand: Universal Studios
Writer: Achmed Abdullah
Writer: Ben Hecht
Writer: Charles G. Booth
Writer: Clifford Odets
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Unknown); Spanish (Subtitled); French (Subtitled); English (Original Language)
Format: Box set, Color, DVD, NTSC
Picture Format: 1.33:1
Running Time: 501 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2005-05-31
Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Studio: Universal Studios
DVD Reviews of The Gary Cooper Collection (Design for Living / The Lives of a Bengal Lancer / Peter Ibbetson / The General Died at Dawn / Beau Geste)
DVD Review: Experience the Magic of Gary Cooper!
Summary: 5 Stars
Gary Cooper fans, romantics and classic cinema lovers, here is a collection of five fabulos, lovingly restored films of one of the greatest actors of all time. The print quality ranges from very good to excellent and the moves are presented in their original aspect ratio.
"BEAU GESTE" (1939) touches profoundly and is full of mystery, surprise, action and suspense. The story begins in a desert fort, where there's not a soul alive and yet, bodies disappear and the fort mysteriously catches fire. Then the movie takes us back in time and we are introduced to the family of Brandon Abbas Estate in England, Lady Patricia Brandon and the children in her care: her three adopted sons Beau, John and Digby Gests, her ward Isobel and Ghastly. There is also Sir Hector, the master of the estate, whom we don't get to meet because he's always absent. He is addicted gambler and in love with his very rare and very expensive sapphire, named "Blue Water". Someday fifteen years later, when the children are adults, the darn thing disappears and with it the Geste brothers. One of them is the jewel thief. Now, if somebody wants to disappear completely and still have some excitement, where would they go? The French Legion of course.
"Beau Geste" is a movie about values: devotion, patriotism, bravery, honor, romance and the undying love of a brother for brother. I know, I don't make sense- high class jewel thieves, French Legion and values, but when you see the film, you'll understand what I mean. The story is so cleverly written, you'll never guess the outcome until the last credit rolls. The acting is exquisite, the soundtrack and cinematography superb and Coop brings so much beauty, sweetness and enigma to the movie. The transfer is excellent, the picture looks as if it was shot last year. Truly great film!
"PETER IBBETSON" (1935) is very special movie. Based on the on the George du Maurier's 1891 novel and directed by Henry Hathaway is all about Love. The deep, eternal, spiritual love that so many dream of and only a few ever find. The kind of love poetically depicted by Victor Hugo: "True love is to be two and yet one. A man and a woman blended as angels, heaven itself."
Peter meets his childhood sweetheart Mary while he lives with his mum in France. The children are separated when his mother dies and his uncle takes him to live in London. Years later the Providence re-unites them. They still love each other and find out that they even share the same dreams but it is too late, Mary is married. Jealous husband, tragic incident and the husband dies. Peter is accused of his murder and jailed for life. The treatment he gets in jail is difficult to watch, but the beautiful life he and Mary have in their shared dreams rewards for it. The movie's transitions between reality and fantasy are wonderfully captured by the cinematography of Charles Lang. Gary Cooper's portrayal of Peter Ibbetson is moving and memorable and so is Ann Harding's performance as Mary. Coop's monolog, when he receives the ring she promised to send him while they were dreaming together is particularly heartbreaking.
This film carries very important messages: a blind man "sees" things and refuses to be unhappy and miserable. Peter &Mary, physically torn apart find a way to be together. Their souls unite "every possible moment". Some might say, that's strange, even impossible, but "the strangest things are true and the truest things are strange".
In jail, Peter is restraint in chains, and these chains represent the fears we all have, that destroy our souls and prevent our imagination flourish.
"THE GENERAL DIED AT DOWN" (1936) is intensely poetic and suspenseful film about love, courage, devotion and self-sacrifice for the one you love or for a good cause. Coop is O'Hara, a mercenary who fights for Democracy in China. He falls in love with the beautiful Judy Perry. She betrays him, in order to help her dying father. Later, she willingly pays the price and wins back O'Hara's love. Coop is in his element here and so is Akim Tamiroff (Pablo, "For Whom the Bell Tolls") as General Young.The movie was deservedly nominated for Academy Awards for Best Actor in a supporting role (Tamiroff), Best Cinematography and Best Music Score. There are several scenes in the film that show startling originality and are quite avant-garde. At one point, a door knob segues to a billiard ball to connect disparate scenes; in another, two characters ask questions and the answers appear in screen segments, marking an unusual use of split screen to join narrative. I love it!
"THE LIVES OF A BENGAL LANCER" (1935) is loosely adapted from a memoir by Francis Yeats-Brown. The plot concerns the lives of British soldiers, defending the borders of India from nomadic raiders. The movie beautifully depicts the love true friends have for each other. Contrary to the popular modern belief that we ought to look after ourselves first and be rather selfish, "The Lives Of A Bengal Lancer" extols selflessness and self-sacrifice for the loved ones as highest virtue.
Directed by Henry Hathaway and with a stellar cast of Gary Cooper and Franchot Tone, the film was nominated for seven Academy Awards, including Best Director, Best Original Screenplay and Best Picture.
"DESIGN FOR LIVING" (1933) is a comedy, adapted from a play by Noel Coward, that premiered with roaring success in 1932. The plot concerns a trio of intensely artistic characters: George Curtis (Gary Cooper), Tom Chambers (Frederic March) and Gilda Farrell (Miriam Hopkins). The two men fall in love with Gilda. She can't make up her mind about who she loves, so they decide to move in together on a friendship basis. The arrangement works at first, then complications arise and Gilda marries her employer to solve the dilemma. Her marriage proves to be dull and both George and Tom realize they can't live without her. So, Gilda divorces her husband and the trio goes back to their original Gentleman's Agreement, to live together without having sex.The film is darkly humorous and explores deeper themes that can seem controversial even today: moral justification for infidelity and analysis of the pressures of fame are some of the topics. Directed by Henry Hathaway.
We live in a turbulent time. Worries over financial crises suck out the blood of us. Traditional values have been turned upside down, leaving us empty. For instance, marriage is no longer regarded important, promiscuity is a norm; sex is no longer part of love and we call the one we share our lives with, simply a partner. This is one of the reasons why these films are so significant- they deliver timely timeless messages of diminishing values.
Everybody has most favorite actor or actress, I suppose. To me, Coop is the greatest. He showed me a wonderful world of emotional depth, a world of eternal love, friendship, gallantry, selflessness and patriotism. A world-refuge, where I'm able to lose myself for a while and then come back to reality, inspired. I am eternally grateful for that and I will love and admire him always.
I also thank the people who restored these magnificent films and put this DVD collection together, so we can enjoy it as much as we wish. Lastly, I thank those of you who had the patience to reed my long review. I sincerely hope that the magic of Gary Cooper will bring you as much joy, as it brought to me.
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Description of The Gary Cooper Collection (Design for Living / The Lives of a Bengal Lancer / Peter Ibbetson / The General Died at Dawn / Beau Geste)
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