Anthony Mann’s The Tin Star has grizzled bounty hunter Henry Fonda showing young sheriff Anthony Perkins the ropes. New to Blu-Ray from Arrow Video.
The Film
Don’t give me the epics of Anthony Mann. Give me the lean and mean Western from the director. From The Naked Spur to Winchester ’73 there is something intrinsically edged to a sharpened point like the Westerns of Bud Boettcher. Like Boettcher, Mann had complicit stars that understood what Mann was doing. It shows the prowess of a director at the height of his powers that Henry Fonda, rather than James Stewart, starred in The Tin Star and still managed to be the kind of forcefully adroit film you would expect from Mann and Stewart.
Bounty Hunter Morgan Hickman (Fonda) enters a small town and is instantly aware something is off. The townsfolk watch him with rapt attention after he tells inquiring minds of who his bounty (dead) is. He is greeted by young Sheriff Ben Owens (Anthony Perkins) and knows that this isn’t a good situation and in fact needs to leave this hostile town as quickly as he can. Soon though he finds himself befriending a widowed mother (Betsy Palmer) and her young son (Michel Ray) as well as showing the inexperienced Sheriff a thing or two about a thing or two. Hickman can’t seem to be on his way with his money without helping Owens to learn his way around the badge … without being murdered by Bart Bogardus (Neville Brand) the local town bully with his eyes on the tin star.
There is something beautifully compact about the way that Mann puts together the entire film. The lean and economical storytelling through visuals and parse dialog doesn’t speak to simplicity but rather the opposite. There’s something compelling and complex about the way that there is a point to every single second of The Tin Star. Mann working with editor Alma Macrorie and Cinematographer Loyal Griggs feels like a three headed hydra with a single purpose – telling the best version of the story in under 100 minutes. They succeed in gloriously stylistic fashion.
The film feels perfectly suited for Henry Fonda. The actor who could have very well defined the work “laconic” for screen acting is amazing as Hickman. His Hickman subscribes to the Truman dictum in life. That soft approach never feels spineless but quite the opposite. Fonda creates a man who just wants to go about his life and wants nothing to do with the tangled mess of a situation he walked into. The way that Fonda’s Hickman slowly changes is one of the best parts of the Western. It is only rivaled to his chemistry and work with Anthony Perkins.
The biggest surprise is the work of a very youthful Anthony Perkins. Three years before his iconic work in Psycho, Perkins here is given a jewel of a role. Ben Owens is a perfectly modulated role both in its writing and execution. The young Sheriff is not a neophyte that wants to go out guns blazing but isn’t a coward either. Owen’s is smart enough to understand he’s way out of his element and even smarter still to try to enlist the help of Hickman. The way that Perkins’ dives into the role with the type of measured intelligence and the way he plays off of Fonda – like a sponge soaking in everything – elevates this to a truly wonderful bit of storytelling beyond the norms and clichés of the genre. One can imagine that both onscreen and offscreen this was the case for both Perkins and Fonda.
The Tin Star is a truly magnificent Western that will delight in the unexpected for those that have not seen it. For those that have it will be a return to a rarity these days; a lean, entertaining, Western designed to subvert expectations.
The Transfer
The Arrow Films transfer of The Tin Star’s black and white VistaVision image is a marvel of image quality and what is possible with Blu-ray and its image compression tools. Similar to their impressive work on The Desperate Hours the image is FLAWLESS. Flawless in the way that the very best Black and White 4K UHD discs are. The deep focus nature of VistaVision is on display here with the cinematography by Loyal Griggs getting the most out of it with composition, framing, and camera movement being perfectly worked out that shines beautiful on Blu-ray. There isn’t much information if this is indeed an 6K or even 8K restoration by Arrow or Paramount but I would not be surprised because there is not a stratch, fleck of dirt, or any issue through the entire runtime of the film. It’s early on but The Tin Star is in contention for one of the best transfers of 2024!!!
The Extras
They include the following;
- Brand new audio commentary by film historian Toby Roan
- Apprenticing a Master
- Beyond the Score
- Original theatrical trailer
- Image gallery
The all-new audio commentary by film historian Toby Roan opens with the film’s credits, production schedule, opening, and more. Some of the other details include where Henry Fonda was in his career when he starred in the film; the Paramount Western set that Mann and Company used for the film – including a history and productions that used it; a larger discussion about the history and technology behind VISTAVISION; the personal and professional history of Anthony Mann – including some very interesting personal factoids; the personal and professional history of Henry Fonda – including his preference to the stage over film productions, also his friendship with James Stewart both pre-fame during the depression; Perkins gun handling was taught by Rod Redwing – a larger discussion of his qualifications and his personal history; a discussion of the development of the screenplay and personal and professional careers of the screenwriters Joel Kane, Dudley Nichols, and Barney Slater; a larger discussion of costume designer Edith Head – her illustrious career and personal history; the personal and professional history of Anthony Perkins – including a discussion of how Psycho both gave him stardom and hindered his Hollywood career; a larger discussion throughout about the various actors and behind the scenes crew that worked on the film and their various roles/productions they were apart of; and much more. Roan delivers a conversational but very informative track.
Apprenticing a Master (27:34) – is an all-new interview by author and critic Neil Sinyard begins with an oft-quote dictum by William Goldman and another quote that wasn’t as well-worn as the infamous one and how it relates to the work of Anthony Mann and specifically The Tin Star. Some of the details include the film’s Oscar Nomination – including a discussion of its sturdy structure; the varied career of Mann – though Mann is known for Westerns and Epics; the Stewart / Mann films and what made them so special; where Henry Fonda was in his career when he starred in the film; why this film came about with Fonda and the issues with Night Passage that eventually starred James Stewart; and much more. Sinyard delivers a great interview discussion Mann’s film, the director’s career, and how The Tin Star differs from the rest of Mann’s filmography.
Beyond the Score – (31:47) is an all-new interview with Peter Bernstein the son of Elmer Bernstein on the “timelessness” of the Composer’s work. Some of the details include growing up with his father as a famous composer; growing up learning musical instruments – and how there was no pressure was put on him because of his father’s own childhood; his father’s absence from his childhood early on – and examples given and also being there for scoring sessions for The Great Escape, To Kill a Mockingbird, and others; Bernstein’s thought on the Beatles and Bob Dylan; Bernstein’s mentorship of other musicians – including himself; his rise as a orchestrator for his father – including some anecdotes from that time; how his father was able to jump into different genres and what he looked for in films; and much more. Fascinating look into musical composition from a true legend of film music.
Original theatrical trailer (2:05)
Image galleries – the galleries are divided into three submenus.
- Promotional (12:55) – the gallery consisting of 50 pieces of promotional art (like poster art, lobby cards, newspaper ads, magazine interviews, etc.) plays with Elmer Bernstein’s iconic score.
- Stills (14:25) – the gallery consisting of 58 pieces of stills (like promotional stills, behind the scenes, etc.) plays with Elmer Bernstein’s iconic score.
- French Photocomic – this is a complete reproduction of the photocomic. No Bernstein score but a bonus is that you can navigate the gallery with your remote and review this beautifully scanned-in piece of ephemera.
The Final Thought
Arrow Video has done it again with a beautiful edition of The Tin Star, the wonderful transfer is the star along with the informative extras. Highest possible recommendations!!!