The Naked Spur is the third of five Anthony Mann-directed westerns. Screen icon James Stewart stars as Howard Kemp, a bounty hunter out to capture Ben Vandergoat, played by another screen legend Robert Ryan who is wanted for murder. Janet Leigh and Ralph Meeker are also part of the small, but great cast. The movie was filmed in Durango and the San Juan Mountains in Colorado and in Lone Pine, California.
Taking place in Colorado, 1868, Howard Kemp (James Stewart, Rear Window) sees a “Wanted” poster for Ben Vandergoat who murdered a marshal in Kansas. Kemp, with the help of Jesse Tate (Millard Mitchell, Winchester ‘73) start their pursuit of Ben Vandergoat (Robert Ryan, Crossfire). Roy Anderson (Ralph Meeker, Kiss Me Deadly) steps in and captures Vandergoat. Lina Patch (Janet Leigh, Psycho) is with Vandergoat and has accompanied him during the escpae as her father was a friend of his. Kemp, who pretended to be a lawman is exposed by Vandergoat for not being one and was only interested in the $5000.00 reward must share the reward with both Anderson and Tate. Vandergoat then tries to get inside the head of Anderson, Kemp, and Tate to hopefully fight each other so he can escape captivity!
The Naked Spur is a fantastic Western directed by Anthony Mann. The cast as one would expect deliver perfectly in their roles. The beautiful landscapes and scenery captured by cinematographer William C. Mellor alone is worth watching the film for. Many film critics have cited this movie to be one of the best Westerns ever made. Watch it and see why!
Warner Archive releases The Naked Spur on a dual-layered Blu-ray. After their poor-quality DVD, the Technicolor film has been given a gorgeous new 1080p transfer, which gives those Colorado and California locations a vast improvement in detail. Colors are rich, bold with accurate skin tones, and rich black levels that run deep. William C. Mellor’s cinematography for The Naked Spur has never looked any better than on this Blu-ray. Everything from the scenery to the clothing the actors wear looks absolutely stunning! Film grain is present, and no DNR or other artificial enhancements have been applied for this release.
Warner’s English DTS-HD 2.0 Master Audio soundtrack is perfectly fine with dialogue coming through crystal clear with excellent placement. Action noises and musical score that was composed by Bronislaw Kaper is also quite clear. No audio issues such as hissing, or crackling have been detected.
Extras include the three features that have been ported over from the DVD
Things We Can Do Without which is directed by and starring Dave O’Brien that focuses on household gadgets.
Little Johnny Jet is a cartoon which has been remastered, which is more or less a preview for the forthcoming Tex Avery Screwball Classics Volume 3 Blu-ray. Last, but not least is a theatrical trailer.
The Naked Spur has finally been given a quality release and you can replace your DVD with the upmost confidence. For those who have not seen this movie, this is worth a blind buy!
The Naked Spur
Director- Anthony Man
Cast- James Stewart, Robert Ryan, Janet Leigh
Country of Origin- US
Distributor – Warner Archive / Warner Home Video
Number of Discs – 1
Reviewed by – David Steigman
Date-10/14/21