The Big Trail

The Big Trail, director Raoul Walsh’s epic covered wagon frontier Western, keeps getting better and better.

Released in 1930, it was everything a movie was supposed to be and much more.

Loaded with detail, action and drama, it was 70mm big, long before widescreen would become common in the 1950s. In fact, it was too big, and not many theaters were equipped to screen it.  The movie was supposed to make a star out of a young actor named John Wayne, but that didn’t happen either.

No matter. It’s an amazing movie, and the two-disc, bells-and-whistle DVD is everything people have been wanting. The new Blu-ray is even better, offering a visually clean and sharp picture, which makes a huge difference. We’re seeing more and more Westerns available in Blu-ray, and The Big Trail is one of the most impressive.