JEREMIAH JOHNSON - DVD review

Robert Redford had reached the height of his popularity when he made this 1972 adventure film. Ecology was always a serious part of Redford's personal philosophy, and he could well afford to explore and develop this story of a mountain man's love for the great outdoors. "Jeremiah Johnson" is a very personal film, to say the least.

The movie also owes a part of its success to its suitability for the day. The late sixties and early seventies were a period when as a people our consciousness was being raised on environmental issues. Thoreau's advice of a century before to "Simplify, simplify" was being taken to heart by millions of people who were making "Walden" a reality.

Redford, screenwriters John Milius and Edward Anhalt, and director Sydney Pollack were well attuned to America's growing awareness of its surroundings, and in simple, elegant words and images brought this changing world, metaphorically, to the screen. Filmed entirely on location in Utah, the film makes a dramatic impact on DVD.

The movie begins in the mid 1800s with a clean-cut, young soldier, Jeremiah Johnson (Redford), leaving military service after the Mexican-American War. The narrative implies that Johnson is fed up with seeing firsthand humanity's inhumanity, as he heads for the purity and grace of the wide-open spaces. Or perhaps like Ishmael in Melville's "Moby Dick," he just feels the need for a change, a longing in his soul for new challenges in places far away from the presence of Man.

Along the way Johnson undergoes a series of hardships and adventures, which constitute the plot of the story. However, do not expect a lot of plot to get in the way of the natural beauty of the photography and the excitement of the events. This is practically a one-man show, with Redford front and center. Will Geer shows up as an old-timer who teaches him the ways of the mountains, along with a few other colorful characters, including a lovely young woman, played by Delle Bolton, whom Johnson reluctantly marries. But in all, it is an unhurried and unpretentious story told with grace and simplicity.

Video:
Warner offers the film both in pan-and-scan and in its original movie house ratio of approximately 2.35:1 widescreen Panavision. But to watch this film of so epic proportions in anything less than widescreen seems a waste of money. It is for the kind of visual experience that "Jeremiah Johnson" brings to the scene that people buy DVD players and big-screen TVs in the first place.

Audio:
The disc's picture quality is up to the usual high standards from this source, as is the sound, two-channel stereo remastered in Dolby Digital. The music and effects are natural and well placed, if not as dramatically so as those created specifically for surround ambiance.

Extras:
Accompanying the picture are some good cast and production notes, a theatrical trailer, and a short featurette on the making of the film. The featurette offers little beyond self promotion, but the other items provide useful information.

Parting Thoughts:
To conclude, let me assure you that in spite of the film's noble ambitions, it never preaches, never takes the moral high ground, never condemns Man or glorifies Nature. Indeed, hardly a word is said of the world Johnson leaves behind, and his new milieu is a literal wilderness, filled with wild weather, wild animals, and wild people. Surprisingly, too, notwithstanding its requisite violence, the film is essentially gentle and poetic. For some viewers this may translate into slow and tedious. For me, it is a visual testament to the beauty of nature. And the film has never looked better since its theatrical release than now on DVD.