Watch How the West Was Won For Free

Great Film overall

what a terribly boring film. I'm sorry but this is absolutely not deserving of best picture and will be forgotten quickly. Entertaining and engaging cinema? No. Nothing performances with flat faces and mistaking silence for subtlety.

It is an exhilarating, distressing, funny and profound film, with one of the more memorable film scores in years,

Watching it is like watching the spectacle of a class clown at their best: you laugh at their jokes, instigate their defiance, and "ooooh" when they get in trouble.

HOW THE WEST WAS WON is perhaps John Ford's biggest and most epic-feeling western, featuring a sprawling storyline that depicts the building of the Old West and the violent events that shaped America in the earlier centuries. It also features an incredible ensemble cast of no less than 24 big names, a lot of them indelibly linked to the genre like Gregory Peck, James Stewart, and John Wayne. The film is awash with gorgeous cinematography, good, old-fashioned values, and romantic sub-plots which are funny and fast-paced. There's love, war, treachery, betrayal, and comradeship, and it all comes together in a way which feels surprisingly neat and concise despite the lengthy running time.

HOW THE WEST WAS WON is an epic western drama about lives of several generations of an American family. A bit confusing story describes, through six episodes, their lives and their participation in important historical events, such as colonization of the West, conflicts with the Indians and the American Civil War.The scenery is quite impressive, but the final result is stingy and unimaginative. A realistic image of one part of the American history has become part of a pale fiction. It is very difficult to consolidate into a single unit these fragmented pieces. Simply, there is plenty of historical and melodramatic segments, but it is not enough for a serious picture of that time.However, this film can have a kind of motivational effect on individuals. If we ignore that epic line, some scenes are pretty exciting. The direction is solid, soundtrack is excellent and characterization is, to put it mildly, ambiguous.The large number of familiar stars in supporting roles is the greatest asset of this film. Each of them should have given a certain charm and depth to his character. It was not so bad. Of course, there is a lot of swagger, theatricality, unconvincing ambitions and limited characters.Unfortunately, a good opportunity for an excellent historical drama is missed.

How the West Was Won (1962) *** 1/2 (out of 4) Epic and landmark Western has three directors telling the story of a group of travelers heading from the East and marking on a journey through the West. Throughout the decades we see them heading out West and then taking part in a variety of stories including those dealing with the railroad, The Civil War and a grand voyage down a dangerous river.An epic such as this could only be filmed in the then hyped up Cinerama and of course you needed epic directors like John Ford, Henry Hathaway and George Marshall to bring it to the screen. Throw in the all-star cast and you're really left with a film that has to be seen and, if you can, see it on as large as a screen as possible. Thankfully I got to view the film in the theater and it's certainly unlike many other adventures on the screen. I think a lot of the credit has to go to the Cinerama. Yes, you get two black lines down the screen and it's easy to see why this gimmick didn't last but at the same time, looking back at these films today, they're just something unique about such a wide image.There's no question that there are some flaws to be found in the film and this includes the actual stories. Even though we've got a running time of 166-minutes, that's still not long enough to really tell the history of the West so what we've got is small stories set during these historic events. The first two stories before the intermission deals with love stories, which might sound corny but it actually works quite well and just think how many years this was before TITANIC. The stories themselves are all "B" material but you're still highly entertained thanks to the director's work behind the scenes as well as the excellent cast members. You can look up the cast yourself and just see how many legends are on one screen. Some like John Wayne just make cameo appearances but there's still some very good work here by the likes of James Stewart, Debbie Reynolds, Gregory Peck, Carroll Baker and Richard Widmark.The Cinerama is something that's hotly debated by film buffs but I think the locations are beautifully captured here. The scenery just leaps off the screen and especially early on. The sequence dealing with the family moving down the river is full of adventure and excitement. Once the twist in the story happens and Stewart must seek revenge, there's no question that it packs a punch. The wagon trail sequence with Peck is also extremely entertaining and features some great action. I actually found Ford's stuff with The Civil War to be the weakest element of the picture but things pick up for the climax and a wonderful shoot out on a train.HOW THE WEST WAS WON certainly has a fair amount of flaws but there's still no question that it's one of the most beautiful films to look at and it features a terrific cast so there's no getting bored through the long running time. If you're going to see the film it's certainly best that you try to seek it out on as big as a screen as possible, the way it was meant to be seen.

Turbulent and mighty story about a family saga set against the background of wars and historical deeds ; covering several decades of Westward expansion in the nineteenth century--including the Gold Rush , the Civil War, , Pony Express , Telegraph , confrontation between cattlemen and homesteaders . And of course , the building of the railroads and career between Union Pacific and Central Pacific to arrive in Promontory Point ; among other epic events . As a family of Western settlers from the 1830s to the 1880s , beginning with their voyage on The Eerie Canal and going on to encompass a Civil War battle and other happenings .The picture gets great action , expansive Western settings , shootouts , love stories , it is quite entertaining and there some some scenes still rate with the best of the West , including marvelous moments along the way . It efficiently describes an attractive panoramic view of the American Western focusing on the tribulations , trials and travels of three generations of a family . It's a big budget film with good actors , technicians, production values and pleasing results . Awesome as well as spectacular scenes such as an exciting white-water rafting sequence , a train robbery , a thundering buffalo stampede and Indian attacks . The Civil War is the shortest part and the weakest including a brief acting by John Wayne as General Sheridan and Harry Morgan as General Ulysses S Grant . Particularly supreme for its all-star cast list with some actors epitomising the spirit of the early West , at least as Hollywood saw it , including a Mountain man as James Stewart , a rogue card player , Gregory Peck , and Debbie Reynolds is notable here as a gorgeous dancer seeking fame and fortune . Not many of the players have a chance to register as a bearded Henry Fonda as a scout , Walter Brennan , Lee Van Cleef , Agnes Moorehead , Ken Curtis , Raymond Massey as Abraham Lincoln , Agnes Moorehead , Thelma Ritter , Mickey Shaughnessy , Russ Tamblyn and an interminable list ,Impressive cinematography filmed in Cinerama, and photographed in splendorous Metrocolor , though it loses much of its breathtaking visual impact on TV but otherwise holds up pretty well . All four cinematographers were Oscar-winners such as William H. Daniels , Milton R. Krasner , Milton Krasner , Charles Lang Jr and Joseph LaShelle . Rousing musical score by the classical Alfred Newman , including an immortal leitmotif . The motion picture was spectacularly directed by three veteran filmmakers , they were enlisted by producer Bernard Smith to handle the multi-part frontier stories relating exciting exploits of an ordinary family . Of the five segments, Henry Hathaway directed "The Rivers", "The Plains" and "The Outlaws", John Ford directed "The Civil War" and George Marshall did "The Railroad". Some uncredited work was done by Richard Thorpe. The picture won Oscar 63 to Film editing , Sound , Story and Screenplay . Rating : Extraordinary film , essential and indispensable watching . It's a magnificent example of the kind of old-fashioned blockbuster just don't make anymore .