Young Mr. Lincoln (DVD)

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Ford, like many studio directors, had a propensity to lay the populism on thickly. Small town folk (especially farmers) are good and innocent, big city people are bad, and nobody ever learned anything in school that was ever worthwhile. Sometimes this approach feels pandering or condescending, as I feel is the case with another Ford-Fonda film, the much praised "Grapes of Wrath" (1940). "Young Mr. Lincoln" never quite crosses that line, however, in large part due to the complexity of Lincoln´s character. He poor-mouths it a lot and professes solidarity with the common folk, but we see how shrewd (and sometimes self-serving) he really is. Lincoln didn´t get to be a successful lawyer just by toiling in the fields or getting to know the people; he spent his free hours reading law books and learning all he could. The "aw shucks" facade is a smokescreen for a self-educated man who knows how to play the crowd like a fiddle. Heck, a guy like that could be president one day.

Video

The film is presented in its original 1.33:1 aspect ratio. The transfer is sharp and clear though some debris from the original print is visible.

Audio

The DVD is presented in Dolby Digital Mono. The remastered soundtrack is clean as a whistle with no hisses or any other audible defects.

Extras

Unlike most Criterion two-disc releases, "Young Mr. Lincoln" does not come with a bifurcated case to hold each disc. Rather, the discs overlap in a single case, meaning you have to pull out the top disc to get to the bottom one which is pretty darned annoying.

Disc Two features an array of special features. By far the best is "Omnibus: John Ford, Part One" (42 min.) a BBC documentary (originally aired Dec 1, 1992) directed and hosted by Lindsay Anderson which covers John Ford´s career up to and including his work as a documentarian during World War II.

"Parkinson: Meets Henry Fonda" (49 min.) is an episode of a BBC talk show which aired Nov 1, 1975. Fonda reminisces on his career, including his work with Ford.

The disc also includes a radio broadcast (30 min.) of "Young Mr. Lincoln" by the "Academy Award Theater." The broadcast stars Fonda and Ward Bond and originally aired July 10, 1946. Also included are two interviews conducted by Dan Ford (John´s grandson) and a Gallery of script pages and production stills from the film.

The insert booklet features great cover art and two essays: one by critic Geoffrey O´Brien and one by Sergei Eisentein who called "Young Mr. Lincoln" "the film that I wish I had made."

Closing Thoughts

The apparent simplicity of "Young Mr. Lincoln," like that of its protagonist, is deceptive. In 1970, the "Cahiers du Cinema" critics found the film complex enough to devote an entire issue to a close analysis of it. "Lincoln," in fact, is one of the cornerstones that cemented Ford´s reputation as a favored auteur. "Grapes of Wrath" is the most celebrated Ford-Fonda collaboration, but in my opinion "Young Mr. Lincoln" exceeds it in every way.

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