Review: Blu-ray Edition of 'Lonely Are The Brave' Celebrates both Film and Star Kirk Douglas

The recent passing of Kirk Douglas has spurred plenty of people to revisit some of his greatest performances, and Douglas himself frequently cited "Lonely are the Brave" as his favorite. It makes sense when you watch the film, too, as it's about a man pushed to the margins of society who dooms himself by refusing to acclimate.

Kino Lorber Studio Classics brings the underrated 1962 drama to Blu-ray with a terrific video presentation and a few special features fans of both Douglas and the film will love. This release comes highly recommended.

John W. Burns (Douglas) is a roaming ranch hand who refuses to join modern society. He spends his days drinking and living the cowboy life, although the industrialization of America creeps further and further into view. After learning from Jerry (Gena Rowlands) that his old friend Paul Bondi (Michael Kane) has found himself in jail, Jack gets into a barroom brawl and ends up being thrown in the clink with his friend. Jack sneaks in a file and plans to escape, although Paul refuses to join since his sentence is nearing its end. Once Jack escapes, he gets on his horse and takes off for the Sandia Mountains, with Sheriff Morey Johnson (Walter Matthau) hot on his tail.

Not only is the film a great showcase of Douglas' innate ability to imbue hard-nosed characters with an incalculable sadness, but it's also a great vehicle for Matthau to show off his trademark begrudging empathy. Although the sheriff is tasked with hunting down Jack and bringing him to justice, empathy prevails when he learns that Jack is a Korean War veteran and Purple Heart recipient who very clearly hasn't been able to escape the war yet.

But rather than dive into the kind of theatrics that made the "Rambo" films so popular, "Lonely are the Brave" carries out a lackadaisical chase filled with men who just don't see the purpose in chasing down Jack. George Kennedy even shows up as a sadistic deputy sheriff who is basically your standard villain character in a western, but the role is encoded in a standard drama. And once the film arrives at the heartbreaking conclusion, it earns a genuine pathos and sadness that wound deeply.

I'm not really familiar with director David Miller's work, but the widescreen compositions here by him and cinematographer Philip Lathrop are truly sweeping and find creative ways to show that society has moved on from the Wild West years. Plus, the new video transfer boasts a terrific contrast that shows off the stark black and white colors. There's also a terrific featurette where Kirk Douglas, Michael Douglas, Steven Spielberg, and Gena Rowlands recount why the film means so much to him. Spielberg has a nice anecdote about how he was able to champion the film's preservation once he earned enough clout at Universal Pictures. Other special features include:

� Audio commentary by film historians Howard S. Berger and Steve Mitchell
� "The Music of Lonely are the Brave" -- a look back at the film's memorable score by Jerry Goldsmith
� Theatrical trailer

"Lonely are the Brave"
Blu-ray
$29.95
https://www.klstudioclassics.com/product/view/id/6940