Product Description

Robert Redford has one of his best-ever roles as a 19th century mountain man in a wilderness of harsh elements and hostile Indians. Directed by The Firm's Sydney Pollack. Year: 1972 Director: Sydney Pollack Starring: Robert Redford, Will Geer, Stefan Gierasch

DVD Features:
Featurette
Production Notes

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1828 in DVD
• Released on: 1997-10-29
• Rating: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
• Aspect ratio: 2.35:1
• Formats: Anamorphic, Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, DVD-Video, Full Screen, Widescreen, NTSC
• Original language: English, French
• Subtitled in: English, French, Spanish
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 116 minutes

Amazon.com
After they first worked together on the 1966 film This Property Is Condemned, director Sydney Pollack and Robert Redford continued their long-lasting collaboration with this 1972 drama set during the mid-1800s, about one man's rugged effort to shed the burden of civilization and learn to survive in the wilderness of the Rocky Mountains. Will Geer is perfectly cast as the seasoned trapper who teaches Jeremiah Johnson (Redford) how to survive against harsh winters, close encounters with grizzly bears, and hostile Crow Indians. In the course of his adventure, Johnson marries the daughter of a Flathead Indian chief, forms a makeshift family, and ultimately assumes a mythic place in Rocky Mountain folklore. Shot entirely on location in Utah, the film boasts an abundance of breathtaking widescreen scenery, and the story (despite a PG rating) doesn't flinch from the brutality of the wilderness. In addition to the original theatrical trailer, remastered Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack, and informative production notes, the DVD also includes The Saga of Jeremiah Johnson, a promotional documentary on the making of the film. --Jeff Shannon

Customer Reviews

Pollack's Best?
Despite the Oscars for "Out of Africa," Sydney Pollack was underrated as both a director and an actor. Since his death two weeks ago, I've been revisiting his films on DVD. Least favorite: "The Way We Were"--a political chick flick in which the movie, like its anti-hero, sells out to sentimentality. Favorite: this one. I realize my "handle" and location indicate a certain prejudice in "Jeremiah Johnson"'s favor, but ask yourself where you've seen better cinematography of our West or a better performance by Robert Redford. How Pollack got studio money to make such a stark epic is the greatest miracle of all.

As an actor, Pollack is best known for his turn as Dustin Hoffman's frustrated agent in "Tootsie." Apparently it wasn't much of a stretch, since Pollack was Hoffman's very frustrated director. However, his role as the cynical billionaire in "Eyes Wide Shut" was one of the best things in the film. Best of all his roles was as the airhead-infatuated husband in Woody Allen's "Husbands and Wives," in which he had more states of mind or heart to convey: jaded, besmitten, ferociously disillusioned, finally compromising with full-circle return to precisely the same marriage he had left. A great performance.

Incomparable
I was not alive to see this movie when it came out, and as a general rule I don't prefer movies that are old save the best. However, Jeremiah Johnson may very well be in my top 35 favorites. The acting, directing, cinematography, and grand sweeping narrative are all spot on. This will always be one of the great adventure movies in my collection. Buy it.

An oldie but good
If you like westerns this is a must. I am not a western fan but I enjoyed this one. It has some great humor too not to mention Robert Redford was so nice looking .