TOMBSTONE: 4K UHD/Blu-ray (Hollywood/Cinergi, 1993) Buena Vista Home Video

Irrefutably, among the finest westerns ever made, and, as undeniably a cornerstone in the latter half of American 20^th century picture-making, Tombstone (1993) touches upon many of the central themes and western lore made justly famous in Hollywood pics like 1957's Gunfight at the O.K. Corral and 1946's My Darling Clementine. Yet, with all due respect paid to the likes of John Ford, arguably, the greatest proponent of the Hollywood western, the emotional groundswell achieved in Tombstone surpasses even Ford’s monumental achievements in retelling this intimate friendship between two legendary figures from the American west – law man, Wyatt Earp and gambler, Doc Holliday. Each is miraculously brought to vivid life in the embodiment of this film’s two great stars, Kurt Russell and, regrettably, ‘the late’ Val Kilmer. The legacy of Earp and Holliday really is the stuff from which dreams, or more precisely, ‘illusions’ are hewn.  Ostensibly, the picture was directed by George P. Cosmatos. Yet, behind the scenes, Cosmatos’ failing health necessitated his all but stepping aside to allow Russell his seat behind the camera in his stead. Out of respect for Cosmatos, Russell claimed no official ‘on screen’ directorial credit. He also remained largely silent in interviews, allowing the public to believe the picture was owed entirely to Cosmatos’ glowing efforts.

On a personal sidenote, Tombstone was the movie that made me fall in love with westerns – a genre I rather embarrassingly avoided in my youthful, and, otherwise passionate embrace of American movies from every genre and vintage until then, somehow to have overlooked the western’s finer nuances.  But in Tombstone, it was all there – the tender-hearted camaraderie among men made of decision, who shared in a vision and ‘take action’ vainglorious struggle to tame this rugged frontier. There was valor in the face of death, bravery beyond mere conviction, and, indescribable human decency; intangibles oft excised from ‘then contemporary’ picture-making - or worse, reflected upon merely as quaint and archaic principles lacking all social context in our contemporary age. But here was a movie unapologetic extolling those virtues. Tombstone refreshingly challenged the notion a post-modern revisionist’s western had to be telescopically focused on reinventing humanity’s vices, transgressing them from craggy to crude. Instead, there emerged a subtler (for lack of a better descriptor) charm to this well-trodden heritage – lent even more breathtaking clairvoyance by actor, Robert Mitchum’s introspective contextualization.

I have no doubt, silent film star, Tom Mix openly wept at Wyatt Earp’s funeral in 1929. Earp had lived long enough to see the west he so loved, fought and bled over, transformed from a straggle of trading outposts stretching to the sea, into an evolving mecca of opportunity; longer still, to bear witness to his heroics, and that of his contemporaries, mythologized all out of proportion in B-grade silent ‘cowboys vs Indians’ Saturday matinee fluff. For Mix, and others who came to typify this stylized knock-off of manly grace, reconstituted for the popcorn munchers, minus its raw sincerity and respect for the open plains, Earp’s loss to the ages had to be nothing short of epic. Even so, by 1929, time and legacy had already conspired to obfuscate, and then, unofficially bury the truth of these times. Historically, the brothers Earp – Wyatt, Virgil and Morgan – were in steep competition with the Clanton-McClaury ranchers for political and economic governance over Tombstone, Arizona. This festering conflict, forever eulogized after that infamous display of cold lead, to have killed three at the O.K. Corral, but also to exonerate Earps and Holliday of any wrongdoing, became a cornerstone in western lore.

Alas, their victory dovetailed into an even more embittered feud thereafter. During these subsequent attacks Virgil lost an arm and Morgan’s wife was left a widow. Flying solo and outside his jurisdiction as U.S. Marshal, Wyatt, together with Holliday, exacted their pound of flesh on Frank Stillwell – Morgan’s killer, and, later, Florentino Cruz, also suspected of the murder. At this journey’s end, Wyatt wandered from town to city unfulfilled, operating a saloon in San Francisco, raising thoroughbreds in San Diego, joining the Alaskan and Nevadan gold rushes, before becoming a western consultant in the American film industry – ostensibly enough adventure to satisfy any man’s wanderlust. Just not Earp’s. His inability to publish his memoirs while he lived remained a bitter regret. However, this fallow period was followed by a renaissance not even Earp could have fathomed after his early life and times were greatly embellished by journalist, Stuart Lake. This account of Earp became a publishing phenomenon, effectively to crystalize the myth over the man and mark his everlasting importance as the greatest law man in the ‘wild west’ pantheon.

Tombstone follows in this laudatory tradition – mostly; lionizing Earp’s iconography as well as that of his lesser-revived brethren. It also makes a towering spectacle of Earp’s best friend, Doc Holliday – an undeniably larger-than-life creation by his own design. For many, Earp and Holliday reigned as the living monuments to truth, justice, and what eventually became ensconced and interwoven into the collective conscience and social fabric as ‘the American way’. Kevin Jarre’s screenplay for Tombstone is intensely dedicated to this deification. Yet, Jarre’s efforts are also invested in an underlay of exquisitely darker and more subtly shaded character development. More than any other western of any vintage, Tombstone endeavors to understand the Earps and Holliday as fallible figures, fashioned from flesh and blood.

Tombstone was primarily shot by cinematographer extraordinaire, William A. Fraker. Initially, Jarre had ambitions to direct the picture himself, but fast fell behind schedule, necessitating his replacement with Cosmatos. This, in turn, created hard-feelings between producer, Andrew Vajna and co-star, Michael Biehn, who was a close friend. While Biehn believed Cosmatos’ lacked an appreciation for Jarre’s subtler prose, Cosmatos arrived on set with his own exacting and fanatical work ethic. This did not sit well with Fraker. But there was very little to debate the point as star, Kurt Russell and producer, James Jack set about the task of paring down Jarre’s meandering screenplay, deleting some of its more distracting vignettes, while amplifying the friendship between Wyatt and Doc. Cosmatos concurred with their efforts, believing the picture’s strength lay in extolling this buddy-buddy relationship, adding, “The emotion is the most important thing in a movie. If you care about your people, you have a movie.” The other great devotion Cosmatos brought to the project was in achieving period authenticity. From props to costuming, and even mustaches – all real – Cosmatos endeavored to recreate the western milieu to its last detail.

Drawing on artistic sensibilities from such stalwart film-makers as John Ford, Fred Zinneman, John Sturges, Michael Curtiz and Sergio Leone, Cosmatos infused Tombstone with a level of heartfelt integrity. This remained his singular salvation in keeping the project on track, and, maintain civility between the various disparate factions in cast and crew, as yet unwilling to fully embrace him as the new captain of their ship. Although the directorial credit for Tombstone would remain exclusively Cosmatos, felled by illness, he was forced to withdraw from the project after less than half the movie was in the can. Faced with a possible shutdown or even cancellation of the project, Kurt Russell approached producers with the novel idea of allowing him to continue on as both star and director, rather magnanimously refusing to take any credit for these latter efforts.

Tombstone is loosely based on that fabled Wyatt Earp mythology. Earp (Kurt Russell) arrives in Tombstone along with brothers, Virgil (Sam Elliot) and Morgan (Bill Paxton), and, gambler/outlaw, Doc Holliday (Val Kilmer) to face down notorious criminals. Quietly eschewing a major historical fact - the Earps were tried, but acquitted of a botched Wells Fargo robbery – Jarre's screenplay instead clearly delineates the family’s virtues while quietly ignoring their checkered past. Having cleaned up Dodge City, the Earps are anxious to start anew and let their reputations as lawmen quietly fade into the sunset. But Doc Holliday, already afflicted with tuberculosis, refuses to settle down. Indeed, the wily gunslinger/gambler with a genteel Southern drawl is poised to conquer the simple-minded cardsharps using every cheap cheat at his disposal. Unfortunately for all, shortly after arriving in Tombstone Wyatt’s respect for the law is put to the test when Curly Bill Broscius (Powers Boothe) accuses the Earps and Doc Holliday of interfering in his illegal gambling operations. Although a showdown is narrowly averted when Wyatt informs Broscius he is officially retired, and therefore disinterested in Broscius' affairs, Broscius' henchman, Johnny Ringo (Michael Biehn) takes an immediate dislike to Doc, thereby establishing a level of animosity to later erupt into violence.

Encouraged by the townsfolk to help rid their town of Broscius and his men, Wyatt, at first, refuses to take up the badge until Tombstone's Marshal, Fred White (Harry Carey Jr.) is ruthlessly gunned down in cold blood by Broscius. Taken into custody by Wyatt – but later acquitted during trial - as no witnesses to the crime can be found - Broscius quickly sets his sights on getting even with the Earps. In response to the threat, Virgil becomes Tombstone's Marshal, escalating the showdown between the Earps and Broscius at the O.K. Corral. During this legendary gunfight, three of Broscius' men are gunned down and Virgil and Morgan, both wounded. Law and order are temporarily restored. Alas, the Earps are ambushed by Broscius loyalist, Frank McLaury (Robert John Burke). Morgan is killed and Virgil's arm is maimed for life. A despondent Wyatt packs up. However, realizing he will never be rid of Broscius, Wyatt announces he has become the new U.S. Marshal and fully intends to hunt down any man wearing a red sash - the signature fashion accessory of Broscius' henchmen.

Wyatt is waylaid by Broscius, but manages to kill his would-be assassin, leaving Johnny Ringo in charge of the cowboys. As Doc's health deteriorates, Wyatt is forced to leave him at the home of a close friend, Henry Hooker (Charlton Heston). There, Wyatt is reunited with Josephine Marcus (Dana Delany), a saloon performer he first flirted with during his early days in Tombstone. Ringo sends a messenger to Hooker's ranch. Not realizing Doc has already departed for the rendezvous, Wyatt sets off to confront Ringo. In the ensuing duel, Doc dispatches with Ringo before collapsing to his knees. He is rushed by Wyatt to a nearby sanitarium where he succumbs to his tuberculosis, though not before he pledges Wyatt to commit himself to Josephine. Having made his promise, Wyatt finds Josephine and proposes.  As the couple dance together, Robert Mitchum’s postscript eloquently charts the remainder of Wyatt’s life; his funeral, giving pause for silent matinee idol, Tom Mix to openly weep.  

Tombstone is a real/reel western saga – the kind, Hollywood had not produced in some years and has all but forsaken since. The picture is so transparently conceived, though never contrived in its bro-mantic love for Earp, it cannot help but touch off a powder keg of appreciation for the man, made over as a legend in his own time. The majesty here is not derived from this allegory, but rather Kurt Russell’s monumental facility to will the mythos back into a man. Hard-hitting on the surface, but with a genuine reflection upon Earp’s inescapable destiny, Tombstone excels at meticulously establishing, then, as methodically, deconstructing this apologue of gallant men turned asunder by inhospitable times. The other sterling performance that cannot be overstated is owed Val Kilmer whose reputation in Hollywood then, cultivated on the ‘bad boy’ cliché, oft’ transferred into critics erroneously, also to believe he was something of a bad actor. And while certain movies in Kilmer’s canon could hardly be considered stellar (the latter half of the 1990’s were riddled in bad parts in awful movies), Kilmer defined what a noble talent could actually do when encouraged in a part that spoke to his inner intelligence and wit. Doc Holliday is such a role, and Kilmer, pancaked in ever increasing shades of ‘death mask’ grey to evoke his character’s rapid physical decline, reaches from beyond this transparent charade, transmitting a tragic stoicism that is the virtual antithesis to Russell’s intractable ruggedness.

Receiving a rather tepid reception at the box office from both critics and audiences – barely earning over double its $25 million outlay, Tombstone had some stiff competition from Lawrence Kasdan’s Wyatt Earp (1993). And although Tombstone has since gone on to be revered, in some cases, ranking among the top 5 greatest westerns ever made, at the time it hit theaters, at the tail end of the Christmas holiday season, it was widely overlooked and even unfairly dismissed as a wan competitor to Kasdan’s movie. In acknowledging his own indifference to the picture some years later, the late Roger Ebert was to reflect “…every time I see Russell or Val Kilmer… I'm reminded of their Tombstone, which got lost in the year-end holiday shuffle and never got the recognition it deserved.”

Buena Vista Home Video’s new 4K UHD/Blu-Ray combo has rectified virtually every atrocity committed on their former Blu which was extremely problematic. Gone. The egregious edge effects riddled throughout the former Blu. The 4K (and new Blu, derived from this 4K remaster) are perfect. Image quality here is dazzling beyond all expectation. Color saturation is superb. Flesh tones finally appear naturally nuanced, achieving subtle textures and tones. The slight, but thoroughly distracting gate weave of yore is nowhere to be found here. Contrast is exquisite, with spectral highlights registering with sparkle, and black levels achieving a sumptuous depth. Fine details and film grain appear indigenous to their source. All I can say to Disney Inc., the custodians of this invested effort is, keep it up, fellas. And more, please! The 5.1 DTS has been completely reworked and sounds magnificent. Again, it had some major issues and flaws in its previous incarnation. If there is a gripe to be made, it’s that Disney has not lifted a finger to augment this release with any new extras. We get the same, tired half-hour ‘making of’, original storyboards for the O.K. Corral sequence and trailers. Ho-hum! Can’t have everything, I suppose. Now for the really dumb marketing decision. Apparently, to have underestimated Tombstone's popularity or importance, Disney has let it completely sell out on popular platforms, making it virtually impossible to get your hands on a copy unless you pre-ordered one a few months ago. Bottom line: The Mouse House has put their money where it counts, on their remastering efforts. No complaints here. None at all! Very highly recommended!

FILM RATING (out of 5 - 5 being the best)

5+

VIDEO/AUDIO

5+

EXTRAS

1