Barbara Stanwyck: The Signature Collection (Annie Oakley / East Side, West Side / My Reputation / Executive Suite / Jeopardy / To Please a Lady) by Warner Home Video

This box set of black and white movies is fantastic value. So far I have only watched Executive Suite (but see update) which is the perfect boardroom drama, starring Stanwyck and William Holden, with a whole raft of big names, including Frederic March and Walter Pidgeon, in supporting roles. It's a sleek and glamorous portrayal of boardroom life, and has a nailbiting and very satisfying ending. I've taken a lookthrough the other movies, and they all seem great, particularly East Side, West Side. Real value for money. UPDATE: Having now watched the whole lot, I thoroughly enjoyed them all, particularly the two I've already mentioned, although Annie Oakley was an odd choice for this sophisticated set. Also, all the films have a choice of SUBTITLES in English, English for the hard of hearing and French. And there are plenty of special features, from a commentary to a cartoon and various 'featurettes'. However, the price has gone up considerably since I bought it.HERE'S A SUMMARY OF ALL THE FILMS, AS PER THE BOX:EXECUTIVE SUITE: Who will emerge as the new president of Tredway Corp? With Frederic March and William HoldenANNIE OAKLEY: Stanwyck plays the famed sharpshooter with Preston Foster in her sights. Hokum, but great fun.MY REPUTATION: Stanwyck's personal-favourite performance. She portrays a widow who becomes the victim of vicious gossip when she finds new love with George Brent (I thought she was great, but George Brent less so)EAST SIDE, WEST SIDE: Did a troubled marriage become the motive for murder? (James Mason is excellent, as are Ava Gardner and Van Heflin)TO PLEASE A LADY: Motor racing romance with Clark Gable. Stanwyck looks gorgeous as a hard boiled top columnist (knockout shoes) and Gable is handsome, dapper and droll as the racing driver she falls for. Racing buffs will enjoy the big race filmed at the Indianapolis Speedway.JEOPARDY: Stanwyck is kidnapped by Ralph Meeker in a race-against-time thriller. (Great movie, but very gritty.)

Excellent product, though one or two of the films not quite up to Stanwyck's high standard. Quality and service excellent.

good

This was a lovely film one you will watch time and time againrecommended to western lovers and Barbara Stanwyck fans

Great watch

Exactly as described

Great actress... I must have seen most of these films back when I was a kid. If you liked "Double Indemnity," then you have to love these movies. The titles are:Annie Oakley; East Side, West Side; My Reputation; Executive Suite; Jeopardy; To Please a Lady. Whatta dame!

Very good movie, but you can tell that the actress never shot a gun & wasn't holding nor aiming it properly, that was disappointing mainly that it was based on the story of one of the best female shooter, one would expect the actress to do her research & practice prior to do the movie. Otherwise very good movie

Saw this 1937 movie on old tube tv in 50’s when l was very young. Remembered itGlad to own. Movie you will watch moreThan once. Lizard

Pelicula clasica bien

This collecton honors Barbara Stanwyck's 100th birthday with six titles not previously on DVD and under the control of Warner Home Video. Her screen persona was generally that of a tough-as-nails woman of the world, sometimes with nefarious motives, and this collection tends to give you a broader view of her talents showing fine performances in some well-known as well as lesser known films. All of these films are in the post-code era, and this is probably because Warner Home Video has plans for her pre-codes in their Forbidden Hollywood series. For example, WB has already announced that they have plans for Stanwyck's classic pre-code "Night Nurse" to be put on DVD. At any rate, here are the films and extras in this set:Annie Oakley (1935)The oldest film in the collection, great dramatic license is taken with Oakley's real life story. Stanwyck does a good job of portraying Oakley in this film, still making use of the tough reputation she had in parts in the pre-code era and translating it into a time when less could get past the censors. There's quite a bit of comedy in this western, and George Stevens does a good job of directing all involved.Special Features:Main Street Follies, vintage 1935 short starring Hal Le RoyInto Your Dance, vintage 1935 cartoonSubtitles in English and FrenchMy Reputation (1946)Next we jump ahead ten years with Stanwyck playing a woman who is grieving over the death of her husband. She not only has the timeless problem of being a single mother raising two teenage sons, she must also deal with the issue of her reputation - as dictated by society at that time and by her mother and friends specifically. She gets involved with an Army officer (George Brent) who is the love them and leave them type, and as a result has trouble from everyone she knows. Stanwyck is great as a woman who has to learn to go it alone and stand up for herself for the first time. Brent is less convincing as a bit of a cad - he usually plays such stand-up guys and even played opposite Rin-Tin-Tin early in his career! At any rate, it's a good display of Stanwyck's talents in a different and vulnerable kind of role for her. Not previously on VHS or DVD.Special Features:Jan Savitt and Band, vintage Warner Bros. musical shortDaffy Doodles, vintage Warner Bros. cartoonAudio Only Bonuses: Vintage Radio Versions - Lux Radio Theater adaptation with Barbara Stanwyck (4/47) and Screen Guild Theater adaptation with Alexis Smith (7/47)Theatrical trailerSubtitles: English, French & Spanish (Feature film only)East Side, West Side (1949)This is a movie along the lines of a film noir and has Stanwyck playing a Manhattan woman who is devoted to her philandering husband (James Mason) who claims he loves her in spite of his weakness for serial affairs. One of his past flames, Ava Gardner, is back in town to try to take Mason away from Stanwyck permanently. This film also reunites Stanwyck with Van Heflin who both have great chemistry together. Great performances, a good plot, and an overall enjoyable film.Special Features:Counterfeit Cat, vintage MGM Tex Avery cartoonStuff for Stuff, vintage MGM short subjectOriginal theatrical trailerSubtitles: English and FrenchTo Please a Lady (1950)This film pairs Clark Gable with Stanwyck. Gable plays a renegade racing driver whose driving tactics during a race cause the death of another driver. Stanwyck plays a no-nonsense newspaper reporter out to expose Gable's professional tactics and end his career. This might actually be more interesting to car racing fans than to Stanwyck fans because of the great footage of racing and behind the scenes footage of the sport as it existed in 1950. Stanwyck does the best she can with a somewhat thin script, and it is above average entertainment, but it is probably the weakest entry in the set.Jeopardy (1953)This film is a thriller that is rather hard to categorize - it is almost avante-garde in nature. It starts out calmly enough - the Stilwin family is vacationing on an isolated stretch of beach. However, while rescuing their son, Doug Stilwin (Barry Sullivan) gets his leg caught and is stuck in the water. He is fine now - at low tide. High tide will be another matter. His wife (Barbara Stanwyck) goes for help and instead picks up an escaped killer. He proposes an interesting trade to her in exchange for his help. This is a great suspenseful movie and I'm surprised it is not better known and not shown more on TV. Meeker is very good as the criminal. His onscreen persona is an interesting cross between Jack Nicholson and Marlon Brando and he has good chemistry with Stanwyck in this one. Not previously on VHS or DVD.To Please a Lady and Jeopardy are a double feature and have the following extras:To Please A Lady original theatrical trailerJeopardy original theatrical trailerAudio Only Bonus: Jeopardy 1954 Lux Radio Theater Broadcast with StanwyckSubtitles: English, French & Spanish (feature film only)Executive Suite (1954)Probably the best known of the six films in this set and probably the most awaited as far as DVD releases go. The funny thing is, Stanwyck isn't really the star in this movie - William Holden is. That's not to say Stanwyck fans won't get their money's worth though, particularly in her showdown scene with Holden and in the last scene where she outperforms everyone just by sitting in a chair and observing. This film is about the details of a power struggle when the founder of a large corporation suddenly dies. It basically boils down to two factions - the innovators and the bean counters. It's how these two groups dance around each other in their maneuvers for power that will hold your interest. The film is still relevant because big business is still about these two groups today. It is a common story of business - someone starts a company out of their love for building a superior product and somewhere along the way - often after the founder's death or retirement - the bean counters take over and regard only profits without remembering that the superior product is where those profits come from. Outstanding entertainment.Special Features:Feature commentary by Oscar-winning director Oliver StoneOut for Fun, vintage MGM Pete Smith ShortBilly Boy, vintage MGM Tex Avery CartoonOriginal theatrical trailerSubtitles: English & Spanish (feature film only)My biggest disappointment in this set is a lack of biographical material on Stanwyck's career, which was a long and illustrious one. It does look like WB gave Executive Suite good treatment with the feature commentary, though.

Well acted great story! Some poetic license taken but enjoyable. Classic and recommended.

I am enjoying this collection.There are movies I have never seen before.I did not know Barbara Stanwyck made so mauny movies -85 in 38 years.I would recommend this collection to anyone who likes Barbara Stanwyck.