LONE GUNMAN OR CONSPIRACY?? | Prisoner of Shark Island (The Ford at Fox Collection)

Fine early John Ford | Prisoner of Shark Island (The Ford at Fox Collection) | Warner Baxter, Gloria Stuart

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	• Prisoner of Shark Island (The Ford at Fox Collection) Warner Baxter, Gloria Stuart 20th Century Fox, 2007 average customer review:based on 6 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

Awaitingthe DVD

This is less a review and more a comment that I await the release of the DVD on this long-forgotten John Ford film about Dr. Mudd. Let me announce my bias and interest. I am author of the book "The Union vs. Dr. Mudd," originally published in 1964, due to be reprinted by the University Press of Florida in the spring of 2008, well in time for celebrations in 2009 related to the 200th anniversary of Abraham Lincoln's birthday. It is fitting and proper that the film has been scheduled for release in a DVD format in advance of the reprint edition of my book. Was Dr. Mudd guilty or innocent in the conspiracy connected with the Lincoln assassination? Historians differ on this fact. You can make up your own mind after seeing the film and later reading the book. I'll place my order with Amazon.com in time for the December 4 release.

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LONE GUNMAN OR CONSPIRACY??

The film begins with the assassination of President Abraham Lincoln and John Wilkes Booth jumping on to the stage and making his escape out the back of the theater. In jumping from the balcony, Booth breaks his leg and soon needs medical attention. In the movie he asks for directions to a local doctor and appears unannounced at the home of Dr. Samuel Mudd, who, of course (without the Internet & cable TV) has not yet heard of the assassination. He treats Booth and keeps him overnight until he can travel again. The authorities trace Booth's escape to Mudd's estate and arrest him for being an accomplice. He is tried in what appears to be somewhat of a kangaroo court and sent to Shark Island Prison in the Florida Keys. He tried to escape once, unsuccessfully. A violent outbreak of Yellow Fever in which he heroically saves the lives of many of the prisoners while risking his own, convinces his accusers to rethink his guilt. The question is whether Dr. Mudd was an innocent bystander as the movie depicts or was he, in fact, part of the Booth conspiracy. This movie is well done and entertaining and is a terrific introduction to the whole story of John Wilkes Booth and the conspiracy theories. Like the JFK assassination debate, was this a lone gunman or a conspiracy much larger? A fascinating subject. www.lusreviews.blogspot.com

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Fine early John Ford

"The Prisoner of Shark Island" is the story of one Samuel Mudd, a Maryland physician. The good doctor is ably played by Warner Baxter. After assassinating President Lincoln, John Wilkes Booth hurt his leg jumping from a balcony. Eluding the Law, JWB called on Mudd, who set the leg without knowing Booth's true identity. The pursuing Fed troops treat Mudd as a conspirator and he is sentenced to life in a military stockade. The "trial" is an unvarnished martial law kangaroo court. The "Shark Island" here is actually Dry Tortugas Island, off the coast of Key West, FL. PSI deals with the efforts of Mudd and his wife to win exoneration. There is excellent work here, especially by Gloria Staurt as a fiercely loyal wife standing by her man, and Harry Carey Sr. as the prison commandant. In PSI, all the prison guards are African American. They receive interesting treatment, given the historical setting of both the Civil War and climate of mid 1930s, when PSI was made. A good review doesn't reveal endings but the one here is thoroughly satisfying. One may wish to have a tissue handy. Even in the 1930s, John Ford could be sentimental! This reviewer benefited from a brand new CD, clear and sharp. PSI is one of those oldies which are not over shown/overexposed. Amazoners are urged to make an effort to view it. Highly recommended!

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As innocent as OJ

Excellent early John Ford movie and it was good to see John Carradine pop up-he was usually one of Ford's players in his stock company anyhow.
But Mudds tale as this movie tells it??
So syrupy and sentimental that you may have to brush your teeth afterwards.
IMO, Mudd was guilty.
He knew it was JWB.
Don't forget, Mudd just missed doing the 'rope dance' by a 5-4 decision.
Read Steer's 'His Name Is Still Mudd' if you still have doubts.
But by all means watch this movie!!!
One of Ford's seldom seen but enjoyable works!!

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A product worthy of it's time

A film dealing in part with a subject seldom touched upon in Hollywood; in this case, the military tribunals which passed judgment upon those who played even insignificant roles in one of history's greatest tragedies- and always the verdict was the same. Guilty, regardless of the facts.
It may be worth pointing out that this is a movie from the 1930s, and it's stereotypical portrayal of African-Americans was no doubt intended to win the favor of theater goers of that era. Keep this in the back of your mind as you view this.
All in all, a good movie. Not a great one, but a good one.

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Studio: Tcfhe Release Date: 12/04/2007 Run time: 96 minutes Rating: Nr

reviews: page 1, 2

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