Where Have All the Heroes Gone?

It has been with much trepidation that I anticipate the future return of Indiana Jones. In our cynical world of reality tv and celebrity culture is there still a place for the heroes of old. Errol Flynn, Douglas Fairbanks and Tyrone Power represented the virtues of heroism without the skepticism of today's video-game generation. Thirty years later Harrison Ford was still fighting the good fight with acts of derring-do, albeit with a tongue-in-cheek-charm that never undercut the suspense. The phrase "high adventure" used to stand for something in the our culture. It didn't just refer to the physical thrills that befall the hero but also the higher moral purpose to the drama. These were stories where issues of courage and loyalty could affect a generation of viewers. I hope that messrs. Spielberg and Lucas respect this tradition as they have in the past. In our world of dwindling heroes it now more important than ever, that cynicism and snide self-interest not become the vocabulary of our heroes new & old. In honour of this sentiment, I offer my top five choices for high adventure on DVD

Where Eagles Dare (d. Brian Hutton,1969) The quintessential high-adventure film written by one of its most successful authors Alistair MacLean. A commanding Richard Burton and young Clint Eastwood go undercover as German officers to rescue an American officer from a Nazi castle in the Alps. The twists and turns of the plot may be disorienting but there is no confusion to the expertly-executed action sequences choreographed by legendary stuntman Yakima Canutt. Representing the last gasp of Sixties war epics, this film deserves more than its bare-bones DVD release.

The Vikings (d.Richard Fleischer, 1958) Muscular chest-beating action with Kirk Douglas as a one-eyed Viking warrior fighting half-brother Tony Curtis in an authentic physical recreation of ancient Nordic culture. The DVD includes a director's commentary and behind -the-scenes featurettes as well as doing justice to the stunning location photography by British ace Jack Cardiff.

The Wind and the Lion (d.John Milius,1975) The first of Milius's projected trilogy of films about his favourite U.S. president Theodore Roosevelt, charismatically embodied here by Brian Keith. His nemesis is a Berber cheftain played with tangible relish by Sean Connery, whose kidnapping of a diplomat's wife causes a international crisis. Full of cheeky humour and dynamite action, this is a film about politics and the honour of men, on a grand David Lean-like canvas. The DVD includes a commentary by the always entertaining Milius, as well as an amusing vintage making-of featurette.

Captain Blood (d.Michael Curtiz,1935)Before he was the screen's greatest Robin Hood, Errol Flynn made his starring debut with this classic skull and bones swashbuckler, as an idealistic young doctor forced into a life of high seas piracy. Eye-popping swordsmanship opposite Basil Rathbone, erotic love scenes with Olivia de Havilland, and a majestic score by Erich Korngold make this a classic for all-time. The DVD sports a superb, though far from flawless print, of the restored two hour version.

The Three Musketeers & The Four Musketeers (d. Richard Lester ,1973,1974)Filmed as one movie and later divided into two, this project represents the zenith of Lester's uniquely satirical approach to classic adventure. Utilizing irreverent historical characterizations, bawdy humour and slapstick heroics, Lester brings to life the age of rapier and dagger with a gritty Swiftian eye for the absurd as personified by his superb cast of performers including Oliver Reed, Michael York and Christopher Lee. The Anchor Bay DVD box set contains both films as well as an excellent documentary about the sometimes arduous production, featuring particularly honest observations by cast members York and Lee.