Paint Your Wagon

A boxoffice bust upon its initial release in 1969, this oddball adaptation of the Lerner and Loewe Broadway musical set in the 19th century American West gold boomtown of No Name City ("Population: Drunk"), is ultimately redeemed by Lee Marvin's immensely entertaining portrayal of Ben Rumson, an opportunist who hooks up with the generically named Pardner (Clint Eastwood) to build the aforementioned generically unnamed town. Partners in everything (including wife Jean Seberg), Rumson and Pardner eventually hit on a scheme to keep the gold dust coming in once the vein runs dry, with comical results. The plus of hit songs--such as the title tune, "I Talk to the Trees" and "They Call the Wind Maria"--must be balanced against the minus of the primary vocalists: Marvin and Eastwood, whose golden touch does not extend to their vocal cords (Marvin, in particular, is one of the worst crooners to ever appear in a musical). Paramount has done a bang-up job with the widescreen video transfer, which features rich color saturation and fine detail work, and the Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack enhances the luscious score. Recommended. (R. Pitman)