Ronald Reagan: The Signature Collection

While it's certainly true that Ronald Reagan would not have been at home in say, the plays of Ibsen or Chekhov, he was a much better film actor than his detractors claim. It's easy to chuckle at our 40th President's myriad B-movies, especially the notorious Bedtime for Bonzo, but in his prime as a Warner Brothers contract player during the 1940s and ‘50s, Reagan displayed some fine acting chops, as evidenced in this boxed set. The future politician took his nickname (the Gipper) from Knute Rockne, All-American (1940), a fictionalized biography of the famous Notre Dame football coach in which Reagan, playing sidelined star player George Gipp, exhorted his teammates to “win just one for the Gipper.” Kings Row (1942) features Reagan's best work, as the once-privileged, happy-go-lucky scion of a Midwestern town struggling to rebuild his life after losing his legs (and totally overshadowing the character played by nominal leading man Robert Cummings). Another fine, frequently overlooked Reagan performance can be found in The Hasty Heart (1949), which cast him as a proud Scottish soldier faced with the knowledge that he has only a short time to live, and he's equally terrific as a crusading District Attorney in Storm Warning (1951), a gritty, modern-day account of Ku Klux Klan depredations. The Winning Team (1952), a biopic starring Reagan as Hall of Fame baseball pitcher Grover Cleveland Alexander, is a slightly less meritorious film that nonetheless warrants viewing for the star's facile performance. DVD extras include vintage featurettes, shorts, and cartoons; audio commentary by director Vincent Sherman and Reagan biographer John Meroney on The Hasty Heart; and a radio show version of Knute Rockne, All American with Pat O'Brien and Reagan. Recommended. (E. Hulse)