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Ruggles of Red Gap



The great Charles Laughton found one of his most iconic roles in Leo McCarey's definitive screen version of Harry Leon Wilson's best-seller Ruggles of Red Gap a wryly humorous tapestry of the American West at the turn of the 20th century.

When the Earl of Burnstead (Roland Young) transfers the services of Ruggles (Laughton), his immaculate English valet, to Egbert Floud (Charlie Ruggles), a wealthy, brash American, the repercussions prove more dramatic than anyone could have anticipated. Relocating to Red Gap, Washington, Ruggles slowly overcomes his disconcertment as he encounters new alliances, enemies, the route to independence, and, possibly, love.

A riotous clash between the Old World and the New, McCarey's legendary comic instincts combine with his customary tender respect to make one of the most glorious and enduring comedies of classical Hollywood. The Masters of Cinema Series is proud to present the UK home viewing première of McCarey's "Best Picture" Oscar-nominated film and for the first time anywhere in the world on Blu-ray.

DUAL FORMAT RELEASE INCLUDING BLU-RAY AND DVD VERSIONS OF THE FILM

• Beautiful new high-definition master, officially licensed from Universal Pictures
• Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hearing impaired
• Optional music and effects track
• Exclusive video interview with Laughton biographer Simon Callow
• Ruggles on the Radio: three adaptations made for radio broadcast, all featuring Charles Laughton and Charlie Ruggles in a reprisal of their famous roles
• Laughton reciting Lincoln's Gettysburg Address, originally released as a 78-rpm record in 1937.
• PLUS: A booklet featuring a new and exclusive essay by filmmaker and critic Dan Sallitt and rare archival imagery

Great news. Now I'll see if I can get a couple of quid for my French DVD [/optimism].

Any hope of at least extracts from the silent version (with Edward Everett Horton as Ruggles) -- assuming it still exists?

Is there a release date in sight?

Probably May. Wish it were sooner.

For those who care about this sort of thing, this is now spine 35.

Appearing at NYC's Film Forum April 4-10th. Billed as an "Archival 35MM Print"

Announced for May release. Specs added to the first post.

Additional special features added to first post. (Both this and Island will now include an interview with Laughton biographer Simon Callow.)

Nick, is this going to be the same interview across both discs, or does Callow (excellent choice) go into more detail on each film?

Each completely different.

Hopefully this starts shipping soon, looks like a fabulous release!

Yeah, roll on Charlie Laughton Day!

Watched this last night. Absolutely loved it.

Laughton is fantastic (expected no less) and have to agree with Simon Callow: Roland Young's understated performance as the Earl is brilliant. If the American characters come off as unsurprisingly broad they still solicit sympathy.

I look forward to watching this again. First time viewings of this and Island of Lost Souls in the same month: definitely becoming more of a Laughton fan. Will have to revisit Hobson's Choice.

Just wanted to throw some love at this and encourage folks on the fence--this is a great little comedy!

I really loved it, too. A very funny film with a great cast. Laughton has a wonderful face for comedy. The disc is terrific too; you can imagine it's 1935 and you're watching it in the Regal or Odeon.

The Digital Fix.

We watched this for the first time last night and both had a wonderful time. The film's an absolute delight and laugh-out-loud funny. Laughton's idiosyncratic turn is a fascinating curio. His stiff posture and over-active eyes, which have great difficulty looking at other characters directly, almost predicts Supermarionation, but it works because Laughton adapts this peculiar style to the material with wonderful slyness and the overall effect is consistently surprising and funny. And just about every other performance is a delight as well, with McCarey and the actors mining their own personal quirks for surprising comic twists. But what puts this film ahead of other fine screwball comedies of the era is that just about every character and actor also gets to add shades of human warmth - they're not just cogs in the grand comic clockwork.

Highly recommended: a great film an a great disc.

Thanks for the recommendation! I think I am going to pick this one up directly from MoC sooner than later.

This is a great movie, everyone should own this. Don't sleep on it while you still can!

I'd also like to reiterate this - act fast. Still regret not acting sooner on Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter? when that one went OOP...now goes for silly money.

domino harvey wrote:This is a great movie, everyone should own this. Don't sleep on it while you still can!

I wholeheartedly agree. It surprises me that this is under the radar.

Is there a Region A blu for the movie? I'm not set up for Region B.

Only a DVD-R

Is it gone already?