Perry Kate Very very predictable, including the post credit scene !!!

KnotMissPriceless Why so much hype?

Siflutter It's easily one of the freshest, sharpest and most enjoyable films of this year.

Geraldine The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.

prissimiss This movie never looses it's relevance and actuality! A must see!

JohnHowardReid NOTES: Burl Ives won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor, defeating Theodore Bikel in The Defiant Ones, Leo Jacoby in The Brothers Karamazov, Arthur Kennedy in Some Came Running, and Gig Young in Teacher's Pet. Jerome Moross was nominated for an Oscar for his Music Score, losing to Dimitri Tiomkin's The Old Man and the Sea. The New York Film Critics nominated the film for Best Picture and Wyler for Best Director, both losing to The Defiant Ones. Burl Ives, Best Supporting Actor - Hollywood Foreign Press. Best Western of the year - Film Daily annual poll of American film critics. Best Western of 1958 - New York Daily News. Best Western of 1958 - Time. Best Western of 1958 - New York Journal American. Best Western of 1958 - New York World-Telegram. Best Western of 1958 - New York Post. "Simply the best film ever made. My number one favorite film." - President Dwight D. Eisenhower.COMMENT: An epic western directed by William Wyler in an obvious attempt to recapture the success of "The Westerner". That the attempt is not wholly successful is due more to the stock characters in the script than to Wyler's somewhat old-hat technique. What makes "The Big Country" really outstanding, however, is Jerome Moross's invigorating music score - one of the most exciting ever composed for a motion picture.

ipp-50484 This is in response to the many critics who have slated the "The Big Country" for being too long (a famous cry of derision) and for dragging along without the proverbial action. What I cannot understand is how many of these same critics wax lyrical about so many other films that "drag on" for well nigh three hours. I am thinking about some of David Lean's epics, for example ("Doctor Zhivago" and "Ryan's Daughter") which come to mind here. I am not for one moment suggesting that these films are boring or lacking in artistic merit. I am simply curious as to why "The Big Country" is constantly singled out in almost the all the opening lines of the commentaries that have been written.Is this tendency, perhaps, attributed to the fact that the film is a western? Is the western, then, supposed to adhere strictly to the time honoured formula of blood and thunder, hell and leather bang-bang served up in the customary ninety-minute time capsule? Strait-jacketed? Comparisons, I concede, are odious. Pray, allow me a moment to allude to another Western purely in an attempt to illustrate my point.A fellow reviewer on this forum, in his denunciation of "TBC" ("boring, boring") drew comparisons with Sergio Leone's "Once Upon A Time in the West" (a brilliant film, no doubt). In the words of respected critic, Leonard Maltin, the film is, "a languid operatic masterpiece". Maltin however, dismisses "TBC" as "an overblown western". And herein lies the rub!Both these films are thematically rich and complex, layered with gripping sub-plots emerging in all the respective stages of development. Both films are enrich by stellar performances from star-studded casts. There is never a dull moment in each. Even though the viewer may guess the outcome of "TBC", he or she is intrigued as to how the plot will finally resolve itself. This is what sustains the heart and soul of the picture.There is not a single flawed performance in "TBC". The actors remain true to the script. The action, like in "Once Upon a Time ..." and in Lean's masterpieces, is measured and seamless. It represents a study in the concentrated stream of consciousness (personified in the character of James Mackay). This is diametrically opposed by the smouldering temperments of many of the other characters in the fabric of the work; a classic case of antithetical counter-balancing, here. Pound for pound, ounce for ounce, "TBC" stands up to "Once Upon a Time ..." and its counterparts. Why then this prejudice against, "The Big Country"? It intrigues me!

Sergeant_Tibbs I'm always appalled at how little William Wyler I've seen. I adore The Best Years of Our Lives and Roman Holiday, but Ben-Hur is underwhelming. Now with The Big Country winning my heart, he really deserves better. I'm a sucker for a good subversive Western. The myth of the American frontier in cinema is fascinating to me and any film that develops the ideas inherently has my attention. The Big Country is credited as the first pacifist Western as Gregory Peck refuses to fight until the last moment or acknowledge the seriousness of any conflict. He's an unconventional hero. One who teeters a line of cowardice. But this just makes him all the more endearing as a three dimensional character. Granted, the film has its caricature characters on the side, but the script has such a dry wit. Burt Ives won an Oscar for his role and coming in an hour into the film, there wasn't much spotlight left to share, but he certainly has his moments. It's a grand epic in visuals and length that I easily sunk into. It's a big country alright. Also boasts one of the best scores I've ever heard. Can't believe it's not considered a greater classic.8/10