Paul Newman: The Tribute Collection
Icon, shmicon: Paul Newman was about the most watchable actor in postwar movies. The smile in his sneer, the willful self-reliance gave credence to a wide range of roles, whether as the stalwart hero of Exodus, Fast Eddie in The Hustler or Robert Redford's man pal Butch Cassidy. This pack of his Fox films covers a quarter-century of prime Newmaniana, from The Long, Hot Summer in 1958 to The Verdict in 1982. For filler, there's a junk epic (The Towering Inferno), two iffy Altman experiments (Buffalo Bill and the Indians and Quintet) and a couple of ill-fitting comedies (Rally Round the Flag, Boys! and What a Way to Go) — but the set in toto testifies to Newman's keen, subtle, enduring talent. A special shout-out to Fox for getting all 13 films and 17 discs into a space-efficient box about the size of the Forrest Gump sampler. — Richard Corliss
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