Young Mr. Lincoln 1939 Criterion Collection
Henry Fonda's best-known performance as a legendary historical character in a John Ford film is, of course, as Wyatt Earp in My Darling Clementine. Yet Fonda was more aptly cast, and gives a more vivid performance, five years earlier in their lesser-known first collaboration, Young Mr. Lincoln.

John Ford's Young Mr. Lincoln feels like a forgotten parable that's been rediscovered by historians, though it pulses with modern reverberations. The 1939 film chronicles 10 years in the life of Abraham Lincoln (Henry Fonda), long before he became president of the United States and led the country out of cataclysmic civil war. This Lincoln is just a “jackleg lawyer,” to use his own words, who's attempting to establish himself as an attorney in Springfield, Illinois in the 1830s. And Ford takes enormous pleasure in the notion of an authentic American legend finding his groove and collecting a variety of folkloric signifiers: If this film were to be remade for our contemporary age of prequels, it might be called Lincoln Begins.

Director: John Ford
Cast: Henry Fonda, Alice Brady, Marjorie Weaver, Arleen Whelan
Country: USA
Genre: Biography, Drama

Young Mr. Lincoln (1939) Criterion Collection 2006 edition
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2 x DVD9 | NTSC 4:3 | 01:40:06 | 5.82 Gb + 5.40 Gb + 3% rec
Language: English
Subtitles: English

Extras:

DISC ONE
* The Film

DISC TWO
• "Omnibus: John Ford - part one" 1992 TV documentary (42:17)
• "Parkinson: Meets Henry Fonda" 1975 interview (49:04)
• Dan Ford Interviews (audio)
-- John Ford (7:27)
-- Henry Fonda (4:31)
• Academy Award radio dramatization (29:52)
• Gallery of production documents

Young Mr. Lincoln (1939) Criterion Collection 2017 edition
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BD50 + 2xDVD9 | 1080p AVC, NTSC | 01:40:14 | 45.2 Gb + 10.7 Gb + 3% rec
Language: English
Subtitles: English

Extras:
• New 4K digital restoration, with uncompressed monaural soundtrack on the Blu-ray
• New audio commentary featuring film scholar Joseph McBride (Searching for John Ford: A Life)
• "Omnibus: John Ford - part one" 1992 TV documentary (42:21)
• "Parkinson: Meets Henry Fonda" 1975 interview (49:07)
• Dan Ford Interviews (audio)
-- John Ford (7:48)
-- Henry Fonda (4:51)
• Academy Award radio dramatization (30:16)