Paul Newman’s Extraordinary Western Is Coming To 4K

The western genre is essential in the creation of American mythmaking. Through decades of cinema, the western positioned America is something extraordinary, a place where good triumphs over evil, where families can thrive, and where good old fashioned masculine bravado can solve just about anything.

Martin Ritt’s 1963 masterpiece Hud comes at a time in American filmmaking when the western was at its end. Compared to the dominance of westerns in the ‘40s and ‘50s, the genre had all but disappeared by the ‘60s. Hud is a very different kind of western: instead of building the myth of a spectacular America, it tears that myth apart. Hud is a movie about how difficult it is to be human, a common theme that runs through Ritt’s work.

Ritt’s film takes place in Texas, where Homer (Melvyn Douglas) is fighting to keep his cattle ranch afloat, but a devastating outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease threatens to destroy everything he and his family built. That’s not his only problem: his son Hud (Paul Newman) defies him at every turn. In one instance, Homer wants to get a vet to check on his cattle, but Hud wants to pawn the cows off on an unsuspecting neighbor before things get worse. Homer is the kind of man who sticks to his guns and is firmly rooted in his principles; Hud has no such scruples, caring for himself and only himself. Caught in the crossfire of their ever-increasing frustrations is their housekeeper Alma (a phenomenal Patricia Neal) and Homer’s grandson Lonnie (Brandon deWilde).

This is a film dripping in disillusionment and frustration. James Wong Howe’s black-and-white cinematography brings out the starkness of the Texas Panhandle landscape, while the universally brilliant performances tap into a nation divided. And with a new Criterion 4K release of Hud, there’s never been a better time to witness this remarkable movie.

HOW WAS HUD RECEIVED UPON RELEASE?

Reportedly, Paramount was unhappy with the film, finding it too bleak, and were opposed to the lack of Hud’s growth, though Ritt refused to change the ending. Paramount allegedly threatened to drop the movie entirely, but Ritt managed to convince them to release it as is. It was the right decision: Hud was very positively received on release.

The film was a financial success too, grossing $10 million at the box-office, just sneaking into the top 20 highest-grossing movies of the year. The New York Times called Hud “the year’s most powerful film.” TIME magazine particularly praised the character of Hud and Newman’s performance: “But if Hud Bannon is a bounder, he is never a bore. With his good looks, appetite for hell-raising and rootless amorality, he follows his code of don’t-give-a-damn with snakelike charm.”

It earned seven Oscar nominations: cinematography, art direction, screenplay, director, supporting actor, lead actress and lead actor. It won three, for Howe’s cinematography, as well as Neal and Douglas’ performances.

WHY IS HUD IMPORTANT TO SEE NOW?

Hud speaks to a disillusioned America, and you don’t need me to tell you that the 2020s are a decade of disillusionment. It’s a film that deals with frustratingly familiar themes; in the film, everything is threatened to be consumed by big business, with small business and individuals trying to get by being swallowed up by situations they simply cannot compete with.

There’s a particular mean streak that runs through Hud, and it’s one that manages to hold a mirror up to our society some 60 years after the movie was made. We live in a time where cruelty and even brutality are regularly promoted with virtually no room for compassion. And that’s precisely what Hud presents, a family that’s deeply divided, and characters that wonder if there’s any space left in the world for people like them. Ritt’s a filmmaker with no interest in hiding or mincing words. It’s clear through Hud that he’s deeply unsatisfied with the way of the world, an acutely common sentiment in 2026.

WHAT NEW FEATURES DOES THE HUD 4K BLU-RAY HAVE?

There aren’t a ton of features in this Hud release, but each of them feels essential. There’s an interview with Sally Field (who made multiple films with Ritt, including her Oscar-winning role in Norma Rae), who speaks beautifully about Ritt’s career and the brilliance of Hud. There’s also an in-depth exploration of Howe’s career as a cinematographer, delivered with immense insight from fellow cinematographer Christopher Doyle (In the Mood for Love, Hero). There’s also a seminar from Ritt himself from the American Film Institute, and an episode of Inside the Actors Studio featuring Paul Newman. It’s a fantastic suite of features that gives plenty of context to Ritt, Newman, Howe, and all things Hud. The full list is below:

• New 4K digital restoration, with uncompressed monaural soundtrack
• One 4K UHD disc of the film presented in Dolby Vision HDR and one Blu-ray with the film and special features
• Audio excerpts from a 1974 American Film Institute seminar with director Martin Ritt
• New interview with actor Sally Field, conducted by author Isaac Butler, on Ritt and Hud
• New interview with cinematographer Roger Deakins on director of photography James Wong Howe
• Episode of Inside the Actors Studio, hosted by James Lipton, featuring actor Paul Newman
• English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
• PLUS: An essay by author and film scholar Gabriel Miller and a 1963 American Cinematographer interview with Howe