New 4K Restoration
Of the many collaborations between actor John Wayne and director John Ford, perhaps no film is as well-known as their 1956 Western classic The Searchers. The movie follows Civil War veteran Ethan Edwards (Wayne) on his mission for vengeance after an indigenous tribe kills his family and kidnaps his niece (Natalie Wood). Ford immortalized his anti-hero Edwards’ violent struggle against the backdrop of the breathtaking nature of Monument Valley, making The Searchers one of his unmistakable Western epics. When the National Film Registry inducted its first class of films for preservation in 1989, The Searchers was one of the 25 first films selected.
In celebration of The Film Foundation’s 35th anniversary, we’re proud to present The Searchers, The Annihilation of Fish and Shadows of Our Forgotten Ancestors as part of this year’s edition of Restored & Rediscovered. These are just a few of the over 1,000 films The Film Foundation has helped preserve and restore for future generations of moviegoers. The new 4K restoration of The Searchers was part of a multi-year project between The Film Foundation, Warner Bros. Discovery, and Turner Classic Movies to restore numerous titles from the studio’s vaults.
Restored by Warner Bros in collaboration with The Film Foundation.
Scanned in 13K by Warner Bros. at Motion Picture Imaging laboratory, from the original 8 perf 35mm VistaVision camera negative. Restoration work completed in 6.5K. Newly restored version approved by The Film Foundation.
