With 1941’s Honky Tonk, two Hollywood legends paired for the first time. The Western became the first of four films in which Lana Turner and Clark Gable would star together.

After he burns one too many bridges, con man Candy Johnson (Gable) decides to pursue new horizons. This leads him to Yellow Creek, Nevada.

A town in the midst of a gold rush, Candy finds corruption heavy even by his standards. As he deals with this, he also falls for local beauty Elizabeth Cotton (Turner).

Gable as a charismatic rogue? There’s a stretch.

Sarcasm aside, Gable did excel at parts like that. He reminds us of his particular talents right out of the gate, as the opening scene of Tonk shows Candy as he fast-talks his way out of a difficult situation.

Gable does a lot to make Tonk work. This feels like a movie that would flop in the hands of a less charming lead.

It helps that Turner creates a viable romantic partner – and occasional foil – for Gable. Their age difference likely raises some eyebrows, as the then-20-year Turner was precisely half the age of 40-year-old Gable.

Still, audiences tend to accept these situations, and Gable’s personality helps overcome any skepticism. Sure, he might be old enough to be Turner’s dad, but we still swallow the two as a romantic pair.

We get a nice supporting cast as well. Chill Wills amuses as Candy’s sidekick Sniper, and Frank Morgan brings depth to the crooked Judge Cotton.

Tonk needs a strong collection of actors because the story itself seems unexceptional. Actually, the basic plot comes with promise, as the concept of the con man who finds a place too corrupt for even his standards brings intrigue.

Not that this means Candy abandons his old ways, as he manages to pursue his usual goals. This mixes with romance and melodrama related to his relationship with Elizabeth.

This can feel like story threads in search of a coherent plot, but the actors really do carry the day. Gable handles Candy’s shifting moods well and the rest support matters.

At its heart, Honky Tonk becomes a mix of comedy and melodrama that needs its cast to work. They can’t make it excel but they at least manage to turn it into a generally engaging affair.

Honky Tonk appears in an aspect ratio of 1.37:1 on this Blu-ray Disc. This turned into a terrific presentation.

Sharpness looked solid. The image remained tight and well-defined from start to finish.

No jagged edges or shimmering occurred, and I saw no edge haloes. With a nice layer of grain, I suspected no intrusive noise reduction, and print flaws failed to mar the presentation.

Blacks seemed dark and rich, while contrast appeared appealing. Shadows came across as smooth and concise. Tonk offered another fine image from Warner Archive.

While not in the same league as the picture, the DTS-HD MA monaural soundtrack of Honky Tonk also worked well. Speech seemed reasonably accurate and distinct, with no issues related to intelligibility or edginess.

Music came across as fairly bright and lively, though dynamic range seemed limited given the restrictions of the source. Effects were similarly modest but they showed good clarity and accuracy within the confines of 85-year-old stems. This was a more than adequate auditory presentation for an older movie.

A few extras appear, and we find a Lux Radio Theater broadcast (50:45) that adapts Honky Tonk. Lana Turner reprises her role as Elizabeth while John Hodiak takes over the part of Candy from Clark Gable.

Though Hodiak lacks Gable’s charisma, he nonetheless does fine in the role. This version hits on all the movie’s bases and becomes an enjoyable take on the tale.

Along with the movie’s trailer, we locate two vintage shorts from the era. We get Fightin’ Fools (8:58) and The Midnight Snack (9:03).

An “Our Gang” effort, Fools looks at conflict between the regular cast and some bullies. It doesn’t do much for me, but I guess fans will like it.

Snack provides the second-ever Tom and Jerry cartoon, and the first that gives them their names, as they got different monikers for their debut short. It seems like an average T&J cartoon, as it comes with enough cleverness to entertain but it never quite excels.

With Honky Tonk, Clark Gable plays a charming con man in a role that does little to stretch his talents. Nonetheless, he does well in the part and along with a capable supporting cast, Gable turns a less than coherent story into a fairly enjoyable production. The Blu-ray boasts strong visuals, appropriate audio and a small array of bonus features. While not a classic Western, Honky Tonk does enough to keep us with it.