TURN-ONS AND TURN-OFFS IN CURRENT HOME ENTERTAINMENT RELEASES : Excellent Good Fair Poor : VIDEOCASSETTES

“The Virginian.” Kartes. $19.95. This Gary Cooper Western--a huge hit in 1929--has a reputation as a seminal genre classic, a trend-setter. It isn’t; it’s a stilted early talkie, with minimal action and a lot of forced rustic humor. And though it’s robust enough (Victor Fleming directed), it lacks the lyricism of contemporary Westerns by Walsh, Wyler, Vidor or Ford. But the movie does have Coop (at his leanest and lankiest), Walter Huston as the despicable Trampas, and the immortal line: “When you say that, smile.” It also has one raw, potent scene, as Cooper’s Virginian stoically aids in the lynching of his best friend. It’s hard to keep a dry eye watching it (and when you say that . . . smile). Information: (800) 331-1387. 1/2