Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		5.0
Audio		5.0
Extras		2.0
Overall		4.0

Ace High Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov September 25, 2022

Giuseppe Colizzi's "Ace High" a.k.a. "I quattro dell'Ave Maria" (1968) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Kino Lorber. The supplemental features on the release include exclusive new audio commentary by filmmaker Alex Cox and vintage trailer for the film. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-A "locked".

Money corrupts Man. It softens him. So to keep you young and pure, I'll take all of your money. You'll thank me for this someday.

Bud Spencer and Terrence Hill were a magnificent duo and appeared in some truly special genre films. Four of these films were directed by Giuseppe Colizzi and Ace High is the only one in which they are overshadowed by another big star.

In a small town somewhere in the Wild West, the notorious bandit Cacopoulos (Eli Wallach) has made a deal with a couple of shady mercenaries to regain his freedom. As arranged, on the night before he is to be hanged on the main square, Cacopoulos is released from prison, but instead of paying the mercenaries for their hard work, he shoots them dead. Before he parts ways with them, Cacopoulos also exchanges boots with the bigger mercenary.

Shortly after, on a desolated dusty road, Cacopoulos encounters the happy bounty hunters Cat Stevens (Hill) and Hutch Bessy (Spencer) who have just claimed a very large payment in gold. Cacopoulos easily relieves them of their precious heavy load and, while they are breathing dust and cursing him, promises that they will never ever see him again. But it is not long before fate reunites them, only this time it is the bounty hunters that promise Cacopoulos that he will not be seeing them ever again after they put a bullet in his head. However, before the bounty hunters deliver on their promise, Cacopoulos calmly explains that it would be in their best interest if they teamed up with him to take down Drake (Kevin McCarthy), the owner of the popular casino where he traded their gold for cash and lost all of it. Drake also happens to be the last of the three partners Cacopoulos worked with fifteen years ago that tried to get rid of him after they botched a big job.

Determined to recover their gold or its equivalent in cash, the bounty hunters reluctantly agree to assist Cacopoulos, but before they hit Drake’s casino, they welcome to their team the circus tightrope walker Thomas (Brock Peters).

Ace High is a little over two hours long but has such a terrific sense of humor that it easily could have been quite a bit longer. Also, unlike other similarly themed films from the same period, Ace High does not rehash any material. It just goes through cycles of different adventures that are quite wonderful.

The chemistry between the three famous leads is outstanding and instantly becomes the catalyst behind the great comedy. However, Ace High is the only spaghetti western Hill and Spencer made in which they are undeniably overshadowed by another star. It is not that they are not a good match for Wallach either. Rather, Hill and Spencer excel primarily in a material where the emphasis is on pure action, while Wallach fits great in the same material but does a lot of little things that very effectively humanize his character and ultimately make him extremely likable. This is not easy because like everyone else Cacopoulos is a shady character, too. He is just awfully good at selling excuses that justify his actions.

The other interesting -- but given that Colizzi wrote the screenplay, not at all surprising -- aspect of the production is the total absence of political themes in the narrative. In Ace High, the Wild West is just a giant, extremely transparent playground where everyone is involved in the game of getting rich. For example, there is a short segment in which Mexican revolutionaries and bandits clash that very quickly reverses the power status of the two sides and makes them appear equally savage. (In contrast, Sergio Leone’s spaghetti westerns always produce an easily identifiable group of “oppressed” people as well as various political messages).

Ace High was lensed by Marcello Maschiocci, who is probably best known for his contribution to the hugely popular Italian TV series Sandokan.

Ace High Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in its original aspect ratio of 2.35:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Ace High arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Kino Lorber.

The release is sourced from an exclusive new 4K master that was prepared at Paramount Pictures after Ace High was fully restored in 4K. This master is one of the very best that I have seen done for a spaghetti western. Indeed, not only does it give Ace High a gorgeous organic appearance, but it is so impressively graded that it makes revisiting the film a pretty special treat. There is only one small area where for less than a minute the visuals become softer and flatter. I assume that either the original elements were irreversibly damaged and some careful reconstruction work was done, or there was some sort of anomaly on the negative that was retained. In other words, this small area is not compromised by poor digital work. (You can see examples in screencaptures #17 and 18). Everything else looks superb. Delineation, clarity, and depth are either gravitating or at what I consider 'reference levels'. As noted above, color balance is pitch-perfect as well. In fact, this master can be used as a reference on how to grade darker footage without compromising any existing detail with crushing. (Of course, this means that in native 4K the same visuals are even more impressive). There are no stability issues. The entire film has been carefully cleaned up and looks immaculate as well. Incredible work. This is how you restored a spaghetti western in 4K. (Note: This is a Region-A "locked" Blu-ray release. Therefore, you must have a native Region-A or Region-Free player in order to access its content).

Ace High Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There is only one standard audio track on this Blu-ray release: English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0. Optional English SDH subtitles are provided for the main feature. When turned on, they appear inside the image frame.

During the opening credits, the music sounds slightly compressed, but this is almost certainly an inherited source limitation. The dialog is clear and easy to follow, but some overdubbing was clearly done, so expect to hear minor unevenness. The upper register is very healthy. There is quite a bit of action and dynamic intensity is good for a spaghetti western from the late 1960s.

Ace High Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Commentary - this exclusive new audio commentary was recorded by filmmaker Alex Cox.

• Trailer - presented here is a vintage U.S. trailer for Ace High. In English, not subtitled. (2 min).

Ace High Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

This is how you restore an Italian spaghetti western in 4K. The folks at Paramount that prepared the 4K makeover of Giuseppe Colizzi's Ace High did everything right and the end product is a feast for the eyes. I screened Ace High over the weekend and frequently felt as if I was viewing a native 4K presentation of it. Of course, this film produces a ton of great laughs too, so it was just an all-around terrific experience. A fantastic addition to Kino Lorber's catalog. VERY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.