Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		3.0
Audio		3.5
Extras		3.0
Overall		3.5

Blazing Magnum Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov March 7, 2024

Alberto De Martino's "Blazing Magnum" a.k.a. "Strange Shadows in an Empty Room" (1976) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of StudioCanal. The supplemental features on the release include arhcival program with Alberto De Martino; new program with critic Kim Newman; and vintage trailer. In English or Italian, with optional English and English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-B "locked".

In a very interesting archival program, Alberto De Martino reveals that some years ago he was considered “the most American director” in Italy. De Martino earned the reputation because he worked hard to make his films appear as American as possible. However, it is important to clarify that this reputation was misleading then and still is now because of a very, very important detail, which is the main reason De Martino’s films are worth rediscovering.

The important detail is that De Martino made “American films” that could not be any more Italian. Indeed, his entire concept of “American” was shaped by two distinctly Italian requirements: casting as many American actors as possible, or foreign actors with American-sounding names, and shooting a lot of very wild footage with them. In De Martino’s mind, “American” was synonymous with unconventional, over-the-top, and racy, so when making his “American films”, he was working with an Italian blueprint that was inspired strictly by his unbridled imagination. Of course, this is how the vast majority of the big cult Italian films from the 1970s and 1980s were made -- they enthusiastically copied and improved what their Italian creators had seen in various American genre films. So, while unique, De Martino’s Italian blueprint was not exactly groundbreaking.

Blazing Magnum a.k.a. Strange Shadows in an Empty Room unites several American, Canadian, and British actors and then unleashes them in what is unquestionably an Italian genre film, not an American film. It was most likely modeled after the Dirty Harry films that were released before it, but it is not a copycat because it blends material that would have never been used in them. For example, it has a most amusing sequence in which several unhinged transvestites clash with a veteran cop who enters their kinky lair uninvited. It also has a few quite graphic sequences that could have been extracted from one of Dario Argento’s classic gialli. Its action footage, despite being shot in Canada, is unmistakably Italian as well. It is very intense and very rough, clearly done with as few takes as possible.

The other unmissable Italian quality of Blazing Magnum is the twistiness of its narrative. For a while, it seems like Captain Tony Saitta (Stuart Whitman) and his partner Ned Matthews (John Saxon) will spend all of their time investigating the puzzling murder of the former’s much younger sister (Carole Laure) who has had an affair with a married doctor (Martin Landau), but before at the right time both become participants in a wild exploitative rodeo of the kind that only an Italian would have found logical. As a result, guessing correctly where Blazing Magnum intends to go and how it may get there becomes quite difficult, which of course is what ultimately makes it an enjoyable film.

De Martino shot Blazing Magnum with Joe D’Amato, who is rightfully considered one of the true greats of Italian post-war cult cinema. A prolific director/cinematographer/writer/producer, D’Amato was a workaholic who contributed to a wide range of different projects, from comedies and spaghetti westerns to gialli and hardcore pornographic films. In Blazing Magnum, D’Amato does very well what he specialized in as a cinematographer, which is memorable over-the-top content that looks a lot more expensive and professional than it is. Its highlight is a long sequence in which Saitta attempts to nab a lowlife named The Swede, which is every bit as impressive as the legendary chase in Henri Verneuil’s The Burglars.

Like all quality Italian genre films from the 1970s and 1980s, Blazing Magnum has a wonderful soundtrack with soft jazzy/psychedelica tunes as well. It was composed by the award-winning maestro Armando Trovajoli (Marriage Italian Style, Scent of a Woman).

Blazing Magnum Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.85:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Blazing Magnum arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of StudioCanal.

The release introduces a recent restoration of the film. Unfortunately, the restoration and the technical presentation of it are quite disappointing. (For what it's worth, the out of print North American release introduced a different restoration). The overall quality of the visuals is average at best, but it is difficult to tell why there are massive fluctuations in terms of delineation, clarity, and depth. Yes, in many areas it is obvious that encoding is weak and plenty of detail is lost because of it. However, there are many other areas where it almost looks like there is content coming from an inferior source. So, is the restoration also a reconstruction? I am unsure. However, if it is not a reconstruction, then time must have impacted various sections of the film in different ways. Color balance is unconvincing as well. For example, often the visuals become too green/yellowish, so reds and blues can appear in some pretty strange variations. On top of this, there is color instability. Image stability is good. There are no traces of problematic digital corrections. However, the weak encoding introduces anomalies that resemble filtering work. In a lot of darker areas, the grain also collapses into noisy mush. I did not see any large cuts, debris, or marks. However, I spotted a few small stains. (Note: This is a Region-B "locked" Blu-ray release. Therefore, you must have a native Region-B or Region-Free player in order to access its content).

Blazing Magnum Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There are two standard audio tracks on this Blu-ray release: English LPCM 2.0 and Italian LPCM 2.0. Optional English SDH subtitles (for the English track) and English subtitles (for the Italian track) are provided.

The English track should be considered the original track for the film because the leads are English speakers that utter their lines in English. However, this track, like the Italian track, has overdubbing. Also, the English track reveals signs of aging, such as light hiss and thinning, so in some areas it has a bit of a grindhouse quality. Still, I would say that none of its limitations are distracting.

Blazing Magnum Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Special Sentiment: Alberto De Martino's Magnum Memories - in this archival program, Alberto De Martino discusses his reputation as "the most American director" in Italy and the evolution of his career. Also, there are some very interesting comments about his experience as a jazz pianist and relationship with Joe D'Amato. In Italian, with English subtitles. (13 min).

• City Hunter: Kim Newman on Blazing Magnum - in this new program, critic Kim Newman discusses Blazing Magnum. In English, not subtitled. (22 min).

• Trailer - presented here is a vintage trailer for Blazing Magnum sourced from a VHS. In English, not subtitled. (4 min).

• Collectible Cards - four collectible art cards.

Blazing Magnum Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Any other European or American director would have delivered an instantly forgettable crime thriller in which Captain Tony Saitta and his partner Ned Matthews simply connect the dots and at the right time nab the killer. But under Alberto De Martino's direction the two become participants in a wild exploitative rodeo of the kind that only an Italian would have found logical, which is why Blazing Magnum is an unpredictable and very entertaining genre film. Unfortunately, this recent release from StudioCanal offers a very shaky presentation of an underwhelming restoration of Blazing Magnum. Hopefully, Kino Lorber will reissue the previous restoration of the film in North America in a Special Edition with some good bonus features.