6.4 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 3.5 | |
Overall | 3.5 |
James Coburn stars in this comedy-melodrama as Eli Kotch, who uses his charm to obtain a parole from prison by having an affair with a female psychologist. Eli's plan upon getting out of jail is to rob a bank at the L.A. International Airport. The date of the bank robbery coincides with the arrival of the Russian premier, so that bank security will be minimal with the premier attracting most of the airport security forces. Harrison Ford appears in his film debut in the bit part of a bellhop.
Starring: James Coburn, Camilla Sparv, Aldo Ray, Robert Webber, Rose MarieHeist | Insignificant |
Crime | Insignificant |
Drama | Insignificant |
Comedy | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.78:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.85:1
English: LPCM 2.0
English SDH
Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region free
Movie | 3.5 | |
Video | 3.5 | |
Audio | 5.0 | |
Extras | 0.0 | |
Overall | 3.5 |
Bernard Girard's "Dead Heat on a Merry-Go-Round" (1966) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Imprint Films. There are no bonus features on the release. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-Free.
Presented in an aspect ratio of 1.78:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Dead Heat on a Merry-Go-Round arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Imprint Films.
Last summer, we reviewed this U.S. release of Dead Heat on a Merry-Go-Round from Kino Lorber, which was sourced from an old but quite nice master that was supplied by Sony Pictures. This release is sourced from the same master and produces an almost identical presentation of the film. Why almost identical? It could have been encoded a little bit better, though there are no troubling anomalies. Indeed, both releases reveal the same weaknesses in the same areas, the most notable ones being the uneven grain exposure and clipped highlights. And yes, I still think that some adjustments can be made so that color saturation and balance are more convincing. Image stability is good. The same tiny blemishes and marks that I saw on the previous release are retained. There are no large cuts, warped or torn frames to report. (Note: This is a Region-Free Blu-ray release. Therefore, you will be able to play it on your player regardless of your geographical location).
There is only one standard audio track on this Blu-ray release: LPCM 2.0. Optional English SDH subtitles are provided for the main feature.
If you have seen our review of the U.S. release of Dead Heat on a Merry-Go-Round, you already know that I like the lossless track a lot. I am convinced that when the current master was prepared at Sony Pictures, which must have been quite some time ago, the audio was fully remastered because there are no traces of aging on it. If the film is fully restored in the future, the audio will likely be revisited, but at the moment I do not think that there is any room for meaningful improvements.
Most unfortunately, there are no supplemental features to be found on this release.
It is winter where I live and at the moment it is very, very cold. One of my favorite distractions when the weather is this cold is to view old capers, preferably of the type that invent reasons to visit exotic locations with plenty of sun. Dead Heat on a Merry-Go-Round is not a brilliant caper but works quite well. It can make a solid double bill with Harry in Your Pocket!, which also transforms James Coburn into a sleek thief with a seemingly endless bag of tricks. Imprint Films' release is sourced from the same master that Kino Lorber worked with to produce its U.S. release of Dead Heat on a Merry-Go-Round. RECOMMENDED.
(Still not reliable for this title)
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