Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		4.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		3.5
Overall		3.5

Double Target Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov February 22, 2023

Bruno Mattei's "Double Target" (1987) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Severin Films. The supplemental features on the release include exclusive new program with co-director/screenwriter Claudio Fragasso; exclusive new program with screenwriter Rosella Drudi; and vintage trailers for the film. In English and Italian, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-A "locked".

Some weapons are better

During the 1980s and early 1990s, I had multiple video store membership cards. I regularly visited a couple of different independent video stores because I loved to pick up smaller and lesser-known foreign films and they were the ones that had the best selections. On Monday and Tuesday nights, when traffic was slower, these video stores had three-for-one deals that excluded the latest arrivals, which I loved. Sometimes I would go in and pick up as many as twelve VHS cassettes, which I could keep for five days. So, I constantly had new films to see at home, though they were usually older films or “other” films that very few people liked to rent.

I remember that during this period the variety of films that were released on VHS was quite remarkable because there were a lot of small companies that competed with the big studios. There were the semi-big ones too, like Vidmark and Polygram, that flooded the market with some seriously attractive titles. The VHS jackets that some of these companies produced were so good that I must have rented hundreds, possibly even thousands of titles simply because I saw a VHS jacket that looked incredible.

Where am I going with my recollections about the good old days of the thriving independent video stores?

During the weekend, I sat down to see Bruno Mattei’s Double Target and as I was taking out the Blu-ray disc from Severin’s release, my mind suddenly unleashed all kinds of different memories about my VHS renting and collecting habits. Why? Because the cover art for Double Target is an almost perfect replica of the original cover art of an Italian VHS release of this film that I used to own. I had completely forgotten about it and my mind did not have the same reaction when Severin announced their Blu-ray release either. On the following day, I went through a few boxes I still have with old VHS cassettes to see what other similar releases might have survived as I moved from one location to another over the years.

Double Target is a very average film, so I was not surprised that at some point in the past I had removed it from my library. But I might have made a mistake. Sometimes these average -- and bad too -- films are exactly what I need to end my night with. I used to rent plenty of them for this exact reason.

If I had to give you a few good reasons why you might want to consider picking up Double Target for your library, I would say the following:

Double Target is for you if during the 1980s and 1990s you routinely rented and enjoyed B-films the likes of Lorenzo Lamas, Jeff Fahey, Andrew Stevens, and Reb Brown made. Miles O’Keefe, the star of Double Target, was part of this bunch of actors. Double Target is for you if you have seen and enjoyed any of the shameless copycats Italian directors loved to produce because Mattei used the same good old Italian blueprint they worked with. Double Target is also for you if from time to time you like seeing great actors getting lost in B-films because they badly needed to get paid. The great actor that looks completely lost in Double Target is Donald Pleasance.

What is Double Target about? O’Keefe is a former U.S. special forces guy trying to reconnect with his son in Vietnam after the death of his mother. However, the communist authorities refuse to recognize O’Keefe’s marriage papers because they were certified during the Vietnam War and inform him that he is not allowed to locate his son and take him back to America. Pleasance uses the drama to force O’Keefe to participate in a dangerous mission on behalf of the U.S. government. If he delivers what Pleasance needs, the U.S. government would help him get his son back home. More than two-thirds of the Double Target is nothing but over-the-top and often very silly action that features some of the dumbest fake Russians you would ever see in a film. While quite noisy at times, Double Target will successfully make you fall asleep.

Double Target Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in an aspect ratio of 1.67:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 10890p transfer, Double Target arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Severin Films.

The release is sourced from an exclusive new 2K master that was struck from the film's original camera negative. On my system, this 2K makeover looked quite incredible. Of course, there are some areas of the film that reveal notable fluctuations in terms of density, delineation, clarity, and depth -- like the underwater stock footage with the shark, or the opening footage from Hong Kong -- but they are inherited. The rest looks really good, often even outstanding. Darker footage, in particular, looked very solid because various shades and nuances are very nicely balanced. Color balance is very convincing, too. In fact, from all of the recent Severin Films releases of Bruno Mattei films that I have seen, this 2K makeover has the best color balance. The primaries are wonderfully saturated but do not appear boosted, while the supporting nuances look healthy and evenly set. Again, I really liked how the film looked on my system. I did notice a few small blemishes, but there are no large distracting debris, cuts, damage marks, warped or torn frames to report. My score is 4.75/5.00. (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).

Double Target Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There are two standard audio tracks on this Blu-ray release: English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 and Italian DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0. Optional English SDH subtitles are provided for the main feature.

The original audio track for Double Target is the English audio track, which is the one I used. The dialog was always clear and easy to follow. However, it is rather easy to tell that Double Target was made with a modest budget because quite a few areas reveal minor yet noticeable unevenness in the dynamic intensity and even fullness of the audio. I am quite certain that this is exactly how the audio was finalized by the film's producers in Italy years ago, so I doubt any additional remastering work can produce better results.

Double Target Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• U.S. Trailer - an original U.S. trailer for Double Target. In English, not subtitled. (4 min).

• Original Trailer - an original international trailer for Double Target. Music only. (3 min).

• Italian Masters of War - an exclusive new program with co-director/screenwriter Claudio Fragasso. In Italian, with English subtitles. (29 min).

• All About the Sentiment - an exclusive new program with screenwriter Rosella Drudi. In Italian, with English subtitles. (20 min).

Double Target Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Films like Double Target were all the rage in Italy during the 1980s and early 1990s. There was a huge audience for them in America as well. I used to rent many of them and have plenty in my library, some even on old and no longer playable VHS cassettes. If you found these films enjoyable a few decades ago, I think that nostalgia will make them even more appealing to you today. I like to revisit them very, very late at night, when I am the only one that is awake in our house, because this is the only time when most of them look good to me. So, if you need a fresh nostalgia fix, pick up Double Target for your library. Miles O'Keeffe looks great in it and Severin's recent Blu-ray release is sourced from a gorgeous new 2K master. RECOMMENDED.