7.2 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 3.5 | |
Overall | 3.5 |
Foreign | 100% |
Horror | 100% |
Adventure | Insignificant |
Action | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 2.39:1
Original aspect ratio: 2.39:1
Spanish: DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0
English SDH
Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region A (B, C untested)
Movie | 3.0 | |
Video | 4.5 | |
Audio | 4.0 | |
Extras | 0.0 | |
Overall | 3.5 |
1976’s “Hot Snake” certainly has a way of making an immediate impression. The opening scene has the villain of the picture stopping the transport of a coffin containing a military official. The bad guy shoots the escorts and rips off the widow’s top, soon shooting her and raping the corpse. Director Fernando Duran Rojas gets cold-blooded in a hurry with the endeavor, which maintains a certain level of merciless while detailing a bizarre story of revenge and desert survival. Of course, as with most low-budget offerings, padding is king, but “Hot Snake” contains a decent amount of atmosphere and weirdness to sustain the viewing experience, giving spaghetti western fans an adequate dose of the hard stuff as leathery men set out to kill one another.
The AVC encoded image (2.39:1 aspect ratio) presentation is a fresh 4K scan of the 35mm original camera negative, giving "Hot Snake" compelling detail with western touches. Facial particulars on hairy, unwashed men are excellent, along with skin textures on assorted characters and desert creatures. Interiors preserve decorative additions, and exteriors offer compelling dimension with wide open spaces. Color is preserved, with natural skin tones. Female costuming carries more vivid hues, and desertscapes are distinct. Delineation is satisfactory. Grain is fine and film-like. Source is in good condition, but some wear and tear remains, including some lengthy scratches.
The 2.0 DTS-HD MA mix shows some signs of age, offering slight fuzziness with highs throughout the listening event. Dialogue exchanges aren't crisply defined, but they remain intelligible. Scoring cues support satisfactorily, retaining passable instrumentation and dramatic emphasis. Sound effects are appreciable, mostly dealing with gun shots, spurs, and wind.
There is no supplementary material for this release.
Oddity is present in "Hot Snake," as Rojas takes a moment to watch horses mate, and he's committed to the mystic character, trying to work in spiritual nonsense to give the tale some dark magic. What ultimately emerges is a revenge story, and one that takes its time reaching a resolution. However, there's atmosphere to enjoy in "Hot Snake," along with a few twisted characters with shifting motivations, keeping things interesting as the feature returns to seemingly endless shots of men on horseback crossing the desert.
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