6.4 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 3.0 | |
Overall | 3.0 |
The man with gunsight eyes is back and this time, he's judge, jury and executioner. The great Lee Van Cleef returns as the famous freewheeling gunslinger Sabata. This third and final go-round for the enigmatic sharpshooter who administers a unique brand of justice in the American West in the years following the Civil War finds Sabata in the role of victim. Sabata's skills as a gambler and thief are unparalleled. However, when a shifty band of desperadoes bilks him out of $5,000, he wants revenge.
Starring: Lee Van Cleef, Giampiero Albertini, Reiner Schöne, Ignazio Spalla, Annabella IncontreraWestern | 100% |
Action | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 2.34:1
Original aspect ratio: 2.39:1
English: LPCM 2.0 Mono (48kHz, 24-bit)
English SDH
Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region B (locked)
Movie | 3.0 | |
Video | 4.0 | |
Audio | 4.0 | |
Extras | 3.5 | |
Overall | 3.0 |
Gianfranco Parolini's "Return of Sabata" a.k.a. "È tornato Sabata... hai chiuso un'altra volta!" (1971) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Eureka Entertainment. The supplemental features on the disc include new audio commentary by critics C. Courtney Joyner and Henry Parke; new program featuring critic Austin Fisher; vintage promotional materials; and more. In English, with optional English and German subtitles for the main feature. Region-B "locked".
Presented in an aspect ratio of 2.34:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Return of Sabata arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Eureka Entertainment.
Return of Sabata has the most convincing presentation of the three Sabata films. It is because the older master MGM supplied for it is the healthiest one, so if you view your films on a larger screen, you should easily how certain areas simply have more consistent organic qualities. For example, delineation is equally good during indoor and outdoor footage. This does not mean that density fluctuations do not exist, but they are handled marginally better on this master. Predictably, depth is a tad more pleasing as well. If you have seen the other two films, you should be able to tell that the better balanced highlights make quite a difference as well. There is still room for improvement, but overall they are better reproduced here. Colors look healthy and stable, with the supporting nuances having the best lighter and darker ranges. Image stability is very good. So, what type of improvements can be made? Density and fluidity can be more convincing. Colors can be rebalanced, but not by a lot. There are minor white specks and blemishes that can be removed as well. My score is 4.25/5.00. (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).
There is only one standard audio track on this Blu-ray release: English LPCM 2.0. Optional English SDH subtitles are provided for the main feature. When turned, they appear inside the image frame.
The lossless audio is very good. I mentioned in our review of the Swiss release of Return of Sabata that it is rather easy to tell that it has not been newly remastered, but it is an observation rather than a criticism. I think that there is some room for rebalancing adjustments, so if one day the film is fully restored in 4K and the audio remastered, this is likely the area where some meaningful improvements will be introduced.
I will likely create quite a bit of unnecessary drama if I identified some of the classic spaghetti westerns that are not as good as the Sabata films -- or at least two of them -- so I will just say that some popular opinions highlighting how they 'borrow' from 'bigger classics' should be taken with a grain of salt. Actually, make that two scoops of salt, or even better, don't even waste your time with these opinions. Why? Because if you start digging eventually you will realize that all spaghetti westerns borrow something from somewhere, including the grand classics, so this isn't and can't be serious criticism. Two of the Sabata films are very entertaining, and the one that everyone loves to dismiss as a total misfire still features a solid performance by Lee Van Cleef. Eureka Entertainment has gathered these films in this three-disc box set, which will be available for purchase later this month. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.
(Still not reliable for this title)
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