Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		2.5
Audio		5.0
Extras		4.0
Overall		2.5

Revolver Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov March 22, 2023

Sergio Sollima's "Revolver" (1973) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Eureka Entertainment. The supplemental features on the release include new program with actress Paola Pitagora; archival program with star Fabio Testi; vintage promotional materials for the film; and a lot more. In English or Italian, with optional English subtitles. Region-B "locked".

Fernando Di Leo directed a couple of films that are as underwhelming as Sergio Solima’s Revolver. Di Leo did at the peak of his career too, when he was able to easily book big-time actors that would trust him to deliver a solid film. One such film is Loaded Guns, which cannot make up its mind if it wants to be a serious crime thriller or one of those outlandish crime comedies where anything goes. Ursula Andress looks great in it but for decades she looked great in every film she made on both sides of the Atlantic, so her presence before Di Leo’s camera is impossible to cite as a surprising redeeming quality. The rest of Loaded Guns, however, just does not look right. Di Leo is certainly to blame because his direction is very inconsistent, but Andress’ colleagues do a mediocre job with their characters, too.

Sollima completed Revolver in 1973 and this film shares many of the same flaws that make Loaded Guns stutter. For example, Revolver unites several very solid actors that are simply not handling their characters right. One is Fabio Testi who plays a small-time criminal connected to some big-time criminals that could be behind the kidnapping of an important target. Testi plays his character with the wrong personality and charisma and as a result routinely looks like an older troublemaker whose wealthy family has rejected him. Another is Oliver Reed who plays an angry detective whose wife is the kidnapped target. Reed gives the right energy to his character so that his violent outbursts look legit, but the screenplay does many strange things to control the energy and make him appear rational while he gradually realizes that he cannot rely on the state for support and therefore must figure out a solution on his own. In other words, Reed’s character arc is oddly reversed.

At the exact moment the solution brings these characters together -- it happens after Reed helps Testi escape from prison and then kidnaps him and demands that he works with him to get his wife released -- Revolver begins introducing different twists that irreversibly compromise the integrity of its story. For example, Reed and Testi illegally cross the border and arrive in Paris where a very popular pop musician points them in the right direction. Not because this character has a good heart, but because he is involved in some pretty murky affairs and uses his music and image as a façade to hide that he is a truly horrible human being. From there, Revolver takes another wild turn and decides to sell the entire kidnapping case as a piece in a much bigger puzzle that involves powerful but corrupt government players.

Even the most forgiving fans of the polizioteschi will have a difficult time defending Revolver because it clearly does not deliver the right thrills to be described as that kind of a genre film. And it is not because it lacks any of these thrills, it is because it does not have the right energy and attitude, which are essential for a proper polizioteschi. The truth about Revolver is that it wants to be a different kind of film, which is the kind of fiery political film that Elio Petri loved to direct. (By the way, this is hardly surprising. Sollima and Petri were both on the same side of the political spectrum. They were both communist sympathizers). Unfortunately, as presented the kidnapping case does not provide the type of complex or at least multi-layered material Sollima needed to craft an interesting social commentary like the one, for instance, Petri delivers in Investigation of a Citizen Above Suspicion. (In Petri’s film, the main character is also a veteran cop with a serious temper who bends the law to get what he needs). This is the reason large parts of Revolver are dragging, look uneven, and when merged do not produce a cohesive and convincing genre film.

There are a couple of fine cameos. Agostina Belli is the kidnapped wife. Sal Borgese is an unhinged prisoner. Bernard Giraudeau is one of the kidnappers.

The legendary maestro Ennio Morricone delivered a predictably terrific soundtrack for Revolver, which may very well be its biggest strength.

Revolver 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, Revolver arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Eureka Entertainment.

The release is sourced from a recent 4K master that was prepared after the film was fully restored in 4K. Unfortunately, I found the technical presentation incredibly frustrating.

The entire film looks immaculate. The surface of the visuals does not reveal even a whiff of age-related imperfections and grain exposure is outstanding. Density levels are very, very impressive as well. Sadly, the entire film is so badly graded that it frequently looks like a practice project done by a young and very inexperienced colorist. It is very easy to tell that the current color grade is very wrong. Indeed, not only a different ranges of primaries and supporting nuances mismanaged, but there is actually daylight footage that does not have the proper daylight appearance. In one sequence there is bright sunlight but it looks like it was dimmed and flattened, so instead of sunlight there is an odd foggy effect (see screencapture #14). In the border crossing sequence, the dynamic range of the visuals is very badly compromised as well (see screencapture #3). So, while I do not wish to speculate why the film looks as it does, these types of wild visuals suggest some sort of guessing work. This is very unfortunate because the quality of the raw files is outstanding. (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).

Revolver 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 subtitles are provided for the Italian track.

I viewed the film with the English track, which should be considered the original track because virtually all actors utter their lines in English. The English track is very solid. However, you need to keep in mind that it features overdubbing as well, so there is some inherited unevenness that is noticeable in a few areas. Clarity and sharpness are very good, which means that you will not have to use the optional subtitles to get everything that is said. Dynamic intensity is good too, though the limitations of the original soundtrack are quite obvious.

Revolver Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Tough Girl - in this new program, Paola Pitagora recalls how she became involved with Revolver; what it was like to work with Oliver Reed, Fabio Testi, and Sergio Sollima; how she prepared and did her character; and discusses the evolution of her career. In Italian, with English subtitles. (11 min).

• Action Man - in this archival program, Fabio Testi discusses his work in the film industry, some of the memorable characters he played over the years, and involvement with Revolver. In Italian, with English subtitles. (18 min).

• Commentary - this exclusive new audio commentary was recorded by critics Barry Forshaw and Kim Newman.

• Stephen Thrower on Revolver - in this new program, critic Stephen Thrower discusses the conception of Revolver, the exact period in which the film emerged and its style, and Sergio Sollima's career. In English, not subtitled. (22 min).

• English Credits - presented with English audio. (7 min).

• Original Theatrical Trailer - presented here is a remastered original theatrical trailer for Revolver. In Italian, with English subtitles. (4 min).

• International Trailer - presented here is an original U.S. trailer for Revolver with the alternative title Blood in the Streets. In English, not subtitled. (2 min).

• Radio Spots - presented here are a couple of vintage U.S. radio spots for Revolver. In English, not subtitled. (2 min).

• Booklet - a collector's booklet featuring two new essays by author Howard Hughes; one covering the background to the making of Revolver, and an extensive piece on Ennio Morricone's "Eurocrime" soundtracks, as well as technical credits.

Revolver Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

While I am not a fan of Sergio Sollima's Revolver, I would have loved to add a definitive release of it in my library because it has a predictably terrific soundtrack from the great maestro Ennio Morricone. Regrettably, this release is not it. It is sourced from a recent 4K master that is very poorly graded, causing the film to look quite strange at times. If you still want to pick up the release, I suggest you do so only when you can find it heavily discounted. Please keep in mind that it is Region-B "locked".