7.2 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 4.0 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
Two Army officers, an alcoholic ex-Confederate soldier and a womanizing Mexican travel to Mexico on a secret mission to prevent a megalomaniacal ex-Confederate colonel from selling a cache of stolen rifles to a band of murderous Apaches
Starring: Richard Boone (I), Stuart Whitman, Vito Scotti, Jim Brown, Wende WagnerWestern | 100% |
Drama | 3% |
Action | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 2.35:1
Original aspect ratio: 2.35:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio Mono
None
50GB Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region A (B, C untested)
Movie | 4.0 | |
Video | 4.0 | |
Audio | 3.5 | |
Extras | 0.5 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
The sixties and seventies were a time of transition for one of the hoariest genres in film, the western. What had once been a reliable box office attraction through the early fifties at least had found its mojo with audiences seriously depleted by the glut of small screen oaters which invaded television from the mid-fifties on, as well as perhaps just a natural attrition of interest caused by so many westerns having been released for so long, and by the time the early sixties rolled around, huge hit westerns were actually the exception rather than the norm. For every How the West Was Won (which was actually marketed as much as an “event” movie as it was an actual western), there were scores of other films, some with major stars and directors attached, which just fell by the wayside. Things seemed to be looking up when 1969 produced two unlikely western hits that couldn’t have been more different, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid and The Wild Bunch. But audiences can be fickle aggregations, and while a number of fascinating westerns were made in the wake of these two hallmarks, few actually ended up connecting with audiences in any overwhelming way. The four films collected on this perhaps odd seeming two Blu-ray set from Timeless Media Group (an imprint of Shout! Factory) all fall into that less than stellar category, even if each of them has at least some redeeming characteristics (and sometimes much more than that). All of these films failed to ignite at the box office, and in fact probably were seen in such venues as drive-ins and then on various television broadcasts through the years. While they appear to be a fairly disparate bunch, spanning the years from 1964’s Rio Conchos to 1979’s Butch & Sundance: The Early Years, there are at least a couple of linking elements here, including three scores by the inestimable Jerry Goldsmith and two appearances by Jim Brown (including his screen debut). The four together provide a rather interesting look both at what went right and wrong with the western during this transitional era.
Rio Conchos is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Timeless Media Group with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 2.35:1. Perhaps because of this being a CinemaScope feature, this is probably overall the nicest looking high definition presentation of the four included on this Blu-ray disc. The elements are in remarkably good shape overall, with only very minor damage to report. In fact by far the most distracting things that crop up are the almost comically large reel change markers, which suddenly appear in the Utah sky like flying saucers in a 1964 version of Cowboys & Aliens. Colors seem to have faded just slightly toward the brown side of things, but it's extremely slight. Generally speaking the image is beautifully sharp and well detailed, though it appears dupes or some other secondary elements were used for some establishing shots (you'll notice some extremely fuzzy moments when Pardee's camp is reached).
Rio Conchos features a lossless DTS-HD Master Audio Mono mix delivered via DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0. Things are generally clear here virtually all of the time, though there is some crackling that crops up occasionally, most noticeably about two thirds of the way through the film. Other than that, dialogue is very cleanly presented, and Jerry Goldsmith's throbbing score, replete with the whipping sound of a slapstick, sounds great.
Westerns are far from my favorite genre, so I was frankly expecting Rio Conchos to be yet another middling grade entry in the often tiresome parade of so-so sixties westerns. Instead I found myself unexpectedly involved in a fascinating character study and rumination on the corrosive effects of revenge. Extremely well acted, beautifully shot and stirringly scored, Rio Conchos is a real surprise and well worth revisiting. Highly recommended.
(Still not reliable for this title)
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