Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		3.0
Overall		4.0

Sabata Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov October 6, 2021

Gianfranco Parolini's "Sabata" (1969) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Eureka Entertainment. The supplemental features on this release include new audio commentary by critics Kim Newman and Barry Forshaw; new program featuring critic Austin Fisher; vintage promotional materials; and more. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-B "locked".

The great gunslinger Sabata (Lee Van Cleef, The Big Gundown, For a Few Dollars More) arrives in a small Texas town shortly after the only bank there is robbed. After spending some time in the local saloon, Sabata figures out who is responsible for the robbery and quickly tracks down the thieves. Then he kills them and returns the loot, approximately $100,000 in brand new banknotes, to the bank.

The news immediately reaches the town’s most powerful man, Stengel (Franco Ressel, Tarzana, the Wild Woman, The Deadly Trap), who has secretly been trying to purchase all of the available land in the area with his associates so that together they can sell it back to the government when the construction of the new railroad begins. (Sometime after the bank robbery, it is made clear that someone has already tipped off Stengel that the government plans to build a railroad in Texas). Stengel then immediately summons his associates and they agree to eliminate Sabata as quickly as possible so that they can finish what they have started.

But Sabata kills the men that are sent to eliminate him. Then he meets Stengel and demands that he pays him $10,000 so that he doesn’t reveal his role in the bank robbery. Stendel agrees but asks for time to collect the money. When Sabata leaves, new killers are hired to gun him down.

Meanwhile, Sabata befriends Carrincha (Ignazio Spalla, Go with God, Gringo, Johnny Hamlet), a Mexican knife thrower who loves to drink, and Indio (Aldo Canti, The Return of Sabata), a strange Indian character who can run like a cheetah and jump like a gazelle. Sabata also meets Banjo (William Berger, Keoma, Five Dolls for an August Moon), a quiet but dangerous looking loner who loves playing his… banjo.

Italian director Gianfranco Parolini’s Sabata a.k.a. Ehi amico... c'è Sabata, hai chiuso! mixes a good dose of attitude with an equal dose of action to try and match the quality of the great spaghetti western classics. The result is a cracking film with a ton of energy that feels just right.

Van Cleef is the heart and soul of the film. There is something about the way he moves and then kills his opponents that quickly earns the viewer’s respect. Yul Brynner does the same in John Sturges’ The Magnificent Seven but after a series of long and carefully choreographed action sequences. In Sabata, there are only a few such opportunities for Van Cleef to impress.

The plot is deceptively simple. After Van Cleef meets Ressel it seems like the film would follow a familiar route, but during the second half there are some excellent twists. The secondary characters are also very well profiled and used in ways that allow them to make a lasting impression. In other words, Sabata is not a straightforward film about an invincible superhero that is always a few steps ahead of his opponents.

The fast shootouts and large panoramic vistas are beautifully lensed by cinematographer Sandro Mancori (God’s Gun, Ready for Anything). Unlike so many other spaghetti westerns where questionable editing would often make them look quite uneven, the pacing of Sabata has a steady rhythm.

Sabata was produced by the legendary Alberto Grimaldi (Sergio Leone’s The Good, the Bad and the Ugly, Bernardo Bertolucci’s Last Tango in Paris, Pier Paolo Pasolini’s Salo, or the 120 Days of Sodom).

Sabata Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in an aspect ratio of 2.34:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Sabata arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Eureka Entertainment.

The only other release of this film that I have in my library was produced by Swiss label Explosive Media in 2013. It is sourced from an older master that was supplied by MGM, which is the same master the folks at Eureka Entertainment have worked with to produce this upcoming release for the UK market.

Even though the current master has some rough spots, I like it quite a lot because it is free of the type of compromising digital corrections that are frequently present on many similar older masters we see emerging from Universal's vaults. Indeed, some segments could look a tad softer than they should, plus density levels are not optimal, but overall the visuals retain a quite nice organic appearance. Color saturation can be improved as well, but the overall balance is pleasing. Delineation and depth are good, but if you view your films on a large TV screen, or project on an even larger screen, you will quickly and easily conclude that with a new 2K/4K master the film can look more convincing. Image stability is good. Some tiny flecks and small scratches remain, but there are no large damage marks, cuts, or torn frames to report in this review. My score is 3.75/5.00. (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).

Sabata Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

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 on, they appear inside the image frame.

On the Explosive Media release that I referenced above the original English audio track is lossy, so the inclusion of a lossless track is definitely an upgrade. However, the gap in quality between the two isn't dramatic because the original source for both is the same. The lossless track certainly opens up the dynamic field better, especially during the shootouts, but it is easy to conclude that it can benefit from a fresh remaster.

Sabata Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Trailer - a vintage trailer for Sabata. In English, not subtitled. (2 min).

• Promoting Sabata - a wonderful collection of vintage promotional materials for Sabata from around the world. With music. (8 min).

• Austin Fisher on Sabata - in this new program, critic Austin Fisher discusses the stylistic identity of Sabata and its placement amongst other notable spaghetti westerns from the same era. In English, not subtitled. (11 min).

• Commentary - in this new audio commentary, critics Kim Newman and Barry Forshaw share plenty of interesting information about the conception and production history of the film (including the proper English translation of its Italian title), some interesting similarities with other spaghetti westerns from the same era, Gianfranco Parolini's career, Lee Van Cleef's transformation into a huge spaghetti western star, etc. It is a very interesting and informative commentary.

• Booklet - a collector's booklet featuring new writing by western expert Howard Hughes as well as technical credits.

Sabata Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

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.