6.9 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 3.0 | |
Overall | 3.0 |
They are best friends, working togther by day & playfully carousing at night. Dominated by the Ovidio, played by the handsome Joe Dallesandro, the three young men soon evolve from well-mannered law abiding citizens to violent criminals.
Starring: Salvatore Borghese, Martine Brochard, Luigi Casellato, Umberto Ceriani, Joe DallesandroForeign | 100% |
Crime | 19% |
Action | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.86:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.85:1
Italian: DTS-HD Master Audio Mono
English SDH
Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region A (B, C untested)
Movie | 3.0 | |
Video | 4.0 | |
Audio | 4.0 | |
Extras | 2.5 | |
Overall | 3.0 |
Note: This version of this film is available on Blu-ray as part of Years of Lead: Five Classic Italian Crime Thrillers.
The Italian term Poliziotteschi may not be strictly grammatical, but it has served as shorthand for years to describe a subgenre of Italian
cinema that was almost insanely popular in that country in the seventies in particular. If many films in this category were frankly the Italian
equivalent of B-movies, some, like 1970's
Investigation of a Citizen Above Suspicion, achieved considerable renown and critical appreciation, and in fact that particular film ended
up winning that year's Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film. Arrow's Years of Lead may not exactly be offering Oscar worthy
outings in this set, but in a way that actually may be a better way to understand the idiom, since Poliziotteschi frequently featured gritty
storylines and unvarnished characters. Some of the films in this set have been previously released on Blu-ray by German label Camera Obscura (and
the reviews of those films will point to those prior releases), and some of the supplements produced for the Camera Obscura releases have been
ported over to this set. But Arrow is also touting the fact that this set features a new 2K restoration of Colt 38
Special Squad, which is exclusive to this limited edition release.
Savage Three is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Arrow Video with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.85:1. Arrow's insert booklet contains the following information on the transfer:
Savage Three is presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.85:1 with Italian mono audio. The HD master was created and supplied by Intramovies. Additional color grading was completed by Arrow Films at R3Store Studios, London.A cursory comparison to the screenshots Svet included in his review of the Camera Obscura release suggests that while this may not be identical to that release, it is at least often very similar. Arrow's statement about additional color grading may have at least ameliorated one area of concern that Svet expressed in his review about variances in color temperature, but that said, there are still some minor but noticeable shifts that do crop up, especially in the second half of the film. Detail levels are generally commendable, and to my eyes (and judging solely by screencaptures), grain may be a bit more tightly resolved on this release, but differences seem to be pretty minimal.
Savage Three offers a DTS-HD Master Audio Mono track in the original Italian which I'm assuming is, like the video, very similar if not identical to the LPCM 2.0 track included on the Camera Obscura release, but in the latest iteration of my frequent mantra "different reviewers, different opinions", I'm not giving the track quite the superlative marks Svet did in his review of the German disc. There is the typically somewhat boxy sound of post-looped Italian films from this era, something that may be most noticeable in terms of isolated sound effects and occasionally score. Some amplitude differences also occur from time to time. Dialogue is rendered cleanly and clearly. Optional English subtitles are available.
There's an early scene in Savage Three where lab worker Dallesandro is educated about mice, who do fine if they're kept separated, but who will attack and cannibalize each other if they're forced into small communal "living spaces". That's an obvious metaphor for the kind of societal disarray the film offers, but this is another entry where, while there is subtext, the nonstop violence seems to be the main calling card. Technical merits are generally solid and the two Camera Obscura supplements are very interesting, for those who are considering a purchase.
(Still not reliable for this title)
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1977
Quelli della calibro 38
1976
No il caso è felicemente risolto
1973
Come cani arrabbiati / Wie tollwütige Hunde
1976
Il grande racket
1976
Milano trema: la polizia vuole giustizia
1973
Jingi no hakaba
1975
2000
Minagoroshi no kenjû
1967
Battles Without Honor and Humanity - Deadly Fight in Hiroshima
1973
Il poliziotto è marcio
1974
1969
1968
1968
1968
1968
1968
1973
現代やくざ 人斬り与太 / Gendai yakuza: hito-kiri yota
1972
Milano Rovente
1973