Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		4.0
Audio		4.5
Extras		1.5
Overall		3.0

The Hills Run Red Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov February 8, 2021

Carlo Lizzani's "The Hills Run Red" (1966) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Kino Lorber. The supplemental features on the disc include remastered vintage trailer for the film and new audio commentary by filmmaker Alex Cox. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-A "locked".

Man for hire

Why was Carlo Lizzani’s name replaced with the alias Lee W. Beaver in the opening credits of The Hills Run Red? I don’t know, but there is enough good and bad material in this film to make you ponder a few interesting scenarios. For example, could it be that during the production process a lot went wrong and then the entire film was wrapped up prematurely, which is why Lizzani attempted to distance himself from it as much as he could? Or could it be that the editing did not turn out right and because Lizzani did not have a say on the final version of his film he replaced his name with an alias as a form of protest?

There are other reasons why it feels like there is an interesting story behind The Hills Run Red that needs to be told. Lizzani had an established style and was one of Italy’s greatest post-war directors, but in this film his modus operandi is practically unrecognizable. It is difficult to tell why. I see plenty that could have been done differently, but I am also unconvinced that the adjustments would have produced a dramatically better film that syncs up with Lizzani’s style. For example, there is a lot of very strange acting, but in some areas it works because the film suddenly switches personalities and it feels like the strangeness is actually encouraged. Henry Silva’s wicked mercenary is the main catalyst behind it and there is enough evidence to conclude that what he does before the camera is entirely intentional. However, the same cannot be said about Nicoletta Machiavelli’s character, who brings in a certain degree of mysticism which the film has an awfully difficult time accommodating. Why is this happening? Bad writing, bad acting, or unconvincing direction? Or was something important that was supposed to make the film much better balanced lost during the editing process? The film tells a simple story whose progression is entirely predictable, but its behavior is perplexing, and I assure you this is very atypical for a Lizzani project.

The film is set during the final days of the Civil War and the center piece of its story is an act of betrayal that transforms two partners into bitter enemies. In its short prologue, they are seen in a carriage trying to evade a platoon of Union soldiers because they are transporting a rather large load of stolen money, but when it becomes clear that it would be impossible to lose them, they decide to split. Lady Luck then determines that Ken Seagull (Nando Gazzolo) ought to run away with the money, while Jerry Brewster (Thomas Hunter) should surrender and convince the Union soldiers that he was alone and afraid to get caught because of unrelated troubles. When Seagull sneaks out with the money, Brewster surrenders, but his attempt to convince his captors that he was alone in the carriage fails and shortly after he is thrown in jail. After five years of humiliation and torture, Seagull is released with a warning to stay out of trouble. He immediately visits the house where his wife was supposed to wait for him with their son and discovers a note describing how she repeatedly tried to get a loan from Seagull, who has prospered as a land baron under a different name, but has failed and is dying penniless and ill. Overwhelmed with sorrow and barely able to contain his anger, Brewster then vows to destroy his former partner even if it means that he has to sacrifice his life.

Lizzani completed The Hills Run Red in the same year Sergio Corbucci did Django, but there aren’t any significant similarities between these films. (The action sequence with Brewster in the coffin reminds of Django’s famous trick with the machine gun before the big shootout, but the vibe that comes out of it isn’t the same).

On one hand, this is to be expected because in Lizzani’s films the main story is usually part of a unique commentary that addresses bigger, often universal issues, which is precisely why in The Hills Run Red there are themes about justice, the laws that are supposed to uphold it, and the powerful people that crafted them that push it away from the main conflicts that define its story. (Lizzani was an outspoken communist, so these commentaries were almost always political). On the other hand, these themes do not seem to be part of a coherent commentary and are actually frequently at odds with the unusual manner in which some of the main characters conduct themselves. As a result, the film looks very uneven, at times uncharacteristically unfocused as well, which leaves the impression that there was a serious disconnect between different cast members and Lizzani.

The great maestro Ennio Morricone scored The Hills Run Red, but his name is missing from the official credits as well. The producers of the film replaced it with the alias Leo Nichols.

The Hills Run Red Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in an aspect ratio of 2.35:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, The Hills Run Red arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Kino Lorber.

I like the master that was used to produce this release quite a lot. I don't know when it was prepared, but it is definitely not from the early days of the DVD era because it has some very particular technical characteristics that are typically present on more recent masters. One of them is the consistency of the density levels, which could be better but are still very, very good. Also, the entire film is graded very nicely, though there a few minor nuances can be expanded and some highlights managed better. The rest looks either very good or excellent. Delineation and depth, in particular, are consistently pleasing, so if you have a large TV or projector you should enjoy the technical presentation a lot. A few white specks and a couple of blemishes remain, but there are no distracting large debris, cuts, damage marks, warped or torn frames. So, while there is some room for minor cosmetic improvements, the entire film has a very attractive organic appearance. My score is 4.25/5.00. (Note: This is a Region-A "locked" Blu-ray release. Therefore, you must have a native Region-A or Region-Free player in order to access its content).

The Hills Run Red Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There is only one standard audio track on this Blu-ray release: English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0. Optional English SDH subtitles are provided for the main feature.

It is immediately obvious that the original audio is actually a studio dub track, which means that practically every single character in the film was overdubbed. (Henry Silva appears to be uttering his own lines, but even they have some awkward unevenness, which likely means that some work was done on them as well). So, expect to hear sporadic 'thinning' and unevenness that are very common on these types of Italian genre films. Some extremely light background hiss tries to sneak in from time to time, but there is nothing particularly distracting that could affect your viewing experience. The lossless track is good.

The Hills Run Red Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Trailer - fully remastered vintage trailer for The Hills Run Red. Music only, with English text. (2 min, 1080p).

• Commentary - an exclusive new audio commentary by filmmaker Alex Cox.

• Additional Trailers - additional trailers for the following titles from Kino Lorber's catalog:
  
  1. Kill Them All and Come Back Alone
  2. The Hellbenders
  3. Man of the East

The Hills Run Red Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

There is a good story behind Carlo Lizzani's spaghetti western The Hills Run Red that needs to be told. Between the 1950s and late 1970s, Lizzani had a very particular style that produced interesting commentaries regardless of the subject matter of his films. It is how he established himself in Italy and then gradually overseas. The Hills Run Red has a very strange personality and does not have such a commentary, which is enough to make me speculate that it is not the film Lizzani wanted to direct. Why did the film turn out as it did? I don't know. Lizzani was a prolific writer as well, so perhaps he did not like the screenplay that was delivered to him and simply made the best he could with it. Or it could be that his film was badly edited by its producers and Lizzani did not have a final say on it. Again, I don't know what the real story is, but there is plenty of material in the film that does not sync well, and this is very atypical for a Lizzani project. Kino Lorber's release of The Hills Run Red is sourced from a very solid recent organic remaster. RECOMMENDED, but only to seasoned spaghetti western aficionados and hopeless completists.