The Scalphunters Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		1.0
Overall		3.5

The Scalphunters Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Brian Orndorf July 24, 2014

As western romps go, “The Scalphunters” hasn’t aged very well. A tale of racial paranoia and partnership, the feature traffics in a level of barbed dialogue that would trigger P.C. alarms in this day and age, but in 1968, times were certainly different. Navigating the movie’s period attitude is relatively easy, but finding its sense of humor takes some work. Everyone onscreen appears to be having a ball with this adventure, but the spirit isn’t infectious.

Joe (Burt Lancaster) is a fur trapper who loses his stash of pelts to a Kiowa tribe that insists he take runaway slave, and Comanche adoptee, Joseph (Ossie Davis), as a trade. Upset with this forced exchange, Joe takes off after his property, using Joseph’s desire to return to Mexico as leverage to keep him in line. Altering Joe’s plan is Jim (Telly Savalas), a hunter working with his gang to collect Native American scalps for money, with suffering wife Kate (Shelley Winters) in tow. Taking possession of the slave, Jim has plans to sell off his prize, yet Joseph works the situation to his advantage, making himself useful as the gang winds their way to Mexico.

The screenplay by William W. Norton aims to use racial tension as the flavoring for a straightforward tracking story, with Joseph’s educated ways confounding his tongue-chewing captors, who can’t fathom the sight of a black man outside of bondage. Director Sydney Pollack (helming his third picture) struggles to keep up a rhythm of antagonism and comedy, and certain moments, including Joseph’s playful seduction of Kate to preserve his worth, come across as intended. The rest gets bogged down in bickering and prejudice, with sections of “The Scalphunters” so preoccupied with defining Jim and Joe’s unease with the slave, the effort starts spinning its wheels, unable to come up with fresh dramatic terrain to explore.

The Scalphunters Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The AVC encoded image (2.34:1 aspect ratio) presentation does show signs of slight filtering, but tastefully so for a catalog title, maintaining texture as the source material bounces between sharpness and softness. Minor damage is detected, but it's not consistent. Detail is acceptable, best with sweaty faces and ragtag costuming, while location expanse delivers distances. Colors tender to favor a more muted palette, but big reds and blue skies retain vibrancy, and skintones look accurate. Blacks are communicative though rarely challenged in this sun-blasted picture.

The Scalphunters Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The 2.0 DTS-HD MA sound mix is straightforward, working with some heft to bring out the thunderous gallop of horses, while gunfire also maintains a slight punch. Dialogue exchanges are fresh and true. Jubilant scoring from Elmer Bernstein maintains support while retaining detail, never overwhelming onscreen action. Western atmospherics are maintained to satisfaction.

The Scalphunters Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• A Theatrical Trailer (3:13, HD) is included.

The Scalphunters Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

"The Scalphunters" benefits from vivid locations and solid performances from the cast. It certainly aims to be jovial entertainment, but it lacks sharpness when it comes to conflict, with a bloated climax pushing too hard to reach its jokey conclusion. As a western, there's very little grit, and as a comedy, the winces tend to outnumber the laughs.