The Valdez Horses Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		3.0
Audio		4.5
Extras		4.0
Overall		3.5

The Valdez Horses Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov January 3, 2021

John Sturges' "The Valdez Horses" (1973) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Indicator/Powerhouse Films. The supplemental features on the disc include vintage promotional materials for the film; new video interview with screenwriter Stephen Geller; new video interview with make-up artist Giannetto De Rossi; audio commentary by film historian Paul Talbot; and more. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-B "locked".

Chino

Screenwriter Stephen Geller describes the production of The Valdez Horses as an incredible nightmare. Apparently, it all started after a meeting where director John Sturges essentially made it clear to him that he did not care about the project. According to Geller, Sturges could not be bothered to understand the nature of the conflicts that are chronicled in Lee Hoffman’s novel, and when it was pointed out to him that he was getting a lot of things wrong, he kept arguing that it would not make a difference even if he did make the necessary corrections. Astonished by Sturges’ indifference, Geller met with producer Dino De Laurentiis and attempted to explain the situation to him, and then warned him that the film Sturges wanted to shoot would be extremely problematic to sell, but nothing changed. After the meeting, Geller walked away, while Sturges went to work but was eventually replaced by Duilio Coletti, a virtually unknown Italian director who had done only a couple of small spaghetti westerns.

Whether absolutely everything Geller says about Sturges in the new interview he recorded for this release is true isn't clear, but even if half of it is then it seems pretty obvious that a lot of people were simply not on the same page when the production of The Valdez Horses was greenlighted. Now, you may think that this is a big story given that De Laurentiis had booked Charles Bronson for it -- the film was actually part of a ‘package deal’ that De Laurentiis had with Bronson which also included The Stone Killer and The White Buffalo -- but in reality, it is not. The type of chaos Geller describes was very common for the Italian film industry after the end of WW2, and there are many other films De Laurentiis was involved with that had very similar production issues. So, while Geller’s frustration is understandable, his broken relationship with Sturges and De Laurentiis isn’t the sole reason why The Valdez Horses turned out as it did.

Well, how did The Valdez Horses turn out?

You can easily extrapolate from Geller’s comments that his vision for the film was so different that in its current form he considers it a genuine stinker. De Laurentiis thought it was fine and pushed it in the distribution system, but he was a shrewd businessman so this was a logical move to recoup investments. At the time Bronson was big, really big, and any film with his name attached to it would have sold reasonably well. This is the one and only reason why De Laurentiis wanted to work with him -- to make money, not timeless cinematic masterpieces.

As it usually happens when there are big controversies about creative visions, the truth can be found somewhere in the middle, and this is precisely the case with the problematic production of The Valdez Horses. Indeed, while it likely does not accurately reproduce the complexities of the relationships and drama from Hoffman’s novel, this film works quite well, at times even great. Bronson plays an outcast who is trying to make ends meet as a rancher in an area of the West where men of his kind, half Indian half Mexican, quite simply do not fit in the local scene. He tries his best while protecting his property, but eventually a wealthy baron and his men outpower him and he is forced to leave. During his struggles, the rancher befriends a young boy (Vincent Van Patten) seeking work and falls in love with the baron’s cultured sister (Jill Ireland). So, at the heart of the narrative there are two contrasting themes. The first is about a changing environment which essentially refuses to give men like the rancher a chance to survive. (The Indians he visits are a dying breed for the exact same reason). The second has to do with the rancher’s transformation, which is initiated by the boy and completed by the baron’s sister. While it lasts, the transformation awakens certain fatherly instincts as well as passion for romance that previously the rancher did not feel were necessary in his life. The manner in which these themes are intertwined gives The Valdez Horses a very interesting Delmer Daves-esque quality, which no other Bronson film has.

Different theatrical prints of The Valdez Horses apparently have original credits that name different directors, but in the grand scheme of things the distinction is irrelevant. Whether it has Sturges or Coletti’s name attached to it, the film looks professionally done and complete.

The Valdez Horses Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.85:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, The Valdez Horses arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Indicator/Powerhouse Films.

The release is sourced from an old master that was supplied by StudioCanal. While it is free of problematic digital corrections, this master has the type of serious limitations that often make the viewing experience quite frustrating. For example, there is quite a bit of footage that looks uncharacteristically flat. Predictably, delineation can become very problematic as well, especially in wider panoramic shots that essentially begin to look like upscaled material (see screencaptures #10 and 24). Select close-ups can look decent, a few times even good, but even there grain fluctuations can cause noticeable flatness as well. The color scheme is quite frustrating. There are ares of the film where the primaries and supporting nuances appear rather nicely balanced, but there are still issues with saturation levels. Elsewhere, however, the balance is basically off by a lot and the shifts that emerge become distracting (see screencapture #22). Image stability is good. However, there are a couple of places with some light shakiness within the frame. A few specks and black spots can be seen, but there are no distracting large debris, cuts, warped or torn frames to report. (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).

The Valdez Horses Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There is only one standard audio track on this Blu-ray release: English DTS-HD Master Audio 1.0. Optional English SDH subtitles are provided for the main feature.

The audio is clear and stable. Depth fluctuates a bit in a few areas where there is no good reason for such unevenness to exist -- like the dinner in the very beginning of the film -- but I assume that this is how the original soundtrack was finalized. The music sounds great. Very light hiss occasionally sneaks in in the upper register, but it never becomes distracting.

The Valdez Horses Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Stephen Geller: Gambling on the Horses - in this new video interview, screenwriter Stephen Geller (The Valachi Papers) has a lot of interesting things to say about his interactions with director John Sturges and producer Dino De Laurentiis while he was living in Rome, and explains why he ultimately could not work with them on The Valdez Horses. In English, not subtitled. (21 min).

• Giannetto De Rossi: Dust and Sweat - in this new video interview, make-up artist Giannetto De Rossi recalls how he became involved with The Valdez Horses and what it was like to work with Charles Bronson. Interestingly, De Rossi disputes the claim that Duilio Coletti was ever involved with the shooting of The Valdez Horses. In Italian, with optional English subtitles. (16 min).

• Audio Commentary - film historian Paul Talbot discusses in great detail the production of The Valdez Horses and has some quite interesting comments about Duilio Coletti's involvement with the film, and as usual shares plenty of information about its stars and their careers as well as the specific locations where different scenes were shot.

• French Theatrical Trailer - a vintage French theatrical trailer for The Valdez Horses. In French, with English subtitles. (3 min).

• TV Spot - a TV spot for The Valdez Horses. In English, not subtitled. (1 min).

• Image Gallery - a gallery of vintage promotional materials for The Valdez Horses.

• Alternative Titles and Credits -
  
  1. Valdez il mezzosangue - Italian opening credits. (4 min).
  2. Chino - U.S. opening credits. (4 min).

• Booklet - limited edition exclusive booklet with a new essay by Roberto Curti, an archival on-set report with contributions from Charles Bronson, Jill Ireland, and John Sturges; interview extracts from Bronson and Ireland, an overview of contemporary critical responses, and film credits.

The Valdez Horses Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

While the production of The Valdez Horses was being discussed in Rome, a lot of people apparently rubbed each other the wrong way. In fact, it is pretty clear now that a few egos were seriously and permanently hurt as well. Also, there are different stories floating around about John Sturges and Duilio Coletti's involvement with the film, which isn't surprising because the Italian film industry has always been a chaotic business. I personally do not see any serious flaws in the film. I think that it has a very interesting Delmer Daves-esque quality, which no other Charles Bronson film has. This upcoming release from Indicator/Powerhouse Films is sourced from an old master with some issues, but has a nice selection of bonus features. So, if you want it in your library, my advise is to find a way to rent and test it first, and then consider a purchase. RENT IT.