Wake Up and Kill Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		3.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		1.5
Overall		3.5

Wake Up and Kill Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov December 13, 2015

Carlo Lizzani's "Wake Up and Kill" (1966) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Arrow Video/MVD Entertainment Group. The supplemental features on the disc include an original trailer and the shorter English version of the film. The release also arrives with an illustrated booklet featuring new writing on the film by Roberto Curti, author of Italian Crime Filmography, 1968-1980, and technical credits. In Italian or English, with optional English and English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-Free.

Lutring and his girl

Wake Up and Kill tells the story -- or at least part of it -- of Luciano Lutring, a handsome thief from Milan who became known in Italy as Il solista del mitra (The Machine Gun Soloist) because he liked to carry his weapon in a violin case. During the early 1960s, Lutring also committed a number of robberies in France, where he was eventually arrested. After serving 12 years in La Santé, he was pardoned and returned home to Milan, where in 2013 he died at the age of 75.

The opening sequence shows Lutring (Robert Hoffmann, Spasmo, Grand Slam) and a few of his friends heading to San Remo to have a good time. Here Lutring meets the beautiful cabaret singer Yvonne Pasini (Lisa Gastoni, Grazie Zia, La Seduzione) and the two quickly become lovers. For a while Yvonne reluctantly follows Lutring while he robs stores in Italy and France, assuming that it is only a matter of time before he makes enough and they settle down back in Milan. But when it becomes clear that he would not stop, she contacts Inspector Moroni (Gian Maria Volontè, Investigation of a Citizen Above Suspicion), who agrees to do his best to get him alive and send him to prison.

The film was directed by Carlo Lizzani, who was an outspoken communist and proponent of Italian neorealism. The bulk of it is quite raw and intense, but it lacks the focus of Francesco Rosi’s films from the same period. (During the early 1960s, the Neapolitan director single-handedly legitimized the semi-documentary technique with Salvatore Giuliano, Hands Over the City, and The Moment of Truth).

During the first two acts Lizzani’s camera follows the two lovers with obvious affection. For a while they look like odd admirers of Bonnie and Clyde trying to get a taste of the dangerous life their idols lived. But Lutring frequently abuses Yvonne and eventually she begins to question their relationship. At this point Lutring already routinely acts like an angry animal and the gap between him and Yvonne becomes even bigger. Then one of Yvonne’s former lovers, also a shady character with a long record, reappears and further complicates matters.

The third and final act is rather chaotic, but it is easy to tell that this was Lizanni’s intent -- it feels like one is viewing clips from an unreleased documentary feature. Lutring is constantly on the run while Yvonne secretly exchanges information with Inspector Moroni. The front pages of big European newspapers also announce where Lutring’s latest job was. The film ends with the well documented big shootout in Paris where Lutring is seriously injured, but his capture isn’t shown.

Wake Up and Kill is clearly a product of its time. It was released shortly after the events in Paris and quickly became a big hit in Italy. Gastoni even won Silver Ribbon for Best Actress from the Italian National Syndicate of Film Journalists. Considering the amount of talent that was involved with it, however, today the film feels slightly underwhelming -- it is a bit dry, hasty, and despite Ennio Morricone’s solid contribution lacks the atmosphere that could have also made it a big hit overseas.

Arrow Video’s new release of Wake Up and Kill contains the longer Italian cut of the film, which runs at approximately 124 minutes, and the shorter English cut, which is approximately 98 minutes long.

Wake Up and Kill Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in his original aspect ratio of 1.85:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Carlo Lizzani's Wake Up and Kill arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Arrow Video/MVD Entertainment Group.

The release is sourced from a new 2K restoration and in terms of detail and clarity the overwhelming majority of the film looks quite wonderful. As the action moves from one location to another some density fluctuations are easy to spot, but they are part of the film's original cinematography. (As it is the case with many of Lizzani's contemporary films from the same period, large segments have a distinctive raw documentary appearance). Generally speaking, colors remain stable and natural. There are no traces of problematic degraining or sharpening adjustments. Overall image stability is good. There are no large damage marks and cuts, but some stains remain (see screencapture #10). Additionally, there are many white flecks and dots that can be seen throughout the entire film. I don't find them overly distracting, but it is unfortunate that they were not removed. (Note: This is a Region-Free Blu-ray release. Therefore, you will be able to access its content regardless of your geographical location).

Wake Up and Kill Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There are two standard audio tracks on this Blu-ray release: Italian LPCM 2.0 (for the longer Italian version of the film) and English LPCM 2.0 (for the shorter English version). Optional English subtitles are provide for the former and optional English SDH subtitles for the latter.

Both tracks have post-production overdubbing, which is why there are some minor fluctuations in terms of dynamic intensity and depth. Clarity is good, but occasionally some light thinning/unevenness can be heard in the high-frequencies. The music is stable, but you should not expect to hear a wide range of nuanced dynamics. There are no audio dropouts, pops, or digital distortions to report in our review.

Wake Up and Kill Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Trailer - original English trailer for Wake Up and Kill (promoted as Wake Up and Die). In English, not subtitled. (2 min).

• English Version - presented here is the shorter English version of the film, with optional English SDH subtitles. (98 minutes/1080p).

• Booklet - illustrated booklet featuring new writing on the film by Roberto Curti, author of Italian Crime Filmography, 1968-1980, and technical credits.

• Cover - reversible cover featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Reinhard Kleist.

Wake Up and Kill Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

There are two films about the handsome Milanese thief Luciano Lutring and they are very different. The first was Carlo Lizzani's Wake Up and Kill, which was recently restored in 2K. It is an entertaining but slightly uneven film which utilizes the semi-documentary technique Francesco Rosi legitimized during the early 1960s to tell the thief's story. The second is José Giovanni's The Gypsy with Alain Delon, but this film has not yet transitioned to Blu-ray. Frankly, both films are worth seeing because of the talent that contributed to them, but the definitive film about Lutring and his legacy has not yet been made. In any event, fans of European crime films should consider adding this release to their collections. RECOMMENDED.