LVC Minimates

Here is a popular item that seems to be fetching a tidy sum on the secondary market- Minimate figures based on the "Dollars" trilogy.  These have been out of production for years now, and I have seen individual loose figures sell for over $50 a piece!  Take a look at the LVC representations of Col. Mortimer and Angel Eyes below-

 

Blu-ray Review: Sabata (Germany)

Released in December of 2013 in Germany by Explosive Media (who also have released The Big Gundown and Death Rides a Horse), this marks the first instance of Sabata on Blu-ray.  There are still no signs of Yul Brynner's Adios Sabata and the LVC sequel Return of Sabata on blu-ray.

While this review is to discuss the merits of the blu-ray and not the actual film itself, I will say that Sabata is LVC in his Spaghetti Western prime, possibly for the last time, as the genre quickly began to decay around the time of the original film's release.

The set itself comes in a very sturdy case which includes a 24-page illustrated booklet. 3 discs are included; the first being the blu-ray (region free!), and the second and third are DVD (PAL). 

 

Disc contents are as follows-

Disc 1 - Blu-ray - Feature Film

 

Disc 2 - DVD - Feature Film 

Disc 3 - DVD - Extras

• Trailers 

• Lee Van Cleef Westerns - a large collection of original trailers from LVC's spaghetti western career.  

• Original English-language trailer for Sabata 

• Trailers for other Explosive Media releases. 

• Documentary His Name is Sabata

• Italian film historian Fabio Melelli and Director Gianfranco Parolini discuss the making of the film. 

• Promotional Materials 

• Various lobby cards, posters, etc... set to the soundtrack of the film

blu-ray menu

 

Video

The transfer for Sabata appears to be an older HD transfer supplied to Explosive Media by MGM.  I suspect this is the same transfer that has been used for sporadic HD broadcasts in the past 10 years, possibly even the same print used for the current US DVDs.

 

I would rate the print as very good looking.  Obviously the best we have ever seen the film presented (and likely ever will).  Colors are good.  No major print damage.  Film grain is still evident, so this doesn't look like the waxy The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly disc from 2009.  Overall I was very happy with how the film looks on blu-ray.


Audio

The film sounds good for it's age.  Music by Marcello Giombini is catchy as always.  Dialog is very clear.  No major issues.  Audio is available in English Dolby Digital 2.0, Italian Dolby Digital 2.0, and German Dolby Digital 2.0

 

Extras

 

Explosive Media has put together a nice set of extras for this set, on the third disc (PAL DVD).  First and foremost is a 43 minute documentary, His Name is Sabata, featuring newly filmed (in Italian) interviews with Italian film historian Fabio Melelli and Director Gianfranco Parolini (aka Frank Kramer).  They discuss the origin of the film series and the involvement of Alberto Grimaldi.  Parolini is a very entertaining man, and during the interview also offers up a few tidbits about his LVC film God's Gun.  English subtitles are available throughout.

 

Next we have a vast array of trailers, starting with 47 minutes worth of LVC Spaghetti Western trailers.  Sabata is represented by a lone English trailer.

 

Lastly there are various lobby cards, posters, etc... set to the soundtrack of the film.

 

In Conclusion

 

Until there is a US region 1 release (hopefully the trilogy!), this is the disc to go with as the definitive presentation of Sabata.  The blu-ray disc is region free and can play in all blu-ray players.  The other 2 discs require a region free DVD player.

 

In my opinion if you are a fan of the film, it is well worth the investment.

 

Sabata blu-ray by Explosive Media can be ordered here-

http://www.amazon.de/Sabata-Blu-ray-Special-Edition-DVDs/dp/B00ELTOAIY/ref=pd_bxgy_d_img_y

 

 

 

TheBad.net is on Facebook!

Like it or not, social media has taken over the internet, and many of our daily lives.  While there are a handful of great LVC Facebook pages out there, I felt it was time to create one for TheBad.net as another way of bringing new LVC fans together, as well as keeping everyone informed of updates to the website and blog.

Here is the link to TheBad.net on Facebook! 

"Like it!"

My overall goal is to use Facebook as a portal or gateway to the above 3 sites, basically pointing people here if there is a blog or web update, and to raise awareness of these sites. Once people "like" the page, they would be clued in to any updates and would be more likely to make a return visit. Original content would live on the blog and webpage, not FB. If you do not use Facebook, you would not be missing out on anything unique, and LVC discussions would remain on the Web Board. I don't want FB to become a replacement for the Web Board, as it is a simple tool with no need to create an account, etc.

 

Also, I would also like to take this time to share some web stats with you-
 

• TheBad.net averages 1500 page views per day (unknown how many unique users)
• Web Board averages 200 unique users per day
• Blog averages 120 page views per day

So now TheBad.net encompasses a webpage, web board, blog, and Facebook.  Just don't be expecting any tweets next!

 

The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly - New Blu-ray Release

On June 3rd MGM will rerelease The Man with No Name Trilogy on blu-ray, this time including a new 4k remaster of The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly. 

The previous edition was released in in 2010, and at that time was the only way to get A Fistful of Dollars and For a Few Dollars More on blu-ray.  The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly disc that was included in this set was a copy of a previously released disc from 2009.  That edition was far inferior in image quality to the Italian blu-ray released around the same time.  Sadly the Italian version did not feature an English audio option.


Below is a blow up to show the quality difference.  USA MGM is on the left, Italian Mondo on the right.

Full comparison of the US vs. Italian editions were featured in a previous blog entry here


**6/13/2014 Update - Full Disc Review HERE


Currently this blu-ray is available for pre-order from Fox Connect with the below description.

The Sergio Leone “spaghetti westerns” did not simply add a new chapter to the genre...they reinvented it. From his shockingly violent and stylized breakthrough, A Fistful Of Dollars, to the film Quentin Tarantino calls “the best-directed movie of all time,” The Good, The Bad And The Ugly, Leone’s vision elevated Westerns to an entirely new art form. This definitive Leone collection of the most ambitious and influential Westerns ever made includes over five hours of special features that uncover buried gold in these gritty classics—plus a NEWLY REMASTERED version of The Good, The Bad And The Ugly.

A full press release should be out soon, and at the time I will updated this entry with any new information.