Return of Sabata Coming to Blu-ray (US)

Kino Lorber Studio Classics announced that Return of Sabata will be coming to blu-ray in the United States this coming May 9th.  Kino previously released Sabata, Barquero, Captain Apache, and Bad Man's River on blu here in the US, as well as the upcoming 2 disc 50th anniversary edition of The Good, The Bad, & The Ugly.

Extra features include:

• reversible art
• trailer gallery

reverse art

 

 

Explosive Media, who brought us a FANTASTIC German blu-ray releases of The Big Gundown, Death Rides a Horse, and Sabata, had previously released The Return of Sabata in 2015 with many fantastic extras.  You can see my review here.

And if that was not enough, Adios Sabata is coming out as well on the same day! 

New Blu-ray Release - 50th Anniversary The Good, The Bad, & The Ugly

This release comes from Kino Lorber, who also put out Sabata, Barquero, Captain Apache, and Bad Man's River on blu here in the US.

Full information below!  This will be the first Blu-ray release to feature the US theatrical cut of the film.  I am hoping beyond hope we get a better master than the yellow travesty MGM put out in 2014 that I reviewed here and here.  Updates to follow-

Coming this Summer on DVD and Blu-ray!
The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (1967) (50th Anniversary Edition)
Includes both Original U.S. Theatrical Cut, available for the first time in HD and the extended cut. 

Disc 1 

• 4K transfer of the Original U.S. Theatrical Cut
• New Audio Commentary by Film Historian Tim Lucas
• “Trailers From Hell” with Ernest Dickerson
• Newly Restored 2.0 Mono Audio
• M.O.S. Deleted Scene of Blondie in the desert finding skeletons
• Trailers for Sergio Leone Westerns
• Italian Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono
• English DTS-HD MA 5.1 Audio
• AND MORE – to be announced

Disc 2: 

• 4K transfer of the Extended Cut
• Newly Restored 2.0 Mono Audio
• Audio Commentary By Acclaimed Film Historian Richard Schickel
• Audio Commentary By Noted Cultural Historian Christopher Frayling
• Leone's West: Making Of Documentary
• The Leone Style: On Sergio Leone Featurette
• The Man Who Lost The Civil War: Civil War Documentary
• Reconstruction The Good, The Bad And The Ugly
• II Maestro: Ennio Morricone and The Good, The Bad And The Ugly Featurette
• Deleted Scenes
• Original U.S. Theatrical Trailer
• Original French Theatrical Trailer
• English DTS-HD MA 5.1 Audio
• Italian Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono

DVD Review: Mexican Jackpot - aka Thieves of Fortune

As there is no blu-ray release of Thieves of Fortune, I have opted to give a DVD review of the latest version of this DVD on the market.

Thieves of Fortune was LVC's last film released (in 1990 after his death).  His role in the film is brief, and he is gone by the 18 minute mark of the film.  Overall this is a pretty terrible movie, and definitely not one worthy of being his last film role.

This DVD is sold under the name Mexican Jackpot, while in the actual film the title card reads as Chameleon.  In the US the film was released as Thieves of Fortune.

Unfortunately this DVD has only been available in Europe, and as such is region 2/PAL encoded (making it unplayable on most US DVD players)


VIDEO

Despite being a 2017 DVD release, this transfer looks to be nothing more than a poor VHS dub. My laserdisc of this film from the early 90's looked better than this!

Screencaps below-



AUDIO

German or English

EXTRAS

• Trailer (looks like something they downloaded off YouTube of a television broadcast ad)

This film is really more of a curiosity for hardcore LVC fans.  I would only really recommend it for completists.

THE GOOD:

• Low price

THE BAD

• Region 2 PAL (UK) only

https://www.amazon.de/Mexican-Jackpot-Lee-van-Cleef/dp/B01N8PQQZP