Savant Blu-ray Review: “The Big Gundown” (1966) is a standout spaghetti Western directed by Sergio Sollima, starring Lee Van Cleef and Tomas Milian.
With its recent Blu-ray release, this classic offers captivating performances, nuanced storytelling, and masterful direction.
The restored picture quality and enhanced sound ensure an immersive viewing experience. Whether you’re a fan of the genre or new to it, “The Big Gundown” on Blu-ray is a must-watch.
Savant Blu-ray Review: “The Big Gundown” (1966)
Many collectors have noticed a significant slowdown in the release of video discs by major studios. Instead, these studios are increasingly licensing their sought-after library titles to more miniature DVD and Blu-ray labels.
For instance, Olive Films is currently releasing movies from Paramount and Republic, while Twilight Time offers a quality selection of films from Fox, Sony, and soon, MGM.
Warner Bros. is one major studio that has not outsourced its distribution but distributes older titles from Paramount through its Warner Archive Program.
Further complicating matters for dedicated collectors is the availability of many American films exclusively through European labels on region-coded discs incompatible with standard American Blu-ray players.
As a result, collectors often scour offerings on Amazon. UK and Amazon. It searches for desired titles unavailable through conventional channels in the United States.
With World Cinema Paradise granting its writers more freedom in choosing topics to cover, I hope to explore more titles available in the often more appealing European Region “B” releases.
This review examines a new disc readily accessible in Region “A,” compatible with U.S. machines, and compares it to last year’s German Region “B” release.
In 1968, discussions about Spaghetti Westerns in America primarily centered around Clint Eastwood; it would take a few years for the cult of Sergio Leone to permeate the younger generation, who had 8-track tapes of “The Good, The Bad and The Ugly” (1966) blaring in their cars.
Enthusiastic fans delved into the plethora of Italian westerns flooding American screens, from numerous Django films to more artistic endeavors like Sergio Corbucci’s “The Great Silence” (Il grande silenzio, 1968), featuring Jean-Louis Trintignant and Klaus Kinski in a snowy showdown.
The prevailing notion regarding Italo westerns is that while Sergio Leone’s masterpieces stand at the peak, the rest of the sub-genre resides on a lower tier.
Just beneath Leone’s iconic ‘Dollars’ trilogy lies Sergio Sollima’s “The Big Gundown” (La resa dei conti; originally released in Italy in 1966).
This stylish adventure was conceived as a direct spinoff from Leone’s work, serving as a platform to showcase the newly acclaimed star, Lee Van Cleef.
A young producer named Alberto Grimaldi struck an impressive multi-picture deal with United Artists, extending it to include projects by renowned directors such as Federico Fellini, Pier Paolo Pasolini, Gillo Pontecorvo, and Bernardo Bertolucci.
“The Big Gundown” boasts the involvement of some of Leone’s top collaborators, including cinematographer Carlo Carlini and designer Carlo Simi.
Ennio Morricone’s music score, featuring a central theme sung by Cristy, is arguably the composer’s most exhilarating work in the Western genre.
Directed by Sergio Sollima, “The Big Gundown” marks his debut in the Western genre, following the trend set by Leone from sword and sandal epics to gritty interpretations of the American frontier.
While reaching different heights of inspiration or talent than his predecessor, Sollima infuses the film with a heightened drama rarely seen in Italian westerns.
The film stylishly introduces the respected lawman Jonathan Corbett (Van Cleef) as he dispatches a trio of outlaws in the opening scene.
Corbett is then tasked by the imposing railroad baron Brokston (Walter Barnes) to track down and eliminate Cuchillo (Tomas Milian), a Mexican accused of a heinous crime.
As an added incentive, Brokston offers Corbett support for a Senatorial campaign.
Pursuing Cuchillo into Mexico, Corbett discovers that capturing the elusive bandit is challenging. Along the way, he uncovers the true motivations behind Brokston’s relentless pursuit.
With a plot reminiscent of Richard Brooks’ “The Professionals” (1966), “The Big Gundown” emerges as one of the early ‘political’ westerns.
Italian filmmakers often infused political themes into their work, but films directly addressing contemporary politics typically struggled at the box office.
Instead, ‘committed’ directors incorporated themes of social justice into more mainstream genre films.
Director Sergio Corbucci, for instance, explored the Mexican Revolution in several movies as a commentary on contemporary political struggles.
In “The Big Gundown,” the role of the primary antagonist is filled by the greedy and arrogant Brokston, embodying the archetype of the Yankee capitalist.
Lee Van Cleef’s rise from a minor Hollywood villain to an international star is well-documented; Leone cast him in “For a Few Dollars More” (1965) based on his memorable performances in several classic westerns.
Producer Grimaldi could also afford to hire him at a reasonable price. Van Cleef’s attempts to secure substantial roles had faltered at the low-budget level.
His portrayals of a Quisling scientist in Roger Corman’s sci-fi thriller “It Conquered the World” (1956) and a Eurasian Communist General in Sam Fuller’s “China Gate” (1957) failed to garner much attention.
However, Van Cleef’s distinctive hawk-like features and intense, sinister eyes had already made him recognizable.
Leone cast him against type as a respectable character in “For a Few Dollars More,” in “The Big Gundown,” he ascended to a full-fledged hero.
Despite a leg injury that caused him pain while riding horses, Van Cleef thrived as a Western protagonist.
Making a complete reversal of his image, Van Cleef eventually assumed the role popularized by Yul Brynner in “The Magnificent Seven Ride!” (1972).
“The Big Gundown” delights in the exploits of Tomas Milian’s sandal-wearing, earthy peasant character, Cuchillo, who relies on his cunning and seems to have a romantic interest in every town.
Cuchillo attempts to woo a Mormon maid and is compelled by some rugged ranchers to confront a bull.
He proves Corbett’s equal in the strategic deceptions crafted by writer Sergio Donati, a veteran of Sergio Leone’s films.
As Corbett learns more about Cuchillo, his respect for him grows.
The mantle of villainy shifts to Brokston’s associate, Baron von Schulenberg (portrayed by Gérard Herter of “Caltiki, il mostro immortale“), an ostentatious Prussian eager to challenge Corbett to a shootout.
Set to Ennio Morricone’s soaring musical score, “The Big Gundown” culminates in a series of duels involving rifles, revolvers, and knives.
The film’s most exhilarating sequence sees Cuchillo fleeing across the countryside on foot, pursued by a mounted posse. Morricone’s electric guitar electrifies the screen, accompanied by vocalist Cristy’s urgent song “Run, Man, Run.”
Cuban-born Tomas Milian reprised his role as Cuchillo in director Sollima’s subsequent film, “Corri uomo corri” (1968), which was retitled “Run, Man, Run” for American audiences.
Grindhouse Releasing’s Blu-ray + DVD + CD edition of Sergio Sollima’s “The Big Gundown” is a high-quality release from excellent materials seemingly owned by Sony Pictures: the film starts with a splendid Columbia logo.
Devotees of Lee Van Cleef, Ennio Morricone, and Spaghetti Westerns likely require no encouragement to acquire this title, but some clarifications are warranted.
Until a year ago, “The Big Gundown” was unavailable on Blu-ray until the German company Explosive Media issued an impressive Region B (Europe only) release, which collectors with all-region players still purchase.
The significant disparity between that release and Grindhouse Releasing’s Region A disc lies in the versions of the film provided. The original Italian release, titled “La resa dei conti” (“A Settling of Accounts”), runs a full 110 minutes.
However, it underwent significant editing for international markets. Columbia’s American version excised nearly 25 minutes, cutting out entire scenes and portions of others, particularly in the film’s early parts.
Consequently, the initial confrontation between Corbett and the three outlaws feels rushed in the shorter edit, leading to a hasty conclusion and considerable weakening of impact.
The challenge in creating a definitive version of “The Big Gundown” on video stems from the desire to experience director Sollima’s superior full-length cut while preserving Lee Van Cleef’s distinctive vocal performance available only in the shorter Columbia-edited version.
English dialogue tracks were either not recorded for the footage not shown in America, or they were discarded. The two Blu-ray releases tackle this issue quite differently.
The Explosive Media Blu-ray from last year ingeniously preserves the full Italian cut for the English and German options.
The Italian audio track remains intact and uncut. For the other two language options, whenever scenes occur for which English or German audio does not exist, the track briefly reverts to Italian with appropriate subtitles.
This allows viewers to watch “The Big Gundown” with mostly Van Cleef’s original voice while enjoying the full-length version.
Initially, hearing characters switch languages mid-scene may seem odd, but it also offers an educational insight into how Columbia excused 25 minutes from the film.
Editors extracted isolated dialogue lines from Brokston’s party sequence yet maintained complete continuity.
The Explosive Media package comprises a 3-disc set, with the feature available on both Blu-ray and DVD; a second DVD includes a wealth of extras and the entire Ennio Morricone feature soundtrack score.
Grindhouse Releasing’s Blu-ray + DVD + CD edition of Sergio Sollima’s “The Big Gundown” is a high-quality release from excellent materials seemingly owned by Sony Pictures: the film starts with a splendid Columbia logo.
Devotees of Lee Van Cleef, Ennio Morricone, and Spaghetti Westerns likely require no encouragement to acquire this title, but some clarifications are warranted.
Until a year ago, “The Big Gundown” was unavailable on Blu-ray until the German company Explosive Media issued an impressive Region B (Europe only) release, which collectors with all-region players still purchase.
The significant disparity between that release and Grindhouse Releasing’s Region A disc lies in the versions of the film provided. The original Italian release, titled “La resa dei conti” (“A Settling of Accounts”), runs a full 110 minutes.
However, it underwent significant editing for international markets. Columbia’s American version excised nearly 25 minutes, cutting out entire scenes and portions of others, particularly in the film’s early parts.
Consequently, the initial confrontation between Corbett and the three outlaws feels rushed in the shorter edit, leading to a hasty conclusion and considerable weakening of impact.
The challenge in creating a definitive version of “The Big Gundown” on video stems from the desire to experience director Sollima’s superior full-length cut while preserving Lee Van Cleef’s distinctive vocal performance available only in the shorter Columbia-edited version.
English dialogue tracks were either not recorded for the footage not shown in America, or they were discarded. The two Blu-ray releases tackle this issue quite differently.
The Explosive Media Blu-ray from last year ingeniously preserves the full Italian cut for the English and German options.
The Italian audio track remains intact and uncut. For the other two language options, whenever scenes occur for which English or German audio does not exist, the track briefly reverts to Italian with appropriate subtitles.
This allows viewers to watch “The Big Gundown” with mostly Van Cleef’s original voice while enjoying the full-length version.
Initially, hearing characters switch languages mid-scene may seem odd, but it also offers an educational insight into how Columbia excused 25 minutes from the film.
Editors extracted isolated dialogue lines from Brokston’s party sequence yet maintained complete continuity.
The Explosive Media package comprises a 3-disc set, with the feature available on both Blu-ray and DVD; a second DVD includes a wealth of extras and the entire Ennio Morricone feature soundtrack score.
