MCBASTARD'S MAUSOLEUM: HIGH CRIME (1973) (Blue Underground 3-Disc Limited Edition 4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray + CD Review + Blu-ray Screenshots)

HIGH CRIME (1973)

3-Disc Limited Edition

4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray + CD

Label: Blue Underground

Duration: 102 Minutes 55 Seconds

Rating: Unrated
Region Code: Region-Free
Video: Dolby Vision HDR10 2160p Ultra HD Widescreen (1.85:1), 1080p HD Widescreen (1.85:1)
Audio: English 1.0 DTS-HD MA; Italian 1.0 DTS-HD MA with Optional English SDH, Français, Español, English for Italian Audio Subtitles
Director: Enzo G. Castellari
Cast: Franco Nero, Fernando Rey, James Whitmore, Delia Boccardo

High Crime (1973) is a high-octane and ultra-violent Italian cop thriller, also known as a Poliziotteschi, directed by Enzo G. Castellari (1990: The Bronx Warriors) and starring blue-eyed euro-cult legend Franco Nero (Top Line) as Commissioner Belli, a head-strong Italian cop working out of Genoa, Italy. The flick starts off with a visceral car chase that gets the blood pumping right from the start. Belli's investigating a spate of murders he believes are linked to heroin trade coming into the country via French connection in Marseille. When a key witness, a Lebanese drug dealer nabbed during the opening chase, is killed during a prison transfer Belli resorts to partnering with aging mafioso Cafiero (Fernando Rey, Compañeros) to get tot he root of the heroin smuggling operation, businessman Franco Griva (Silvano Tranquilli, Syndicate Sadists) and his brother/partner Umberto (Duilio Del Prete, The Nun and the Devil). Cafiero is keen to use Belli to thwart his encroaching enemies, but it's a dangerous game, one that puts him at odds with his bushy-eyebrowed superior Aldo Scavino (James Whitmore, The Shawshank Redemption), as well as his young daughter Anita (Stefania Girolami Goodwin, The Last Shark) and girlfriend Mirella (Delia Boccardo, Tentacles) at risk. Now pushed to the edge the obsessive cop cranks up the heat on the dope smuggling scum, but at what cost?

This cop-thriller is pretty fantastic, starting with that high-octane car chase, but also punctuated by some visceral moments of violence that had my jaw on the floor. There's a gnarly car explosion when an attempt is made on Belli's life, and someone is murdered by an assassin on a motorcycle that runs down a victim on the green of a golf course, who then presumably has his manhood sliced off offscreen. That's not the end of the genital mutilation either, the bullet-riddled finale takes place in a sea port where Belli's blasts a guy right in the crotch from the floor below, and man did that look like it hurt! On top of that we have the brutal vehicular murder of a young girl, and Belli's girlfriend is hospitalized after being beaten-up at her apartment by thugs sending a message to the insistent cop. It's an nasty bit of business indeed, and Nero is terrific in the role of the obsessed cop who will stop at nothing to bust the dope peddling ring, willing to work with a mafia boss to make it happen, and also incurring a stiff personal penalty for doing so. At times he unhinged and chewing up the scenery, and its wonderful stuff, but I don't think he ever overdoes it, and when the price for his dogged pursuit finally hits home he sells the grief with a deep emotionality that hits hard, making the ensuing cop-carnage even more impactful.

Audio/Video: High Crime (1973) finally makes its U.S. home video debut on a 3-disc 4K UHD/BD/CD set from Blue Underground, who first announced this release about two decades ago, presenting the film 2160p Ultra HD with Dolby Vision (HDR10), framed in 1.85:1 widescreen. This is a very handsome restoration, there's nary a blemish to spy with your sneaky little eye, and the grain structures look organic throughout. depth and clarity are quite pleasing, offering facial hair and clothing texters delineated with crisp precision. The Dolby Vision (HDR10) color-grade is quite pleasing, primaries are well-saturated and nuanced, and black levels are deep and inky.

Audio options come by way of either Italian or English DTS-HD MA 1.0 mono with optional English subtitles. The track is clean and well-balanced, Italian and English dialogue is delivered nicely, moments of action, screeching tires, and gunfire exchanges are piercing, and the terrific score by Guido and Maurizio De Angelis is brought home with solid depth and fidelity, and it's a terrific score start to finish.

Extras on the 4K UHD disc include three commentaries, the first is an archival Audio Commentary with Co-Writer/Director Enzo G. Castellar moderated by Bill Lustig from back in 2004; plus a second with new and exclusive Audio Commentary with Star Franco Nero and Filmmaker Mike Malloy; and a third Audio Commentary with Film Historians Troy Howarth, Nathaniel Thompson and Eugenio Ercolani, which is also new and exclusive to this release. We also get the 3-min Alternate Ending and 4-min action-packed Theatrical Trailer.

On the Blu-ray we get the same extras as the UHD, plus a bunch more, starting off with the 25-min The Genoa Connection – Interviews with Director Enzo G. Castellari and Star Franco Nero from around 2004; the 28-min From Dust To Asphalt – Interview with Director Enzo G. Castellari which is a reworked/re-edited version of an interview from a UK release; 19-min Hard Stunts For High Crimes – Interview with Actor/Stuntman Massimo Vanni; the 21-min Framing Crime – Interview with Camera Operator Roberto Girometti; the 24-min The Sound Of Onions – Interview with Composers Guido and Maurizio De Angelis; and 13-min The Connection Connection – Featurette by EUROCRIME! Director Mike Malloy, who talks about the influence of Friedkin's The French Connection on this and many other Italian cop-thrillers, and we get a Poster & Still Gallery. A third disc on the set is a CD Soundtrack with the 60-min/20-track film score by Guido and Maurizio De Angelis, with an exclusive bonus track.

This 2-disc 4K UHD/Blu-ray arrives in an oversized, full-height clear keepcase, with a Sleeve of Reversible Artwork, plus a Limited Edition Embossed Slipcover (First Pressing Only) using the same key artwork as the wrap. Tucked away inside is a postcard-sized insert with archival artwork and credits on one side and a track-listing on the reverse. Sadly, no booklet this time around, but this is still quite a tasty array of disc extras, so no complaints!

Special Features:
Disc 1 (4K UHD Blu-ray) Feature Film + Extras:

- Audio Commentary #1 with Co-Writer/Director Enzo G. Castellari
- Audio Commentary #2 with Star Franco Nero and Filmmaker Mike Malloy
- Audio Commentary #3 with Film Historians Troy Howarth, Nathaniel Thompson and Eugenio Ercolani
- Alternate Ending (2:52)
- Theatrical Trailer (4:17)
Disc 2 (Blu-ray) Feature Film + Extras:
- Audio Commentary #1 with Co-Writer/Director Enzo G. Castellari
- Audio Commentary #2 with Star Franco Nero and Filmmaker Mike Malloy
- Audio Commentary #3 with Film Historians Troy Howarth, Nathaniel Thompson and Eugenio Ercolani
- The Genoa Connection – Interviews with Director Enzo G. Castellari and Star Franco Nero (25:13)
- From Dust To Asphalt – Interview with Director Enzo G. Castellari (28:17)
- Hard Stunts For High Crimes – Interview with Actor/Stuntman Massimo Vanni (19:08)
- Framing Crime – Interview with Camera Operator Roberto Girometti (20:33)
- The Sound Of Onions – Interview with Composers Guido and Maurizio De Angelis (23:36)
- The Connection Connection – Featurette by EUROCRIME! Director Mike Malloy (12:53)
- Alternate Ending (2:52)
- Theatrical Trailer (4:17)
- Poster & Still Gallery
Disc 3 (CD):

- HIGH CRIME Original Motion Picture Soundtrack by Guido and Maurizio De Angelis (with EXCLUSIVE Bonus Track)

This is an absolutely electric Italian cop-thriller, the action and violence delivers everything I could ever want from a Poliziotteschi; a visceral and potent entry with one of Franco Nero's very finest performances, and directed to the hilt by Enzo G. Castellari - this comes highly recommended, don't miss out!

Screenshots from the Blue Underground Blu-ray: