THE DESIGNATED VICTIM (1971) (Mondo Macabro Blu-ray Review)

THE DESIGNATED VICTIM (1971)

Label: Mondo Macabro

Region Code: Region Free

Rating: Unrated 

Duration: 101 Minutes (Theatrical), 105 Minutes (Extended) 
Video: 1080p HD Widescreen (2.35:1)
Audio: Italian and English DTS-HD MA 2.0 Dual-Mono with Optional English Subtitles 
Director: Maurizio Lucidi
Cast: Tomas Milian, Pierre Clementi, Katia Christine, Luigi Casellato, Marisa Bartoli, Ottavio Alessi, Sandra Cardini

In this early 70's giallo riff on Hitchcock's Strangers on a Train (1951) directed by Maurizio Lucidi (Probability Zero) we have disillusioned photographer Stefano (Tomas Milian, The Big Gundown) looking to leave his domineering wife Luisa (Marisa Bartoli) who controls the purse strings and gets caught up in a tit for tat murder scheme. It's while on a day trip to Caracas with his lover, a Parisian model named Fabienne (Katia Christie, The Hand That Feeds the Dead), that he meets an offbeat aristocrat named Count Matteo Tiepelo (Pierre Clémenti, Belle De Jour) seemingly by chance. The pair hit it off and later meet to talk, where Stefano shares his current domestic troubles, while Matteo in turn sharing that his older brother is also making his life a nightmare. Matteo suggest that they should help each other by agreeing to murder the other's problematic others, swapping murders. Stefano laughs the suggestion off as a dark bit of fantasy. However, a few days later Stefano's wife receives a bouquet of flowers with a note from Matteo describing how Stefano has forged his wife's signature on a stock sale which causes an argument, with Stefano storming off to stay at the couple's lake house. Along the way he picks up a German hitchhiker Cristina (Alessandra Cardini, The Tough Ones) and beds her, which later works against him. The next day he receives a phone call from the police informing him that his wife had been found strangled! Now Stefano is the prime suspect in his wife's murders and he comes to realize that the enigmatic Matteo has been pulling his strings from the beginning, setting up Stefano as the fall guy unless he follows through with the murder Matteo's troublesome older sibling. 

It's a wonderfully shot film set in Venice, the tense thriller has a dream-like atmosphere that could make you think that Stefano might be insane and perhaps Matteo doesn't even exist at all! Our protagonist is also a deliciously flawed character, a philandering playboy who even cheats on his side chic which comes back to bite him on the ass, and he's trying sell the company out from under his wife, but somehow he's still a likable guy, thanks in large part to the acting and charm of Tomas Milian. Stefano's relationship with Clemente's mysterious Matteo is also quite intriguing, the pair have quite good chemistry together and I enjoyed the way it all played out. 

Audio/Video: The Designated Victim (1971) arrives on region-free Blu-ray from Mondo Macabro in 1080p HD framed in 2.35:1 widescreen, sourced from a 4K scan of original film elements. The theatrical cut look very pleasing with filmic grain and warm colors, and solid black levels. Clarity and depth aren't the strongest, but overall a pleasing presentation. The extended version is longer and features standard definition VHS inserts which are quite noticeable, but apparently there are no surviving film elements for these scenes. 

Audio on the theatrical cut comes by way of both English and Italian DTS-HD MA 2.0 dual-mono with optional English subtitles. Everything is clean and well-balanced, and the score from Luis Backlot (Django) sounds terrific. The extended cut gets only has Italian DTS-HD MA 2.0 dual mono, also with English subtitles. 

Extras kick of with a brand new Audio Commentary by Rachael Nisbet and Peter Jilmstad of the Fragments of Fear Podcast. The duo get into screenwriting of the film and it's status among the gialli of the era. It's an info packed track and shed a lot of light onto the film and its history, though at times it feels a bit too scripted and dry. 

Interviews start off with the 48-minute Death and Beauty in Venice: Interview with writer and assistant director Aldo Lado (Short Night of the Glass Dolls) who talks about his time on the film, offering some interestingbtidbits about the production as well as his own film Short Night of the Glass Dolls. The 28-min Pierre Clementi: Pope of Counterculture: Interview with Balthazar Clementi, the son of Pierre Clementi who tells stories about his fathers career, run ins with the law, what he like personally and his legacy in film. 

Additionally were getting the longer running Exclusive Extended Version with VHS-sourced inserts, a 2-min Alternate English Title Sequence, and three Trailers in both Italian and English including the alternate title Slam-Out. The disc is buttoned-up with the usual 14-minite Mondo Macabro Previews. The single-disc release arrives in a standard keepcase with a single-sided sleeve of artwork. His relationship with 

Special Features:
- Brand new 4k transfer from film negative
- Death and Beauty in Venice: Interview with writer and assistant director Aldo Lado  (48 min) 
- Pierre Clementi: Pope of Counterculture: Interview with Balthazar Clementi (28 min) 
- Audio Commentary by Rachael Nisbet and Peter Jilmstad of the Fragments of Fear podcast
- Exclusive Extended Version (105 min) HD 
- Alternate English Title Sequence (2 min) 
- Trailers (12 min) 
- Mondo Macabro Previews (14 min) 

The Designated Victim is a solid and stylish 70's giallo riff on the Strangers on a Train premise with terrific central performances from Milan and Clementi. If you're a fan of stylish 70's giallo and elaborate thrillers this Italian gem comes highly recommended.  

Screenshots from the Mondo Macabro Blu-ray:

Extras: 

Blu-ray Review: THE BIG GUNDOWN (1968) 4-Disc Collector's Edition

THE BIG GUNDOWN (1968) 

Label: Grindhouse Releasing 
Region: Region-FREE
Rating: R
Duration: 95 Minutes (Expanded US Cut), 110 Minutes (Director's Cut) 
Audio: DTS-HD Master Audio Mono with Optional English Subtitles
Video: 1080p Widescreen (2.40:1) 
Director: Sergio Sollima
Cast: Tomas Milian, Walter Barnes, Lee Van Cleef, Gérard Herter

'The Big Gundown' (1968) is a Spaghetti Western written by Sergio Leone (Fistful of Dollars) collaborator Sergio Donati (Orca) and directed by Sergio Sollima (Run, Man, Run) starring Western legend Lee Van Cleef (Escape from New York) as Texas lawman Corbett tasked by a corrupt Baron Brokston (Walter Barnes) to track and kill a Mexican peasant named Cuchillo (Tomas Milian) blamed for the despicable rape and murder a 12 year-old girl - and that's the very simple set-up of the The Big Gundown.

As Corbett sets out on a cross country pursuit of the Mexican criminal he discovers that his adversary is quite crafty adversary and not easy to lay hands on. Tomas Milian portrays the character as a mischievous prankste, a street rat who prefers the blade to a six-shooter. Van Cleef's Corbet is a stone-cold lawman with a real sense of duty and justice, a straight-laced sharp shooter who throughout the film has his loyalties tested. Something that sets this film apart are the cast of characters, aside from Van Cleef and Tomas Milian we have the addition of a peculiar Austrian caped-gunslinger Baron Von Schulenberg (Gérard Herter) who sports a monocle, a truly unforgettable character.

There's a very strong political undercurrent throughout the film with Cuchillo as something of a Mexican revolutionary against the greed and corruption of American industrialist Brokston, and then we have Corbett as the conflicted hired gun working for the man. While the politics are there it's not obnoxiously up front - there are so drawn-out monologues drawing attention to it the theme, it's character driven and Van Cleef and Milian completely carry the film on their performances and exchanges.

By far the most enjoyable aspect of the movie that cat and mouse interplay with the wily Cuchillo usually getting the upper-hand on the more straight-faced Corbett. On top of that it's a gorgeously shot film with long vistas, rough desert terrain and blue sky. The superb finale a triple-layered duel with all the elements converging for a satisfyingly tense climax proving that it is not necessarily a bad idea to bring a knife to a gunfight.

Blu-ray: 'The Big Gundown' comes to Blu-ray/DVD for the first time ever in the US with a brand new 2K digital restoration of the original uncensored English-language version, newly expanded with three additional scenes presented in 1080p widescreen (2.40:1). The colors are vivid, details are crisp and the skin tones are appear natural. The black levels are nice and the film grain is intact, this is a very attractive presentation from start to finish with very minimal instances of speckling and print damage, there's even a modest amount of depth to the image, a qaulity transfer courtesy of Columbia Pictures and Grindhouse Releasing. There's one English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Mono sounds very nice, the dubbed dialogue and canned effects are nicely balanced and the superb Ennio Morricone's Western score comes through gloriously, right from the opening salvo of "Run, Man, Run".

This four-disc limited edition set is crammed with quality extras beginning on disc one with an Audio commentary by Western film experts C. Courtney Joyner and Henry C. Parke who come off a bit on the academic side of things but do keep the conversation moving forward with some scene by scene commentary, trivia and history of the production - it makes for a informative listen as they attempt to one-up each other with anecdotal trivia bits. There is also the option to watch the movie with an isolated music and effects only audio track. There are nearly 2 hours of interviews with Director Sergio Sollima, Screenwriter Sergio Donati and StarTomas Milan which cover a lot of ground about the production of the movie with many colorful anecdotes. The first disc is completed by the inclusion of production stills, trailers and TV spots, filmographies and a DVD-ROM with a detailed analysis of the different versions of the film. There is also an Easter Egg hidden away on disc one, a trailer for the sequel to this movie.

The second disc is a Blu-ray of the 110 minute director's cut 'La Resa Dei Conti' presented in 1080p with a Italian DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Mono with optional English subtitles. With this version we also have an isolated score option and a subtitled commentary focusing on Morricone's score and the different versions of the film. Also included are trailers for An American Hippie in Israel, Corruption, The Swimmer, Massacre Mafia Style, Gone with the Pope, Cannibal Holocaust, Ice House, Poor White Trash 2, Cat in the Brain, The Beyond, Cannibal Ferox, The Tough Ones, Pieces and I Drink Your Blood.

The third disc is a DVD version of the Expanded US Cut mirroring the extras from the first disc. The final disc of this 4-disc set is a CD of the 23-track original score from Ennio Morricone (53:49). Packaging extras include a sleeve of reversible artwork, a sweet slipcase and a hefty 22 page color booklet with liner notes from Western film expert C. Courtney Joyner and Euro-music expert Gergely Hubai crammed with stills and international posters, plus a write-up on poster artist Mario De Barardini.  


Special Features:
- 4-Disc Deluxe Limited Edition Combo Pack - 2 Blu-rays, 1 DVD and 1 Bonus CD
- Individually numbered and limited to 3000 copies
- Spectacular new 2K digital restoration of the original uncensored English-language version, newly expanded with three additional scenes
- 'La Resa Dei Conti' (1080p) - the complete, 110 minute director's cut presented in Italian with optional English subtitles and special musical subtitles
- Isolated Music and Effects Audio Track
- 'The Big Gundown' original soundtrack by Ennio Morricone
- Sergio Sollima Remembers the Big Gundown (29:00) 
- Tomas Milian: Acting On Instinct (29:46) 
- Tagliatelle in Los Angeles: Sergio Donati Interview (12:03) 
- Sergio Sollima: Struggles Against Genre Rome (27:54) 
- Sergio Donati Bonus Interview (11:50) 
- Still Galleries: Productions Stills (1:41), US Promotional Material (3:26), Italian Promotional Material (0:51), French Promotional Material (2:31), Various Promotional Material (1:41)
- Audio commentary by Western film experts C. Courtney Joyner and Henry C. Parke
- 22 Page Collector's Booklet with Liner notes by C. Courtney Joyner and Euro-music expert Gergely Hubai
- 3 Theatrical Trailers (8:24) 
- 5 TV Spots (2:06) 
- Filmographies for Sergio Sollima, Sergio Donati and Tomas Milian 
- DVD-ROM Content
- Grindhouse Releasing Trailers (32:55) 
- Easter Eggs: Run , Man, Run Trailer (3:41) 

Verdict: 'The Big Gundown' (1968) is thoroughly entertaining Spaghetti Western by any standard, on par with any of Sergio Leone's Dollars Trilogy. On top of that we get a superb edition  with a sweet transfer and it's dripping with quality extras you can pour over for days on end. Only 3000 copies of this 4-disc limited edition are available, so get your copy now before it's gone. A very high recommend for fans of Westerns of any variety, this is the definitive document of a under seen Italian  Western classic. 4.5 Outta 5