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 background

Duration: 102 minutes 55 seconds

Judgement: Not rated
Region Code: Region Free
Video: Dolby Vision HDR10 2160p Ultra HD widescreen (1.85:1), 1080p HD widescreen (1.85:1)
Sound: 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
Form: Franco Nero, Fernando Rey, James Whitmore, Delia Boccardo

High Crime (1973) is an exciting and extremely violent Italian police thriller, also known as Poliziotteschi, directed by Enzo G. Castellari (1990: The Bronx Warriors) And starring blue-eyed Eurocult legend Franco Nero (Top line) as Commissioner Belli, a maverick Italian police officer working out of Genoa, Italy. The film opens with a visceral chase that gets the blood flowing from the start. Belli investigates a series of murders that he believes are connected to Heroin trafficking enters the country through French connections Marseille. When an important witness, a Lebanese drug dealer is captured during the opening chase, is killed during a prison transfer Belli reaches out to an aging mafioso for cooperation Coffee (Fernando Rey, Friends) to get to the heart of the heroin trade, businessman Franco Griva (Silvano Tranquilli, Syndicate Sadists) and his brother/partner Umberto (Duilio Del Prete, The Nun and the Devil). Cafiero is eager to use Belli to stop his approaching enemies, but it’s a dangerous game, one that brings him into conflict with his bristly superiors 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) in danger. Now pushed to his limits, the obsessive cop turns up the heat on the drug-smuggling scum. But at what cost?

This cop thriller is pretty fantastic, starting with that high-speed chase but also punctuated by some visceral moments of violence that made my jaw drop to the floor. There’s a horrific car explosion when an attempt is made on Belli’s life, and someone is murdered by a hitman on a motorcycle who runs over a victim on the green of a golf course, who then presumably has his manhood severed off-screen. That’s not the end of the genital mutilation either, the bullet-riddled finale takes place in a seaport where Belli shoots a man in the groin from the floor below, and boy, did that look like it hurt! Plus, we have the brutal vehicular homicide of a young girl, and Belli’s girlfriend is hospitalized after being beaten up in her apartment by thugs who sent a message to the persistent cop. It’s a dirty business indeed, and Nero is terrific as the obsessed cop who will stop at nothing to shut down the drug trade, willing to work with a mob boss to make it happen, and taking a hefty personal punishment for doing so. Sometimes he goes completely nuts and ruins the scenery, and it’s beautiful stuff, but I don’t think he ever overdoes it, and when the price of his dogged pursuit finally hits home, he sells the sadness with a deep emotionality that hits hard, making the ensuing police carnage all the more impressive.

Audio/Video: High Crime (1973) finally makes its American home video debut on a 3-disc 4K UHD/BD/CD set from Blue Underground, who announced this release nearly two decades ago and presented the film in 2160p Ultra HD with Dolby Vision (HDR10), framed in 1.85:1 widescreen. This is a very handsome restoration, not a blemish to be detected by the sly eye, and the grain structures appear organic throughout. Depth and clarity are quite pleasing, with facial hair and clothing slogans delineated with sharp precision. The Dolby Vision (HDR10) color quality is quite pleasing, with primary colors well saturated and nuanced, and black levels are deep and inky.

Audio options are available via 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 wonderful score from Guido and Maurizio De Angelis is brought home with solid depth and fidelity, and it’s a great score from start to finish.

Extras on the 4K UHD disc include: three comments, the first is an archive Audio Commentary with co-writer/director Enzo G. Castellar, moderated by Bill Lustig from 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 Ercolaniwhich is also new and exclusive to this release. We also get the 3-min Alternative ending and 4 minutes of action Theatrical trailerR.

On the Blu-ray we get the same extras as on the UHD, plus a whole lot more, starting with the 25-minute 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 an edited/re-edited version of an interview from a UK release; 19 min. Tough Stunts for Tough Crimes – Interview with Actor/Stuntman Massimo Vanni; the 21-min Framing Crime – Interview with cameraman Roberto Girometti; the 24-min The Sound Of Onions – Interview with composers Guido and Maurizio De Angelis; and 13 minutes The Connection Connection – Featurette by EUROCRIME! Director Mike Malloywho talks about the influence of Friedkin’s The French Connection on this and many other Italian police thrillers, and we get a Poster and photo gallery. A third disc on the set is a CD soundtrack featuring the 60-minute/20-track score by Guido and Maurizio De Angelis, with an exclusive bonus track.

This 2-disc 4K UHD/Blu-ray comes in an oversized, full-height clear keepcase with a Sleeve of reversible artworkplus one Limited edition embossed cover (First pressing only) with the same key artwork as the wrap. Inside is a postcard size insert with archive artwork and credits on one side and a track listing on the other. Sadly no booklet this time, but it’s still a tasty collection of extras on the disc, 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)
– Cinema 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 serious crimes – Interview with actor/stuntman Massimo Vanni (19:08)
– Framing Crime – Interview with cameraman 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)
– Cinema trailer (4:17)
– Poster and photo 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 police thriller. The action and violence are everything I could ever want from a Poliziotteschi; an instinctive and powerful film with one of Franco Nero’s very best performances and directed to perfection by Enzo G. Castellari. Highly recommended, don’t miss it!

Screenshots from the Blue Underground Blu-ray:

Buy it!

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