Highway Racer (Years of Lead: Five Classic Italian Crime Thrillers 1973–1977) – Arrow Video (Blu-ray)

Theatrical Release Date: Italy, 1977
Director: Stelvio Massi
Writer: Gino Capone
Cast: Maurizio Merli, Giancarlo Sbragia, Angelo Infanti, Lilli Carati, Glauco Onorato, Orazio Orlando

Release Date: June 21st, 2021 (UK), June 22nd, 2021 (USA)
Approximate Running Time: 101 Minutes 25 Seconds
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1 Widescreen / 1080 Progressive / MPEG-4 AVC
Rating: 18 (UK), NR (USA)
Sound: LPCM Mono Italian, LPCM Mono English
Subtitles: English
Region Coding: Region A,B
Retail Price: £59.99 (UK), $99.95 (USA)

"renegade cops battling against red tape and political corruption turn to new and morally dubious methods to dispense justice." - synopsis provided by the distributor

Video: 4.5/5

Here’s the information provided about this release's transfer, "The HD master was created and supplied by Intramovies."

Highway Racer comes on a 50 GB dual layer Blu-ray.

Disc Size: 46.5 GB

Feature Arrow: 22 GB

Feature Camera Obscura: 31.5 GB

Though Arrow Video gave No, the Case is Happily Resolved it’s own disc. The other four films in the Years of Lead: Five Classic Italian Crime Thrillers 1973–1977 box set are two films on a disc. Arrow Video pairs Highway Racer with Colt 38 Special Squad.

For this release Arrow Video uses the same master used for Camera Obscura’s Blu-ray. That source is in excellent shape and Arrow Video’s encoding looks solid.

Audio: 4/5

This release comes with two audio options, a LPCM mono mix in Italian and a LPCM mono mix in English. Both audio mixes are in great shape. Dialog comes through clearly, everything sounds balanced and action sequences are well-represented. Included are removable English subtitles for the Italian language track.

Extras:

Extras for Highway Racer include reversible cover art for Colt 38 Special Squad, a photo gallery and an archival featurette titled Faster Than a Bullet with film historian Robert Curti (19 minutes 42 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Italian with English subtitles).

Highway Racer is part of Years of Lead: Five Classic Italian Crime Thrillers 1973–1977 a box set released by Arrow Video. The other films in this box set are No, the Case is Happily Resolved, Savage Three, Colt 38 Special Squad and Like Rabid Dogs. This box set comes with a sixty-page booklet that comes with cast & crew information for each film, an essay titled Don’t Trust The Man: No, the Case is Happily Resolved and Italian Genre Cinema Written by Troy Howarth, an essay titled Animal Instinct: Savage Three and the Ideology of Violence written by Michael Mackenzie, an essay titled Fighting Fire with a Colt 38: Law and Order in Colt 38 Special Squad written by Rachael Nisbet, an essay titled Like Rabid Dogs: Class, Privilege, and Sadeian Women written by Kat Ellinger, an essay titled The Car’s the Star: Highway Racer, Tribute Elegy and a Whole Lot of Burning Rubber written by James Oliver and information about the transfers.

Extras from Camera Obscura’s Blu-ray release not carried over for Arrow Video’s Blu-ray release include a photo gallery and a twelve-page booklet with an essay about the film written by Christian Keßler. This essay is presented in dual text, English and German.

Summary:

Content wise, thoughHighway Racer has many of the elements that have become synonymous with Poliziotteschi (Italian crime films) cinema. The result is arguably one of Poliziotteschi cinema’s most unique entries. And nowhere is this clearer, then how Highway Racer goes against the norm when it comes to its depiction of violence.

With that being said, violent set pieces that have become the hallmark Poliziotteschi cinema, take a backseat to outrageous car chases that often culminate with humor. And though, there’s an intensity, when it comes to the car chase sequences. Outside of one moment of violent, the bulk of film takes on a top that’s polar opposite of what one expects from Poliziotteschi cinema.

Front and center, throughout Highway Racer is Maurizio Merli (The Tough Ones, Violent Naples) in the role of this film’s protagonist Marco Palma, a rebellious cop whose more interested in fast cars then following his superiors orders. Another performance of note is Angelo Infanti (The Valachi Papers, The Girl in Room 2A) in the role of il Nizzardo, a notorious criminal whose expert driving skills help him stay one step ahead of the law.

From it’s opening moments it’s clear that Highway Racer is a lighthearted romp that never takes itself to seriously. The deliriously premise is well-executed and the narrative never strays to far from its bread and butter, the car chases.

Though four of the five films included as part of Years of Lead: Five Classic Italian Crime Thrillers 1973–1977 have already had solid English friendly Blu-ray releases. This collection from Arrow Video is a solid release that gives anyone who missed out of Camera Obscura’s releases a chance to get them in a very affordable collection, highly recommended.

Note: The top screenshots are Arrow Video and the bottom screenshots are Camera Obscura.

Written by Michael Den Boer