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Conquest - Code Red (Blu-ray)

Theatrical Release Date: Italy/Spain/Mexico, 1983
Director: Lucio Fulci
Writers: Giovanni Di Clemente, Gino Capone, José Antonio de la Loma, Carlos Vasallo
Cast: Jorge Rivero, Andrea Occhipinti, Conrado San Martín, Violeta Cela, José Gras, Gioia Scola, Sabrina Siani

Release Date: September 29th, 2020
Approximate running time: 88 minutes 43 Seconds
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1 Widescreen / 1080 Progressive / MPEG-4 AVC
Rating: NR
Sound: DTS-HD Stereo English
Subtitles: N/A
Region Coding: Region A
Retail Price: $29.95

"From a place beyond time, a cruel and evil shadow has fallen over the peaceful land of Cronos. The demon sorceress Ocron controls Cronos’ sun which threatens the lives of all the people. The only hope for the people lies with two warriors who are willing to enter Ocron’s dark domain to destroy her. Journey to a world of sorcery, ancient legends and dashing heroes. A place beyond imagination where good and evil are pitted in the ultimate battle.” – Synopsis provided by the Distributor

Video: 3.25/5

Here’s the information given about the transfer, “New 2019 HD Master”.

Conquest comes on a 25 GB single layer Blu-ray.

Disc Size: 22.4 GB

Feature: 19.3 GB

The source used for this transfer is in very good shape, and any print debris is minor. Conquest was shot with a diffused look, and this transfer does a good job of retaining the film’s intended look. That said, the image generally looks crisp, the black levels are adequate, the colors look correct, and though grain is present, it looks thick. When compared to Conquest’s previous home video, this transfer is the best this film has looked to date.

Audio: 3.75/5

This release comes with one audio option, a DTS-HD stereo mix in English. The audio sounds clean, clear, and balanced. Ambient sounds and the score are well-represented. This release comes with no subtitles.

Extras:

Extras for this release include a theatrical trailer (1 minute 28 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), an interview titled Banana Man interviews Jorge Rivero (8 minutes 40 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), and an interview titled A Conversation with Star Jorge Rivero (23 minutes 8 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles).

Summary:

Lucio Fulci’s filmography is one of the more interesting of the Italian genre filmmakers who worked in the 1960’s, 1970’s, and 1980’s. Where most of his contemporaries focused on one genre, he was a versatile filmmaker who worked in just about every genre. In most of the genres that he worked in, he excelled. Then there is a film like Conquest, his only foray into the fantasy genre.

Lucio Fulci’s films post The New York Ripper had a noticeable decline quality-wise. And though the same can be said for most filmmakers working in Italian genre cinema in the 1980’s, It is even more prevalent when it comes to the films directed by Lucio Fulci. By this point in his career, he was a director for hire who was happy to be still working, and because of this, most of his films from this part of his career feel like he was on autopilot.

Though Conquest has all the elements that one would expect from a fantasy film, The result is a melting pot of ideas instead of a cohesive film. And nowhere is this more egregious than in a muddled narrative that's confusing.

The performances are best described as serviceable. With most of the cast being nothing more than props, The only two characters that are remotely fleshed out are Andrea Occhipinti (A Blade in the Dark) in the role of Ilias, a young man on a magical journey with his bow that shoots laser beam arrows, and Jorge Rivero (The Last Hard Men) in the role of Mace, a Beastmaster-like character who assists Ilias on his journey.

From a production standpoint, Conquest was a film working with an anemic budget. The special effects are crude, and the werewolf creature and other monsters' makeup looks cheap. The use of soft-focus visuals to enhance the atmosphere has minimal effect. And being that this is a Lucio Fulci movie, it should not come as a surprise that there are a few gore-related moments. Ultimately, Conquest is a mildly entertaining sword and sorcery film.

Conquest gets a strong release from Code Red that comes with a serviceable audio/video presentation and two interviews.