Property Is No Longer a Theft – Arrow Academy (Blu-ray/DVD Combo)

Theatrical Release Date: Italy, 1973
Director: Elio Petri
Writers: Elio Petri, Ugo Pirro
Cast: Ugo Tognazzi, Flavio Bucci, Daria Nicolodi, Mario Scaccia, Orazio Orlando, Salvo Randone

Release Date: March 20th, 2017 (UK), March 28th, 2017 (USA)
Approximate running time: 126 Minutes 13 Seconds
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1 Widescreen / 1080 Progressive / MPEG-4 AVC
Rating: 18 (UK), NR (USA)
Sound: LPCM Mono Italian
Subtitles: English
Region Coding: Region A,B
Retail Price: £24.99 (UK), $39.95 (USA)

"A young bank clerk (Flavio Bucci, the blind pianist in Dario Argento’s Suspiria), denied a loan by his employer, decides to exact his revenge the local butcher (Ugo Tognazzi, La Grande bouffe) who is not only a nasty, violent, greedy piece of work but also one of the bank’s star customers. Quitting his job, the clerk devotes all of his time tormenting the butcher, stealing his possessions one-by-one, including his mistress (Daria Nicolodi, Deep Red)." - synopsis provided by the distributor

Video: 4.5/5

Here’s the information provided about the transfer, "Property Is No Longer a Theft was restored on behalf of The Museo Nazionale del Cinema, Torino and the Cineteca di Bologna from the original negative. The film was scanned at 4K resolution from the original camera negative and digitally restored in 2K resolution. All restoration work was completed at L'Immagine Ritrovata, Bologna."

Property Is No Longer a Theft comes on a 50 GB dual layer Blu-ray.

Disc Size: 43 GB

Feature: 26.5 GB

The source used for this transfer is in excellent shape. Colors are nicely saturated, flesh tones look healthy, image clarity, black levels, and compression are solid, and the image retains an organic look.

Audio: 4.25/5

This release comes with one audio option, a LPCM mono mix in Italian with removable English subtitles. The audio is in great shape. The dialogue comes through clearly, everything sounds balanced, ambient sounds are well-represented, and Ennio Morricone’s score sounds appropriately robust.

Extras:

Extras for this release include an interview with actor Flavio Bucci is titled My Name is Total (19 minutes 46 seconds, LPCM stereo Italian with removable English subtitles), an interview with producer Claudio Mancini is titled The Middle-class Communist (23 minutes 33 seconds, LPCM stereo Italian with removable English subtitles), an interview with make-up artist Pierantonio Mecacci is titled The Best Man (23 minutes 4 seconds, LPCM stereo Italian with removable English subtitles), reversible cover art, and a twenty-four page booklet (limited to first pressing) with cast & crew information, an essay titled A Grotesque Entanglement of Property, Power and Desire written by Camilla Zamboni and information about the restoration.

Included with this release is a DVD that has the same content as the Blu-ray included as part of this combo release.

Summary:

Property Is No Longer a Theft was co-written and directed by Elio Petri, whose other notable films include The Assassin (L'assassino), The 10th Victim, A Quiet Place in the Country, and Investigation of a Citizen Above Suspicion. Elio Petri was a filmmaker whose films are anchored by his left-wing ideology. Content-wise, Property Is No Longer a Theft has all the elements that are synonymous with the films of Elio Petri.

The narrative explores the role that money plays in society. At one end of the spectrum, there is Total, a young man who struggles to accept the role that money plays in improving one’s life. And in direct contrast to his viewpoint is the character referred to as "The Butcher." He lives his life by accumulating wealth at his butcher shop, and he also owns several buildings. On the other hand, these two characters come from polar opposite words. When Total quits his job, he realizes that it can no longer give him what he is looking for. He then targets The Butcher, whom he had seen numerous times at the bank.

The narrative is well constructed, and pacing is never an issue as key moments are given ample time to resonate. The characters are well defined, and Property Is No Longer a Theft employs an unusual way of introducing their motivations. These are done via scenes where each character stands in darkness and talks to the camera. Also, the opening scene with Total’s provides a preview of the story that is about to unfold.

Ennio Morricone's score perfectly sets and maintains the mood. The visuals are filled with symbolic imagery that reinforces the characters’ states of mind. Standout moments include a scene where everyone has been waiting for The Butcher and his much younger girlfriend to get home. He is wearing a stocking over his head and a hat he stole early in the evening from the butcher. He also has the butcher’s knife, which he stole, and now he is using it to intimidate them as he robs them. Other standout moments include a sex scene that was controversial at the time this film was released. In this scene, The Butcher’s girlfriend is on top of him while she wears the stocking on her head that Total left behind. And there's a scene in which The Butcher confronts Total and offers him money to leave him alone.

The cast is outstanding, and they are excellent in their respective roles. With the two leads being Flavio Bucci (Night Train Murders) in the role of Total, whose disdain for money has him constantly washing his hands, and Ugo Tognazzi (Barbarella: Queen of the Galaxy) in the role of The Butcher, Other notable cast members include Salvo Randone (Hands Over the City) in the role of Total’s father and Mario Scaccia (The Perfume of the Lady in Black) in the role of Alessandro 'Albertone' Marzo, an older criminal that Total befriends to help in his education as a thief.

Without a doubt, the most memorable performance is Daria Nicolodi (Tenebrae) in the role of Anita, The Butcher’s girlfriend. Her performance in this film is in direct contrast with the type of roles that she is most known for. She plays a character whose sexual drive is stuck in overdrive. And though Total is the man terrorizing her and her boyfriend, she does not hesitate when the opportunity arises to sleep with him. Another strength of her performances is the way in which she uses facial gestures and her body as her main forms of expression. Ultimately, Property Is No Longer a Theft is a provocative exploration of Marxist idealism that is a perfect blend of social commentary and satire.

Property Is No Longer a Theft gets an excellent release from Arrow Academy that comes with a solid audio/video presentation and a wealth of insightful extras, highly recommended.

Written by Michael Den Boer