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Violent City: Limited Edition – 88 Films (Blu-ray)

Theatrical Release Date: Italy/France/USA, 1970
Director: Sergio Sollima
Writers: Dino Maiuri, Massimo De Rita, Sauro Scavolini, Gianfranco Calligarich, Lina Wertmüller, Sergio Sollima
Cast: Charles Bronson, Telly Savalas, Jill Ireland, Umberto Orsini, Michel Constantin, Andrea de Adamich

Release Date: May 16th, 2022
Approximate Running Times: 109 Minutes 17 Seconds (Violent City), 109 Minutes 39 Seconds (Citta violenta), 95 Minutes 59 Seconds (The Family)
Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1 Widescreen / 1080 Progressive / MPEG-4 AVCC (All Versions)
Rating: 18 (UK)
Sound: DTS-HD Mono English/Italian (Violent City, Citta violenta), DTS-HD Mono English (The Family)
Subtitles: English (Violent City, Citta violenta), English SDH (The Family)
Region Coding: Region B
Retail Price: OOP

"After being betrayed by his girlfriend Vanessa, hit-man Jeff Heston (Bronson) is shot and left for dead by Coogan, his one-time business associate. But after serving time in prison on a trumped-up charge, Heston pursues his mistress and would-be killer to New Orleans in search of revenge." - synopsis provided by the distributor

Video: 4.5/5 (Violent City, Citta violenta), 3.5/5 (The Family)

Here’s the information provided about Violent City's transfer, "2K Restoration."

Here’s the information provided about Citta violenta's transfer, "The 4K restoration of Citta violenta was carried out by Fondazione Cineteca di Bologna starting from the original Techniscope camera negative and the Italian sound negative, both made available by Unidis Jolly Film.

The work was carried out at the L'Immagine Ritrovata laboratory in Bologna.

Restoration carried out with the contribution of the Ministry for Cultural Heritage and Activities and Tourism."

Violent City and Citta violenta come on a 50 GB dual layer Blu-ray.

Disc Size: 45.9 GB

Feature: 22.8 GB (Violent City), 22.8 GB (Citta violenta)

Here’s the information provided about The Family's transfer, "2K Scan of a 35mm Print."

The Family comes on a 50 GB dual layer Blu-ray.

Disc Size: 41 GB

Feature: 22.4 GB

The source used for Citta violenza looks excellent. Colors are nicely saturated, image clarity and black levels are solid, and the grain looks organic. That said, though Citta violenta uses a different source than Violent City, their transfers are comparable.

The source that was used for The Family's transfer does not fare as well as the sources used for Violent City’s and Citta violenta’s transfers. This transfer has scratches, cigarette burns, and other source-related damage. That said, beyond the source-related damage, this transfer looks good all things considered.

Audio: 4.25/5 (Violent City, Citta violenta), 3.5/5 (The Family)

Violent City and Citta violenta come with two audio options, a DTS-HD mono mix in Italian and a DTS-HD mono mix in an English/Italian hybrid track. Both audio tracks are in great shape; dialog comes through clearly, everything sounds balanced, and ambient sounds and the score sound robust. Included are removable English subtitles for the Italian language track and a second removable English subtitle track for the Italian dialog when watching the English/Italian hybrid track.

The Family comes with one audio option, a DTS-HD mono mix in English, and included with this version are removable English SDH subtitles. Though the audio for this version sounds clear and balanced, it is not as robust as the other two versions' audio tracks.

Extras:

Extras on the disc that contains Violent City and Citta violenta include an audio commentary with film historian Paul Talbot, the author of Bronson's Loose! Books for the Violent City cut of the film.

Extras on the disc that contains The Family include three TV spots for The Family (1 minute 5 seconds, Dolby Digital mono English, no subtitles), a theatrical trailer for The Family (2 minutes 20 seconds, Dolby Digital mono English, no subtitles), a theatrical trailer for Violent City (4 minutes, Dolby Digital mono English, no subtitles), an interview with filmmaker Mike Malloy titled The Controversies of Violent City (17 minutes 12 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), an interview with Pierpaolo De Sanctis titled An Important Friendship (21 minutes 53 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Italian with removable English subtitles), an interview with Italian Cinema Expert Eugenio Ercolani titled Violent Sollima (31 minutes 56 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), and an archival interview with director Sergio Sollima titled Shooting Violent City (14 minutes 39 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Italian with non-removable English subtitles).

Other extras include reversible cover art, a slipcover (limited to 3,000 copies), a double-sided foldout poster (limited to 3,000 copies), and a twenty page booklet (limited to 3,000 copies) with an essay titled Charlie Slays - How Charles Bronson Transitioned from Character Actor to Leading Man in Sergio Sollima’s Brutal and Brilliant Violent City written by Andrew Graves, and an essay titled Citta violenta written by Tim Murray.

Summary:

Sergio Sollima was one of three Italian directors named Sergio. The others are Sergio Leone and Sergio Corbucci. And though his breakthrough films as a director came in the Spaghetti western genre, just like Sergio Leone and Sergio Corbucci, he also excelled when it came to his two contributions to Poliziotteschi cinema, Violent City and Revolver.

Violent City was an early film in the Poliziotteschi film cycle. And with Violent City, he would lay the groundwork for many of the elements that would become synonymous with Poliziotteschi cinema. That said, there are many elements in Violent City that are in line with elements that are synonymous with Euro-crime heist films of the latter-half of the 1960’s.

In its opening moments, Violent City jumps right into the action with a thrilling chase sequence that ends in a near-death shootout with the protagonist. From there, a non-linear narrative that uses flashbacks to fill in the who’s and why’s of the story. and a spectacular ending in which the protagonist gets their revenge and redemption.

Without a doubt, the casting of Charles Bronson (Death Wish) in the role of Jeff Heston, a hitman who’s targeted for death by someone he trusted. The majority of the protagonists in Poliziotteschi's films are characters who are at the center of the action. Jess Heston is a character who tries to fly under the radar, and it's only when he’s provoked that he makes his presence known.

Besides Charles Bronson, the rest of the cast are very good in their respective roles. Other notable cast members include Telly Savalas (Lisa and the Devil) in the role of a crime boss named Al Weber; Umberto Orsini (Tony Arzenta) in the role of a double-dealing lawyer who works for Weber; and Jill Ireland (Hard Times), who provides eye candy.

At the heart of Violent City is a story about a betrayed hitman who cannot trust anyone, making him more paranoid. And though his revenge is central to the story at hand, his inability to let go of the women he loves is his greatest weakness.

From a production standpoint, there is not an area where Violent City does not excel. The premise of a betrayed hitman is superbly realized, and a well-executed narrative perfectly balances exposition and action set pieces by building tension until it reaches a fever pitch. Other strengths include Sergio Sollima’s solid direction, and Ennio Morricone’s (The Big Gundown) delivers another outstanding score. Ultimately, Violent City is an extraordinary crime film that's arguably one of Poliziotteschi cinema’s best films.

The 88 Films release uses the same source that Kino Lorber used for their Blu-ray release. Also, 88 Films' release lets you watch the Citta violenza cut of the film with a hybrid English/Italian track, an option that is not available as part of Kino Lorber’s release. Furthermore, 88 Films includes a substantial amount of extras that are exclusive to their release.

Violent City gets a definitive release from 88 Films, highly recommended.

Note: 88 Films has released a standard version of Violent City.