The Iron Prefect: Limited Edition – Radiance Films (Blu-ray)

Theatrical Release Date: Italy, 1977
Director: Pasquale Squitieri
Writers: Arrigo Petacco, Ugo Pirro, Pasquale Squitieri
Cast: Giuliano Gemma, Claudia Cardinale, Rik Battaglia, Salvatore Billa, Francisco Rabal, Paul Muller

Release Date: July 17th, 2023 (UK), July 18th, 2023 (USA)
Approximate running time: 117 Minutes 55 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, English SDH
Region Coding: Region A,B
Retail Price: £16.99 (UK), $34.95 (USA)

"Based on the true story of Cesare Mori, the Iron Prefect who was sent to Sicily for an Eliot Ness-in-The Untouchables style clean up of the mafia. Mori approaches organized crime on the island with uncompromising force even in the face of mass murders designed to scare him off." - synopsis provided by the distributor

Video: 5/5

Here’s the information provided about the transfer, "The Iron Prefect was scanned in 2K from the original camera negative and restored by Cinema Communications, Rome."

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

Disc Size: 41.3 GB

Feature: 31.6 GB

The source used for this transfer looks excellent. Flesh tones look correct, color saturation, image clarity, and compression are solid, black levels are consistently strong, and the image always looks organic.

Audio: 4.25/5 (LPCM Mono Italian), 4.5/5 (LPCM Mono English)

This release comes with two audio options, a LPCM mono mix in Italian and a LPCM mono mix in English. Both audio tracks sound clean, clear, and balanced. Range-wise, both tracks do a great job with the ambient sounds. That said, the English-language track sounds more robust than the Italian-language track. Included are removable English subtitles for the Italian language track and removable English SDH for the English language track.

Extras:

Extras for this release include a theatrical trailer (3 minutes 28 seconds, Dolby Digital mono Italian with removable English subtitles), an archival interview with director Pasquale Squitieri and actor Giuliano Gemma (34 minutes 49 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Italian with removable English subtitles), an interview with Pasquale Squitieri biographer Domenico Monetti (40 minutes 15 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Italian with removable English subtitles), an appreciation of Giuliano Gemma and The Iron Prefect by filmmaker Alex Cox (11 minutes 28 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), reversible cover art, removable OBI strip leaving packaging free of certificates and markings and a 52-page booklet (limited to 2000 copies) cast & crew information with an essay titled Fighting the Mafia in Fascist Italy: Squitieri’s The Iron Prefect and the Historical Memory of Cesare Mori written by Guido Bonsaver, an original article on the real-life Cesare Mori and his Mafia raid as depicted within The Iron Prefect titled Brigandage and the Mafia, and information about the transfer.

Summary:

Directed by Pasquale Squitieri, whose other notable films include Gang War in Naples, I Guappi, and The Climber. He often worked with actress Claudia Cardinale, who was his partner for three decades, and his work in the crime and drama genre is what he’s most remembered for.

The Iron Prefect is an Italian crime drama that revolves around Cesare Mori, a prefect who Bentio Mussolini sent to Palermo, Sicily, to get rid of the mafia. The Iron Prefect is based on actual events related to Cesare Mori leading up to and how he successfully brought the mafia to their knees in Sicily.

The 1970s in Italy were a time of political turmoil; crime was on the rise, and anarchist groups were terrorizing the public. So it should not come as a surprise that the Italian cinema at that time reflected the reality of what was going on. Though most of these films that dealt with rampant crime and social unrest were set in the present, there were also a few films, like The Iron Prefect, that looked into Italy’s past and found events that correlated with the present.

Lawlessness is a theme that was not only prominent in 1970s Italian cinema. It is something that would find its way into films coming out of Hollywood. The 1970s saw an influx of films that explored what happens when the system protects criminals and the reaction to such a system. Tired of having their hands tied, law enforcement often oversteps the rule of law to get results. It is this scenario that is at the core of The Iron Prefect.

Besides, law enforcement takes the law into their own hands. Another theme that is explored in The Iron Prefect is how the media can influence public opinion through the way they shape a story. While watching The Iron Prefect, it is clear that the actions of Cesare Mori are extreme, placing him on par with the criminals he’s determined to bring down. There is a moment in The Iron Prefect where the media is shown manipulating a story to make Cesare Mori’s actions acceptable, framing him as a hero.

The Iron Prefect has an amazing cast, especially Giuliano Gemma (Day of Anger) in the role of Cesare Mori. He delivers a phenomenal performance that is easily the best of his career. Other notable cast members include Claudia Cardinale (The Pink Panther) in the role of Anna Torrini, the mother of a boy who helps Cesare Mori, and Francisco Rabal (L'Eclisse) in the role of a fugitive named Don Calogero Albanese. That said, there is not a performance that is lacking, with most of the cast delivering excellent performances.

From its opening moments The Iron Prefect establishes an intense tone that never lets up for a moment. The well-executed narrative gives key moments ample time to resonate, and the finale provides a perfect conclusion to the events that preceded. Other strengths include an exemplary score from Ennio Morricone, solid production design, and fantastic visuals that let the performances take center stage. Ultimately, The Iron Prefect is an extraordinary film about a man who took extreme measures and overcame insurmountable odds only to find out that the system he was trying to uphold was rotten to the core.

The Iron Prefect gets an excellent release from Radiance Films that comes with a solid audio/video presentation and insightful extras, highly recommended.

Written by Michael Den Boer