A Fistful of Dynamite (aka Duck You Sucker) – Kino Lorber (Blu-ray)

Theatrical Release Date: Italy, 1971
Director: Sergio Leone
Writers: Sergio Leone, Sergio Donati, Luciano Vincenzoni
Cast: James Coburn, Rod Steiger, Romolo Valli, Vivienne Chandler, David Warbeck

Release Date: March 6th, 2018
Approximate running time: 157 Minutes 7 Seconds
Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1 Widescreen / 1080 Progressive / MPEG-4 AVC
Rating: NR
Sound: DTS-HD Mono English, DTS-HD 5.1 English
Subtitles: English
Region Coding: Region A
Retail Price: $29.95

"a relentlessly entertaining film that teams an Irish explosives specialist with a Mexican peasant-turned-revolutionary leader with thunderously explosive results. Starring acting giants Rod Steiger (In the Heat of the Night) as Juan Miranda, a cigar-chomping, salt-of-the-earth peasant with a Robin Hood heart and James Coburn (Dead Heat on a Merry-Go-Round) as John Mallory, a dynamite-tossing Irish revolutionary who has fled to Mexico to practice his skills. Together, they're a devilishly volatile mix of anti-establishment philosophies and violent tendencies as they attempt to liberate political prisoners, defend their compatriots against a well-equipped militia, and risk their lives on a train filled with explosives." - synopsis provided by the distributor

Video: 4/5

A Fistful of Dynamite (aka Duck You Sucker) comes on a 50 GB dual layer Blu-ray.

Disc Size: 43.8 GB

Feature: 37 GB

No information is provided about this transfer’s source. That said, it obviously comes from an older source that, by now, is dated. Though the source is in great shape, any debris that remains is very minor. Flesh tones look correct, colors look very good, image clarity is strong, and though black levels fare well, there are moments where they are not as convincing as they should be. Also, compression is very good, and the grain remains intact, although it looks thicker in some moments.

Audio: 4.5/5 (DTS-HD Mono English), 4/5 (DTS-HD 5.1 English)

This release comes with two audio options, a DTS-HD mono mix in English and a DTS-HD 5.1 mix in English. The mono audio track is in excellent shape. It sounds clean, clear, balanced, and robust when it should. Though the 5.1 audio track is a very good remix track, I prefer the mono audio track. Included are removable English subtitles.

Extras:

Extras for this release include a black and white image gallery with music from the film playing in the background, a color image gallery with music from the film playing in the background, six radio spots (4 minutes 3 seconds, Dolby Digital mono English, no subtitles), a theatrical trailer (3 minutes 35 seconds, Dolby Digital mono English, no subtitles), Trailers From Hell with director Brian Trenchard-Smith (4 minutes 46 seconds, DTS-HD stereo English, no subtitles), an archival  locations comparison featurette (9 minutes 31 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo), an archival interview with Sir Christopher Frayling titled Once Upon a Time in Italy (6 minutes 1 second, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), an archival restoration featurette titled Restoration Italian Style (6 minutes 7 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), an archival interview with screenwriter Sergio Donati titled Sergio Donati Remembers (7 minutes 20 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), an archival featurette titled Sorting Out the Versions (11 minutes 36 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), an archival interview with Sir Christopher Frayling titled The Myth of Revolution (22 minutes 10 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), an archival audio commentary with Sir Christopher Frayling, and an archival audio commentary with filmmaker Alex Cox.

Other extras include reversible cover art, and trailers for A Fistful of Dollars, For a Few Dollars More, The Good, the Bad and the Ugly, and Once Upon a Time in the West.

Summary:

“The Revolution is not a social dinner, a literary event, a drawing or embroidery; it cannot be done with…elegance and courtesy. The revolution is an act of violence….” – Mao Tse-Tung

After four very successful westerns, A Fistful of Dollars, For a Few Dollars More, The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly, and Once Upon a Time in the West, Sergio Leone with A Fistful of Dynamite would for the fifth and final time direct a western. That said, A Fistful of Dynamite is the odd man out in Sergio Leone’s legacy of films. His Man with No Name trilogy, with then-unknown Clint Eastwood as the film’s director, would launch them both into international fame, followed by his masterpiece Once Upon a Time in the West. The other thing that sets A Fistful of Dynamite apart from Sergio Leone’s other films is that it is his most overtly political film.

Since its initial theatrical release, A Fistful of Dynamite has been released under several alternate titles. The Italian title is Giù la testa, and the English translation of this title is Keep Your Head Down. Other alternate titles include Duck, You Sucker, and Once Upon a Time: The Revolution. Besides being released under several different titles, this film has also been released in versions that censor Sergio Leone’s original vision. The original U.S. theatrical release removed 37 minutes, and its running time was two hours. That said, Giù la testa, or as we now know it, A Fistful of Dynamite, began as a film that Sergio Leone originally intended to produce. And as the film evolved, he would be forced to take on a larger creative role once he became the film’s director.

Throughout his filmography, Sergio Leone had a knack for creating visually arresting moments, and when it came to introducing characters, he was second to none. In the case of A Fistful of Dynamite, there are two characters: Juan Miranda, a Mexican bandit, and John H. Mallory, an Irishman who left unrest in his homeland and now finds himself in the middle of a revolution. Though their paths cross because of a chance encounter, over the course of the narrative, these two men forge an unbreakable bond. Also, Sergio Leone introduces each of these characters in grand sequences that tell you everything you need to know about who they are.

Sergio Leone films are all filled with a solid cast that is a mix of Italian, American, and European actors. And when it comes to the performances in A Fistful of Dynamite, the entire cast is excellent. Anchoring A Fistful of Dynamite is the inspired casting of Rod Steiger (In the Heat of the Night) in the role of Juan Miranda. He delivers an utterly convincing performance in which he fully immerses himself. Other notable performances include Romolo Valli (Conversation Piece) in the role of Dr. Villega, a revolutionary whose betrayal plays an integral role in the film’s finale, and James Coburn (Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid) in the role of John H. Mallory, an explosives expert who was forced to flee Ireland after a friend betrayed him.

Content-wise, A Fistful of Dynamite greatly differs from Sergio Leone’s four westerns, which preceded A Fistful of Dynamite. The narrative has two distinctive halves. The first half of the film features a lighter tone than the second half, which takes on a darker tone. Once again, Sergio Leone’s direction is masterful, and composer Ennio Morricone provides an evocative score that perfectly captures the mood. Also, redemption plays a large role in the story at hand, and some of the most powerful moments are related to moments of self-reflection that involve regret. Another strength is how effective Sergio Leone’s use of flashback sequences is, most notably the flashback in the bittersweet finale. Ultimately, A Fistful of Dynamite is an extraordinary cinematic experience, and it is arguably Sergio Leone’s most thought-provoking film.

A Fistful of Dynamite (aka Duck You Sucker) gets a first-rate release from Kino Lorber that comes with a strong audio/video presentation and a wealth of informative extras, recommended.

Written by Michael Den Boer