The Road to Fort Alamo: Limited Edition – Malombra Films (Blu-ray)

Theatrical Release Date: Italy/France, 1964
Director: Mario Bava
Writers: Lorenzo Gicca Palli, Francesco Prosperi, Livia Contardi
Cast: Ken Clark, Jany Clair, Michel Lemoine, Andreina Paul, Alberto Cevenini, Gustavo De Nardo, Antonio Gradoli, Gérard Herter, Claudio Ruffini, Pietro Tordi

Release Date: February 5th, 2024
Approximate Running Time: 79 Minutes
Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1 Widescreen / 1080 Progressive / MPEG-4 AVCC
Rating: NR
Sound: DTS-HD Mono Italian, DTS-HD Mono English
Subtitles: English, Italian
Region Coding: Region Free
Retail Price: £25.00 (UK)

"Bud and Slim meet fortuitously at a saloon and escape the arrest by the hands of the corrupted town sheriff. They join a group of Slim’s associates engrossed in planning a robbery. The two friends decide to join in; they will dress up as Federal soldiers and will collect 150.000 dollars from the local bank.

Unfortunately, the theft doesn’t go as planned and they find themselves captured by a group of Native-Americans; they are left to die in the scorching sun only to be saved by a handful of Federals. Recovering from the attack, Bud will meet Janet and the two of them will embark on an adventure across the valley of the Osage." - synopsis provided by the distributor

Video: 3.25/5

Here’s the information provided about the transfer, "digitally-remastered in 4K".

The Road to Fort Alamo comes on a 25 GB single layer Blu-ray.

Disc Size: 23.2 GB

Feature: 20.8 GB

The bulk of this transfer looks very good. That said, some instances of source damage remain. Screenshot #7 provides an example. Also, though there are some moments where image clarity is not as strong or colors fluctuate, the majority of the time, image clarity is strong and colors look very good. Black levels look good, and there are some compression-related artifacts.

Audio: 3.5/5 (DTS-HD Mono Italian, DTS-HD Mono English)

This release comes with two audio options, a DTS-HD mono mix in Italian and a DTS-HD mono mix in English. Both audio tracks sound clear and balanced, and ambient sounds are well represented. Range-wise, these two audio tracks are limited. Included are removable English and Italian subtitles.

Extras:

Extras for this release include a theatrical trailer (4 minutes 9 seconds, Dolby Digital mono with non-removable English subtitles), an interview with filmmaker Luigi Cozzi who discusses Mario Bava and the Spaghetti western genre (8 minutes 20 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Italian with non-removable English subtitles),  an interview with film critic Antonio Tentori who discusses the Spaghetti western genre (3 minutes, Dolby Digital stereo Italian with non-removable English subtitles), an audio commentary with Dr. Adrian Smith and Dr. Leon Hunt, and a slipcover (limited to the first pressing). 

Summary:

Directed by Mario Bava, whose other notable films include Black Sunday, Black Sabbath, Blood and Black Lace, Danger: Diabolik, and Rabid Dogs.

The narrative revolves around six men who pretend to be Union soldiers in order to collect a $150,000 payment document. Though they were successful in obtaining the money, things go awry when one of them kills a few people.

Despite working in just about every genre, Mario Bava’s work in the Spaghetti western genre is arguably his weakest. He would direct three of Spaghetti Western’s The Road to Fort Alamo: Ringo from Nebraska, Roy Colt, and Winchester Jack. Made at the beginning of the Spaghetti western cycle, The Road to Fort Alamo lacks the look and feel of this genre's most celebrated films.

Mario Bava was a filmmaker known to work magic despite limited resources. Unfortunately, The Road to Fort Alamo saddles him with a mediocre script. And nowhere is this clearer than when it comes to the narrative's inability to establish tension. It also does not help that there are no real surprises along the way.

Another shortcoming are the performances, which are adequate. Michel Lemoine (Seven Women for Satan) in the role of Kid Carson, a bandit with a short fuse, delivers the most memorable performance. This character's impulsive behavior constantly puts him and those around him in danger.

From a production standpoint, the only thing remarkable about The Road to Fort Alamo is Mario Bava’s visuals. Unfortunately, in every other area, The road to Fort Alamo comes up short. Ultimately, The Road to Fort Alamo is a by-the-numbers western that would have been forgotten if not for Mario Bava’s involvement.

The Road to Fort Alamo gets a serviceable audio/video presentation from Malombra Films.

Written by Michael Den Boer