The Seven From Texas - Dorado Films (Blu-ray/DVD Combo)

Theatrical Release Dates: Spain/Italy, 1964 (The Seven From Texas), Italy/Spain, 1966 ($100,000 for Lassiter)
Director: Joaquín Luis Romero Marchent (Both Films)
Cast: Paul Piaget, Robert Hundar, Fernando Sancho, Gloria Milland, Jesús Puente, Francisco Sanz, Raf Baldassarre (The Seven From Texas), Robert Hundar, Pamela Tudor, Luigi Pistilli, José Bódalo, Jesús Puente, Roberto Camardiel, Aldo Sambrell, Benito Stefanelli ($100,000 for Lassiter)

Release Date: March 28th, 2023
Approximate Running Times: 90 Minutes (The Seven From Texas), 99 Minutes 39 Seconds ($100,000 for Lassiter)
Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1 Widescreen / 1080 Progressive / MPEG-4 AVC (The Seven From Texas), 2.35:1 Anamorphic Widescreen ($100,000 for Lassiter)
Rating: NR
Sound: Dolby Digital Mono English (Both Films)
Subtitles: English, Spanish, Italian, German, Brazilian Portuguese (The Seven From Texas)
Region Coding: Region Free
Retail Price: OOP

"The story of seven dangerous men hired to escort a sick woman and her husband across treacherous territory. Each of the mixed bag of seven has lives altered by circumstance and their own unique motives in helping the pair. They meet hostile Indians and then must brave through the expansive, barren desert in a seemingly doomed trek to civilization, overcoming death in more ways than one." - synopsis provided by the distributor

Video: 2.5/5 (The Seven From Texas), 1/5 ($100,000 for Lassiter)

Here’s the information provided about Seven from Texas's transfer, "mastered in 2K."

The Seven From Texas comes on a 25 GB single layer Blu-ray.

Disc Size: 19.9 GB

Feature: 18.6 GB

There are nicks, scratches, and other debris throughout. Colors lack consistency; they look faded; black levels are nonexistent; and image clarity leaves room for improvement. Also, there are mild compression issues, and contrast looks blown out.

$100,000 for Lassiter comes of a single layer DVD.

Disc Size: 4.2 GB

The source for this film looks similar, only worse since it is a single-layer DVD.

Audio: 2/5 (The Seven From Texas), 1.5/5 ($100,000 for Lassiter)

Each film comes with one audio option, a Dolby Digital mono mix in English. Both tracks have distortion, most noticeable when the score appears. Despite dialog coming through clearly enough to follow, range-wise, these two tracks sound flat; they lack any depth. The Seven From Texas comes with removable English, Spanish, Italian, German, and Brazilian Portuguese subtitles.

Extras:

Extras on the Blu-ray disc with The Seven from Texas include theatrical trailers for The Seven from Texas (3 minutes 34 seconds, Dolby Digital mono English, no subtitles), The Implacable Three (2 minutes 41 seconds, Dolby Digital mono English, no subtitles), $100,000 for Lassiter (3 minutes 20 seconds, Dolby Digital mono English, no subtitles) and The Relentless Four (3 minutes 17 seconds, Dolby Digital mono English, no subtitles).

A bonus DVD that has the film $100,000 for Lassiter, aka Dollars for a Fast Gun.

Extras on the DVD disc with $100,000 for Lassiter include theatrical trailers for The Three Musketeers of the West (3 minutes 39 seconds, Dolby Digital mono English, no subtitles), Billy the Kid (3 minutes 57 seconds, Dolby Digital mono English, no subtitles) and Gatling Gun (3 minutes 56 seconds, Dolby Digital mono English, no subtitles).

Other extras include 2 mini poster cards, a 4-page insert for Seven from Texas, a 8-page booklet with an essay titled Seven From Texas (Hour of Death) Film Insights written by Tom Betts and a 12-page booklet with an essay titled Once Upon a Time… in the Spanish West… written by Mike Hauss.

Summary:

The Seven From Texas and $100,000 for Lassiter were both directed by Joaquín Luis Romero Marchent, most known for directing Cut-Throats Nine.

The Seven From Texas: A man recently released from prison discovers that the woman he loves has moved on and married another man. When he discovers that she is ill and her only hope is a town on the other side of Apache territory, he assists her on a treacherous journey.

By the time Joaquín Luis Romero Marchent directed The Seven From Texas, he had already directed two other westerns, The Implacable Three and Three Ruthless Ones. And yet, the result is a film that bears little resemblance to what one expects from a Spaghetti western.

Redemption is at the heart of The Seven From Texas. The narrative revolves around a protagonist who is looking to make amends with the woman he loves, even though she has moved on to another man. Also, there is a subplot that revolves around a man who has a vendetta against the protagonist.

Though the performances are good, it is hard to look past the weakest link, Paul Piaget, in the role of the protagonist. He delivers a wooden performance that lacks the charisma so many Spaghetti western leads have. That said, Robert Hundar (Free Hand for a Tough Cop) delivers a memorable performance in the role of Ringo, a man with a vendetta against the protagonist.

Though there are a few areas where The Seven From Texas does not excel, notably when it comes to a lack of on-screen violence, when it comes to the two main action set pieces, they do not disappoint. The deliberately paced narrative does a great job building momentum towards a phenomenal ambush finale. Other strengths are Joaquín Luis Romero Marchent’s solid direction and the picturesque visuals, which take full advantage of the landscapes. Ultimately, The Seven From Texas is a solid Spanish western that is free of Spaghetti western influences.

$100,000 for Lassiter: A wheelchair-bound wealthy landowner who controls the water supply extorts money from the nearby farms. One day, a stranger with knowledge of the past arrives and sets in motion a blackmail scheme against the wealthy landowner.

$100,000 for Lassiter has many Spaghetti western staples: blackmail, revenge, and greed. And though it also employs the strange scenario of pitting sides against each other, it is ultimately a tale about revenge that culminates with a twist finale that perfectly brings everything to a head.

Deception plays a significant role in the story that unfolds. And nowhere is this clearer than when it comes to the protagonist, Lassiter. When he appears in town, he presents himself as a book-learned person who has never held a gun. When, in reality, he is a highly skilled gunman. Throughout, there are many moments where Lassiter uses deception to gain the upper hand.

The cast features several recognizable Spaghetti western faces, and they are all very good in their roles. The most surprising performance was by Robert Hundar (The Cynic, the Rat, and the Fist) in the role of Lassiter. In most films that I have seen him in, he usually plays a secondary bad guy, while this time around he is the lead, and he does a great job.

Once again, Joaquín Luis Romero Marchent directs a Spaghetti western that is not as violent and flashy as other mid-1960s Spaghetti westerns. Fortunately, his direction is rock-solid. The narrative has a good balance of action and exposition. And though there is a deliberateness to the pacing, momentum is never an issue. Ultimately, $100,000 for Lassiter is a well-made Spaghetti western that fans of this genre should thoroughly enjoy.

The Seven From Texas and $100,000 for Lassiter get mediocre audio/video presentations from Dorado Films.

Written by Michael Den Boer