The iconic Spaghetti Western Man With No Name Trilogy starring Clint Eastwood and directed by Sergio Leone is getting a new remastered Blu-ray and UHD release from Arrow. Below is a review of the first release, a 2-disc Limited Edition of A Fistful of Dollars.
A nameless stranger (Eastwood) rides into the Mexican border town of San Miguel and quickly finds himself in a bloody battle for power between two rival families, the Baxters and the Rojos. Cannily realising there’s money to be made from playing each side against the other, the Man with No Name soon finds himself caught in the crossfire as the body count escalates, his only chance of escaping a standoff against the Rojos’ mercilessly cruel leader, Ramón (Gian Maria Volonté).
When released in 1964 this was a massive box office hit and made a name for the then TV star Clint Eastwood. This was also the director’s first collaboration with the brilliant composer Ennio Morricone which transformed the film into the classic it has become.
The film has been released on DVD and Blu-ray many times over the years and all of the releases have had various issues. Releases have suffered with a lot of DNR, uneven colour-timing and crushed, sometimes even milky black levels.
This new 4K remaster from Arrow, from the original 2-perf Techniscope negative, seems to have improved a lot of these problems and the result is a vibrant and very pleasing image. There is a pretty dramatic shift in the colour temperature of the visuals and they are closer to where they need to be. The film looks spotless and fans should be very happy.
Arrow have packed this release with a ton of extras which will be listed below –
DISC 1
Original English and Italian front and end titles
Newly restored original lossless English and Italian mono audio
Optional newly remixed lossless English and Italian DTS-HD MA 5.1 audio
Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing for the English soundtrack
Optional English subtitles for the Italian soundtrack
Audio commentary by film historian and Leone biographer Sir Christopher Frayling. As usual, he is a joy to listen to, giving out facts and information about the production, director, music etc. A man you can tell who truly loves these films and his knowledge is fantastic.
Audio commentary by film historian and critic Tim Lucas
Trailers
DISC 2
When It All Started, a newly filmed interview with film historian and critic Fabio Melelli
Four Fingers Four Picks, a newly filmed interview with guitarist Bruno Battisti D’Amario
Wind & Fire, a newly filmed interview with Morricone biographer Alessandro de Rosa
A Night at the Movies, a newly filmed interview with filmmaker Paolo Bianchini
A Fistful of Outtakes – highlights from the original rushes. Great to see these rushes which includes the original opening when the Man With No Name gets his poncho.
The Day the Soundtrack Changed, a new visual essay by musician and disc collector Lovely Jon exploring the film’s iconic score
Marisol: Leone’s Madonna of the West, an archival interview with co-star Marianne Koch
The Frayling Archives and A New Kind of Hero, two archival interviews with Sir Christopher Frayling
A Few Weeks in Spain, an archival interview with Clint Eastwood
Tre Voci, an archival featurette with Leone collaborators Mickey Knox, Sergio Donati and Alberto Grimaldi
The opening scene with Harry Dean Stanton was filmed for the film’s US TV debut in 1975, plus an archival interview with the prologue’s director Monte Hellman
Restoration Italian Style, an archival featurette on the film’s remastering for DVD
Location Comparisons 1964-2004, an archival featurette
Alternate credits sequences
Three comprehensive image galleries: A Fistful of Pictures, On the Set and Promoting ‘A Fistful of Dollars’
LIMITED EDITION CONTENTS
Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Tony Stella
Perfect bound collector’s booklet featuring new writing on the film by Henry Blyth, Bilge Ebiri, Pasquale Iannone and Eloise Ross
Double-sided fold-out poster featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Tony Stella
Another fabulous release from Arrow with a new 4K transfer and remaster and new and vintage extras this is a definite purchase for film fans everywhere.
FILM – 8.5 PICTURE – 9 AUDIO – 9 EXTRAS -9
CLICK HERE TO ORDER THE 4K UHD OR BLU RAY
One comment on “A Fistful of Dollars – Arrow 4K Remastered Blu-Ray Review”
Wayne James
at 4:48 pmI’ve just started collecting blue ray & 4K & 3D disc’s … thave started to dissaper of the shelves in the charity shops.. Me thinks someone is buying them up for resale…. Man with no name I’ve seen it 70+ times.. Going to buy it on blue ray…