NOTE: The below Blu-ray captures were taken directly from the Blu-ray disc.

ADDITION: Eureka Blu-ray (October 2021): Eureka have transferred three Gianfranco Parolini-directed 'Sabata' film to Blu-ray. These include Sabata, Adiós Sabata, and Return of Sabata on separate dual-layered BD disc - each with max'ed out bitrates. The films were made in the space of about 2 years. Short take on the 1080P transfers: Sabata is compared to the 2014 Kino Blu-ray (which is compared to the 2007 MGM DVD HERE) and the UK version is superior - tighter and better contrast, richer colors etc. Quality drops marginally on Adiós Sabata returning to, probably be the best image on Return of Sabata. They are pretty clean - few speckles and come through reasonably impressively in the HD presentations. 

NOTE: We have added 84 more large resolution Blu-ray captures (in lossless PNG format) for DVDBeaver Patrons HERE

On their Blu-ray, Eureka use a linear PCM dual-mono tracks (24-bit) in the original English language (yes, some DUBs from Italian.) There are plenty of aggressive moments - extensive, if hollow, gunfire, not much with horses - but standard fare for the western genre - showing tightness in the higher end - typical of the pasta western. Sabata and Return of Sabata (both Lee Van Cleef) have scores by Marcello Giombini (The Night of the Werewolf, Anthropophagus, Waves of Lust, Terror Express), Adiós Sabata by the great Bruno Nicolai (The Colors of the Dark, The Night Evelyn Came Out of the Grave, A Full Day's Work, Sartana Will Pay, Your Vice Is a Locked Room and Only I Have the Key, Face to Face, The Perverse Countess,  Torso,  Ten Little Indians, Pasolini's Hawks and the Sparrows.)  They sounds clean a bit scattered in terms of dialogue but supportive, and occasionally inventive for the genre. No Ennio Morricone "waaa waaa waa waa"'s, but tinny saloon pianos and sly introspective eye close-ups with intense music support. All authentic and adeptly transferred from the source to maximum expression. Eureka offer optional English (SDH) subtitles on their Region 'B' Blu-ray.

The Eureka Blu-ray offers a new commentaries by Kim Newman and Barry Forshaw on Sabata - Mike Siegel (a German filmmaker and Peckinpah biographer) on Adiós, Sabata - and C. Courtney Joyner and Henry Parke on Return of Sabata. I have only sampled each - all enthusiastic and informative delving into Van Cleef, director Parolini, some of the repeated cast (often in different roles), comparative American westerns, plus these Sabata films place in the sub-genre and much more. There are also three new video pieces on each film by Austin Fisher from 11-minutes to 1/4 hour. He is the author of Radical Frontiers in the Spaghetti Western: Politics, Violence and Popular Italian Cinema. We also get trailers and extensive stills galleries plus the package has a limited-edition collector’s booklet featuring new writing by Western expert Howard Hughes. It has an 0-card slipcase and this is limited to a first print run of only 2000 copies.  

Gianfranco Parolini's Sabata films have tenuous links with the middle effort, Adiós Sabata, not strictly considered a Sabata film. Lee Van Cleef and his hawk-like visage can do not wrong for lovers of Spaghetti / Euro westerns. Plenty of heavy style - often over substance. The first film, Sabata, is wonderful and the other tried to re-capture some of that charismatic mojo - with varying degrees of success. They are fun, intentionally getting away from the ultra-seriousness bloodier efforts preceding them, with traveling circus elements (acrobats) sprinkled throughout each of the three films. I was definitely in the mood and really enjoyed this Eureka Blu-ray set. Certainly I will re-watch with the book-ended Van Cleef films being a desirable machismo double-feature one rainy Sunday. Certainly recommended!

Gary Tooze