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Shoot First, Die Later aka Il poliziotto č marcio [Blu-ray]
(Fernando Di Leo, 1974)
Review by Gary Tooze
Production: Theatrical: Mara Films Video: Raro
Disc: Region: 'A' (as verified by the Momitsu region FREE Blu-ray player) Runtime: 1:34:09.435 Disc Size: 24,436,212,813 bytes Feature Size: 19,994,566,656 bytes Video Bitrate: 21.50 Mbps Chapters: 12 Case: Standard Blu-ray case Release date: May 27th, 2013
Video: Aspect ratio: 1.85:1 Resolution: 1080p / 23.976 fps Video codec: VC-1 Video
Audio: LPCM Audio Italian 1536 kbps 2.0 / 48 kHz / 1536 kbps / 16-bit DUB: LPCM Audio English 1536 kbps 2.0 / 48 kHz / 1536 kbps / 16-bit
Subtitles: English, none
Extras: • Master of the Game (24:58 in 480i) • The Second Round of the Game (21:20 in 480i)• Italian Trailer (3:20 in 1080P) • English Trailer (3:20 in 1080P) • A 20 page fully illustrated booklet on the genesis of the film
Bitrate:
Description: One of the most impressive Italian crime/police movies ever made, desperately sought after and never before released worldwide, Rarovideo is proud to be releasing the tough, exciting, dramatically potent, action packed film: SHOOT FIRST DIE LATER. Luc Merenda (Hostel: Part II) gives the performance of his career as a highly regarded police detective who is taking syndicate money in exchange for departmental favors. His father, a simple man, also works for the department but at a lower level; he isn't jealous of his son, but rather proud of him, little knowing that he's a crooked cop. A series of events leads the young detective to ask his father for a favor (he wants a certain police report that is desired by the syndicate) and it doesn't take long for the detective's father to realize his son is on the take, which leads to numerous complications.
The Film:
“Shoot First…” is a hard-boiled cops and robbers film that
benefits from the eye of its writer-director-cinematographer, Di Leo,
who also displays a talent for tense car chase scenes that remind of “Bullit,”
“The
French Connection” and “The Seven-Ups.” The difference
is, those films used big and powerful American iron and Di Leo had these
little boxy Fiats but he effectively uses them in ramping up the tension
as good guy chases bad guy through Milan.
Image : NOTE: The below Blu-ray captures were taken directly from the Blu-ray disc. Production values are modest, to say the least, on this genre of fast-and-furious Italian Gangster cinema films. Shoot First, Die Later follows suit with the 4-disc Fernando Di Leo Blu-ray set, (Reviewed HERE) also released by Raro, looking exceptionally thick and heavy - even a bit waxy at times. I can only assume this is accurate to its theatrical roots although I'd love to see more grain. This is only single-layered with a modest bitrate but I have no idea that dual-layering would drastically sharpen up this image. Colors have some perk but otherwise those who appreciate the, original looking, dense image will be content here.
CLICK EACH BLU-RAY CAPTURE TO SEE ALL IMAGES IN FULL 1920X1080 RESOLUTION
Audio :Audio is given in the option of either a linear PCM 2.0 channel in original Italian at 1536 or a, similarly technical, English DUB track. The DUB is kind of comical and even the original has some issues with sync and related missteps frequently associated with Italian cinema of the time. The score is by Luis Bacalov - who has done a mess of films including many of Di Leo's oeuvre. It sounds appropriately dramatic with some depth. There are optional subtitles and m y Momitsu has identified it as being a region 'A'-locked.
Extras : Raro's package contains a couple of lengthy extra videos - both in Italian with English subtitles. Master of the Game about Di Leo runs almost 25-minutes and The Second Round of the Game over 20 minutes - both are in 480i resolution and both documentaries are "produced specifically for this release by NOCTURNO CINEMA magazine, one of Europe's most influential film genre publications". There is an Italian and English trailer and the package contains a 20 page fully illustrated booklet on the genesis of the film.
BOTTOM LINE: Gary Tooze May 25th, 2013
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About the Reviewer: Hello, fellow Beavers! I have been interested in film since I viewed a Chaplin festival on PBS when I was around 9 years old. I credit DVD with expanding my horizons to fill an almost ravenous desire to seek out new film experiences. I currently own approximately 9500 DVDs and have reviewed over 5000 myself. I appreciate my discussion Listserv for furthering my film education and inspiring me to continue running DVDBeaver. Plus a healthy thanks to those who donate and use our Amazon links.
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