H D - S E N S E I

A view on Blu-ray by Gary W. Tooze

Wake Up and Kill aka "Svegliati e uccidi" aka "Wake Up and Die" [Blu-ray]

(Carlo Lizzani, 1966)

Review by Gary Tooze

Production:

Theatrical: Compagnie Internationale de Productions Cinématographiques (CIPRA)

Video: Arrow Video

Disc:

Region: FREE (as verified by the Oppo Blu-ray player)

Runtime: 2:03:51.041 / 1:37:38.000

Disc Size: 48,524,243,516 bytes

Italian Feature Size: 26,899,360,128 bytes

US Feature Size: 21,297,572,736 bytes

Video Bitrate: 25.99 Mbps (same for both)

Chapters: 12

Case: Standard Blu-ray case

Release date: November 23rd, 24th, 2015

Video:

Aspect ratio: 1.85:1

Resolution: 1080p / 23.976 fps

Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC Video

Audio:

Italian version:

LPCM Audio Italian 1536 kbps 2.0 / 48 kHz / 1536 kbps / 16-bit

English version:

LPCM Audio English 1536 kbps 2.0 / 48 kHz / 1536 kbps / 16-bit

Subtitles:

English (SDH - for US version), English (for Italian version), none

Extras:

• High Definition (1080p) Blu-ray and Standard Definition DVD presentations of two versions of the film: the original full-length Italian release, and the shortened English-language cut
Italian and English soundtracks in uncompressed PCM mono sound on the respective versions of the film
• Newly translated English subtitles for the Italian version
• Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing for the English cut
• English Theatrical trailer (1:18)
• Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Reinhard Kleist.

Illustrated collector’s booklet containing new writing on the film by Robert Curti, author of Italian Crime Filmography, 1968-1980

DVD of the film(s)

Bitrate:

1) Arrow (Italian version) - Region FREE - Blu-ray - TOP

2) Arrow (English version) - Region FREE - Blu-ray - BOTTOM

Description: During the 1960s Luciano Lutring committed more than one hundred armed robberies in Italy and on the French Riviera. To the media he was the machine gun soloist , a name he d earned as he kept his weapon in a violin case. To the public he was a romantic figure, one who only targeted the wealthy, stealing more than 35 billion lire during his criminal career.

Wake Up and Kill was the logical extension of such fame. It became the first feature to commit Lutring's story to celluloid, shooting having begun mere months after his eventual arrest. Capitalizing on the breakthrough success of his performance in French television's The Adventures of Robinson Crusoe, Robert Hoffmann is perfect as Lutring, bringing just the right amount of charisma and youthful exuberance to his first major big screen role.

Directed by Carlo Lizzani (Requiescant), scored by Ennio Morricone, penned by the future screenwriter of Investigation of a Citizen Above Suspicion, and featuring that film s star, Gian Maria Volonté, in a key supporting role, Wake Up and Kill's true-crime thrills serve as an enthralling dry run for the poliziotteschi movies that would follow a few years later.

1) Arrow (Italian version) - Region FREE - Blu-ray - TOP

2) Arrow (English version) - Region FREE - Blu-ray - BOTTOM

The Film:

Luciano Lutring, a petty Italian thief, jumps from a window to escape from a police roundup, leaving behind a stolen machine gun he had planned to sell in the black market. A Milan newspaper picks up the minor incident under a banner headline, and Lutring suddenly gains the reputation of a major criminal. Crimes he never committed are blamed on him and he becomes known as "The Elusive Shadow." While the police cooperate with the newspapers to dupe more dangerous criminals into believing that all police efforts are directed toward capturing the thief, Lutring himself begins to believe his own publicity and, for the first time in his life, starts shooting to kill. His wife, Yvonne, a former stripteaser, realizes that the only way to save Lutring is to turn informer, so she offers to help the police capture him. Lutring, now as crafty as his myth purports him to be, eludes the trap that is set for him and escapes to France. As both the Milan and Paris police chiefs compete in their attempts to capture Lutring, Yvonne crosses the border secretly in the hope of saving her husband; but Lutring, now an irrational, bloodthirsty criminal, is shot and captured.

Excerpt from TCM located HERE

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

This is the another Arrow Blu-ray release that is being simultaneously released in both region 'A' (US) and 'B' (UK). It is the exact same package on both sides of the pond beyond minor cosmetic differences on the disc labels and sleeve to do with differing copyright info and barcodes, and the US release doesn't have BBFC logos.

Wake Up and Kill gets an impressive transfer to Blu-ray from Arrow Films. The package offers both the original Italian version (2 hours) and a 26-minute shorter US cut in English. It is not seamlessly-branched but the transfer is technically (very similar bitrate) as robust and looks identical (see our matching captures below.) The beauty of this 1080P is the thick, consistent, grain and the image quality reflects solid contrast exhibiting tight colors and an occasional semblance of depth in the 1.85:1 frame. It's clean with only a few speckles or frame-specific marks. This Blu-ray does a wonderful job of exporting both movies in a very, textured, film-like presentation.

CLICK EACH BLU-RAY CAPTURE TO SEE ALL IMAGES IN FULL 1920X1080 RESOLUTION