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The Human Tornado aka "Dolemite 2" [Blu-ray]
(Cliff Roquemore, 1976)
Review by Gary Tooze
Production: Theatrical: Comedian International Video: Vinegar Syndrome
Disc: Region: FREE! (as verified by the Oppo Blu-ray player) Runtime: 1:36:17.897 Disc Size: 48,781,691,836 bytes Feature Size: 27,558,951,744 bytes Video Bitrate: 34.98 Mbps Chapters: 5 Case: Transparent Blu-ray case Release date: May 31st, 2016
Video: Aspect ratio: 1.85:1 Resolution: 1080p / 23.976 fps Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC Video
Audio: DTS-HD Master Audio English 1104 kbps 1.0 / 48 kHz / 1104 kbps / 24-bit (DTS Core: 1.0 / 48 kHz / 768 kbps / 24-bit) Commentary: Dolby Digital Audio English 192 kbps 1.0 / 48 kHz / 192 kbps / DN -4dB
Subtitles: English (SDH), None
Extras: • "I, Dolemite II" making-of documentary (17:46)• Soundtrack • Radio Spot • "Der Bastard" - German dubbed version (1:24:34) • Commentary track w/ Rudy Ray Moore's biographer, Mark Jason Murray and co-star Jimmy Lynch • Audio interview w/ director Cliff Roquemore and martial arts champion Howard Johnson • Original theatrical trailers for both DOLEMITE (2:55) & THE HUMAN TORNADO (2:54) • Original cover artwork by Jay Shaw • Reversible cover artwork • Second disc DVD
Bitrate:
Description:
Dolemite
(Rudy Ray Moore) is back and badder than ever in The
Human Tornado! After being run out of town by a racist
sheriff, Dolemite returns to LA only to discover that Queen
Bee's (Lady Reed) club has been taken over by the mafia. On
top of that they have also kidnapped two of Queen Bee's top
girls! With the law hot on his tail, Dolemite rounds up the
toughest Kung-Fu fighting badasses in Southern California to
take on the mob, culminating in one of the craziest surprise
endings in blaxploitation film history!
The Film: In this violent comedy, the sequel to Dolemite, the rotund rapster must hit the road for California after an Anglo sheriff finds him fooling around with his wife. Once there he gets involved with a sexy, hard-living madame and her flock of kung fu fighting females who are fighting a ruthless local gangster. The fugitive gets a few licks in too, unfortunately, just as he is about to celebrate his victory he is shot by the angry sheriff. Fortunately, the Human Tornado is not easily killed as he was wearing a bullet proof vest. Excerpt from Barnes & Noble located HERE
The Human Tornado is more cartoonish and straight-up crazy than
Dolemite was, but it’s not quite as mind-blowingly
awesome as the original. I think the movie’s main flaw is that it’s
heavily padded with way too many musical performances and scenes of
Dolemite doing his nightclub act. All of this shit slows the beginning
of the movie down and it takes a while to regain its footing.
Image : NOTE: The below Blu-ray captures were taken directly from the Blu-ray disc. The Human Tornado comes to Blu-ray from Vinegar Syndrome looking a little stronger than their Dolemite from earlier this year. Generally I'd the say the quality is impressive considering the film's low budget and age. This is dual-layered with a max'ed out bitrate and is surely as good as the film will ever look on digital. There isn't much damage. They include "Der Bastard" - German dubbed version - which is fun, along with the 1.85:1. This 1080P Blu-ray image is very competently transferred and occasionally shows depth and colors are brighter than I would have thought.
CLICK EACH BLU-RAY CAPTURE TO SEE ALL IMAGES IN FULL 1920X1080 RESOLUTION
Audio :The film's audio is transferred in a DTS-HD Master 1.0 channel mono track at 1104 kbps (24-bit). It's predictably flat and the film has minimal effects. The funk-leaning score is by Arthur Wright (Dolemite also on his resume). It does pack some depth (24-bit) and, again, probably sounds as good as the film ever will. There are optional English (SDH) subtitles. My Oppo has identified it as being a region FREE disc playable on Blu-ray machines worldwide.
Extras : Vinegar Syndrome include a historical commentary track by Rudy Ray Moore's biographer, Mark Jason Murray and co-star Jimmy Lynch. There is a continuation of the documentary from Dolemite entitled "I, Dolemite II" with some making-of aspects of the film and it runs over of 17-minutes. As well as get the aforementioned "Der Bastard" - German dubbed version of The Human Tornado. I found it quite amusing. There is an audio interview w/ director Cliff Roquemore and martial arts champion Howard Johnson, as well as Radio Spots and access to the soundtrack. There are trailers for both Dolemite and The Human Tornado. The original cover art is by Jay Shaw and includes reversibility in the transparent keep case. A second disc, DVD, is included.
BOTTOM LINE: Gary Tooze May 29th, 2016
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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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