CONVOY BUSTERS (1978)
aka Un poliziotto scomodo
Label: Cauldron Films
Region Code: Region-Free
Rating: Unrated
Duration: 100 Minutes 41 Seconds
Audio: English or Italian DTS-HD MA 2.0 with Optional English Subtitles
Video: 1080p HD Widescreen (1:85:1)
Director: Stelvio Massi
Cast: Olga Karlatos, Maurizio Merli, Massimo Serato, Mimmo Palmara
In Convoy Busters (1978) Maurizio Merli (The Cynic, The Rat, and The Fist), the most macho-moustached and bitch-slappin-ist actor in 70's Italian cinema, plays hard-nosed Inspector Olmi, who regularly beats,, slaps and coerced confessions from the scum of Rome. His hard-edged tactics attract media attention and the ire oof his superiors; and despite being reassigned to another division it gets worse when he mistakenly guns down the an innocent men. Shaken by the experience he voluntarily accepts a position at a seemingly tranquil seaside precinct, with the intent of laying low and staying out of the spotlight.
There he begins dating an attractive schoolteacher named Anna (Olga Karlatos, Zombie) who he meets after patently bitchslapping some punks giving her a hard time at a coffee shop. They strike up a romance and life is good, but Olmi being who he is cannot help but notice some illicit smuggling activity happening around the coastal fishing community. Once he gets to detecting he cannot let it go and he's up to his former ultra-machismo mayhem after with a sizable bullet-riddled body count following.
The flick is a solid slice of hardboiled Poliziotteschi
thats hits all the familiar tropes of the genre, while it might lack the visceral punch of the best of the scuzzy euro-crime flicks it's still super-violent and chock full of ace stunt work, violent shoot 'em ups, and some terrific vehicle chases - the best of which is a scene of Olmi in a helicopter chasing down a suspect who is on foot before blowing him away. The flick benefits from a Stelvio Cipriani (Colt 38 Special Squad) and strong direction from Stelvio Massi's (Emergency Squad)
Audio/Video: Convoy Busters (1978) arrives on region-free Blu-ray from Cauldron Films in 1080p HD widescreen (1.85:1), sourced 2K restoration from the negative. This was a first-time watch for me so I cannot compare it to the previous DVD from (sadly) defunct outfit No Shame or the previous Blu-ray from Koch Media. Grain levels look terrific from the start, the source is in great shape with only a few negligible flaws to draw the eye, it has that soft 70's Italian Sheen to it but is quite pleasing with good color and contrast, modest texturing and fine detail are also positives.
Audio options come by way of both Italian or English DTS-HS MA 2.0 mono with optional English subtitles.the track is clean and well-balanced, the score from Stelvio Ciprianisounds terrific, it's not my favorite score of his but it has some funky highlights that shine..
Onto the extras I'm pleased to say that Cauldron offer a stacked release with over three hours of new and archival bonus content. New stuff first, we get a Audio Commentary by Mike Malloy & Mike Martinez
29-min Maurizio Merli: A Lethal Hunter of Subtle Variation with tough-guy film expert Mike Malloy; the 20-min My Father, the Cop: Interview with Maurizio Matteo Merli; the 24-min The Massi Touch: Interview with Danilo Massi; 8-min Stelvio Massi video tribute by Danilo Massi, the 9-min Stelvio Massi Image gallery
Archival goodies sourced from previous releases includethe 6-min Bullet in the Closet- Iinterview with director Ruggero Deodato; the 22-min The Protagonist- Iterview with director Enzo G. Castellari; 16-min Good Fella Maurizio - Interview with actor Ennio Girolami titled My, the 16-min Good Fella Maurizio - Interview with actor Ennio Girolami titled My; 16-min A Star is Born - Interview with Journalist Eolo Capacci; plus a 1-min Alternate English Language Credit Sequence, plus both the Italian Trailer and the English Trailer which run 4-min each.
The single-disc release arrives in a clear keepcase with a reversible sleeve of artwork with 2 illustrated artworks.
Special Features:
- 2K Restoration from the Negative / 1080p presentation
- NEW! Audio Commentary by Mike Malloy & Mike Martinez
- NEW! Maurizio Merli: A Lethal Hunter of Subtle Variation with tough-guy film expert Mike Malloy (29 min)
- NEW! My Father, the Cop: Interview with Maurizio Matteo Merli (20 min)
- NEW! The Massi Touch: Interview with Danilo Massi (24 min)
- NEW! Stelvio Massi video tribute by Danilo Massi (8 min)
- NEW! Stelvio Massi Image gallery (9 min)
- Bullet in the Closet- Iinterview with director Ruggero Deodato (6 min)
- The Protagonist- Iterview with director Enzo G. Castellari (22 min)
- Good Fella Maurizio - Interview with actor Ennio Girolami titled My (16 min)
- Good Fella Maurizio - Interview with actor Ennio Girolami titled My (16 min)
- A Star is Born - Interview with Journalist Eolo Capacci (16 min)
- Alternate English Language Opening Credits (1min)
- Italian Trailer(4 min)
- English Trailer (4 min)