Customer Rating:  
Summary: Lee Van Cleef - A Solid Pair of Spaghetti Westerns on a Very Good DVD
Comment: For fans of Spaghetti Westerns, there are few icons bigger than Lee Van Cleef. He was one of those actors who spent half of his career playing small supporting roles, gaining little notice to the fact that he was actually outperforming the films' stars!
Then a funny thing happened. He went to Europe and co-starred in a couple Westerns with a TV actor named Clint Eastwood, for a director named Leone that no one in America had ever heard of, and suddenly got noticed. Those films were, of course, For A Few Dollars More, and The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly.
In the decade that followed Van Cleef starred in a number of European made Westerns. Some good, some not so good. Most have yet to be released in any quality form on DVD.
Two that HAVE been released in quality form on DVD are Beyond the Law and The Grand Duel. Two disparate movies that work well as a double feature.
For my money Beyond the Law is the gem of this set. It is a movie with some genuine character development, and a full character arc for Van Cleef to play. Beyond the Law isn't a typical, "Spaghetti Western," in that the action takes a back seat to the drama and the characters. The script is solid and has some nuances to it that belies the image that most people have of Spaghetti Westerns. Sure, there are some good action sequences, but it's the A to B to C character arc/journey that Van Cleef goes on that lifts this film above average.
The Grand Duel, on the other hand, is a more typical, action first Spaghetti Western. That's not to say that it doesn't have some drama and a decent script - because it does. It just doesn't have the same level of character development that Beyond the Law has. On the other hand, Van Cleef's character, former Marshall Clayton is just one cool cat. This guy is almost always in control and one step ahead of everyone else. He's tough as nails (naturally), and he's got, "Street smarts," or the Western equivalent of street smarts.
Wild East's Double Feature DVD is a revelation for those who have only seen these movies in cheap Public Domain Pan and Scam/Fullscreen editions. While not up to the level of a Warner Brothers or Fox restoration, the picture quality isn't far off. Anamorphic Widescreen, good color, a pretty darned sharp picture, and fairly clean prints make for an enjoyable viewing experience.
But there's more. Wild East found a full version of Beyond the Law - with a couple extra scenes that have never been included in the American/English version before. They were never even dubbed in English! So we have them here in the original Italian with English subtitles! (At first it's a little jarring, but once you realize that you're watching a scene that was never intended to be included in an American version it's actually pretty cool.)
The sound quality is fairly good - but the movies are 35 or so years old, so you can't expect too much. (But keep in mind that the sound is noticeably better than most PD DVD's you'll find for Spaghetti Westerns of this vintage.)
The bottom line? If you like Spaghetti Westerns, buy this set. While not the most stylish of Spaghetti Westerns, they are solid, well told, exciting movies - and the picture and sound quality make this the release to buy for these titles.
Customer Rating:
Summary: One outta two isn't bad....
Comment: The Grand Duel(aka Il Grande Duello) is a must have for Van Cleef fans - a great solid spaghetti western with much of the LVC style. Luis Bacalov has also really provided one of the most memorable non-Morricone spaghetti scores to date. Great production values and an engaging story make it more than worthwhile.
Beyond the Law is a lesser effort and comes off looking more like a TV quality production with TV quality acting overall and has none of the style and great lines that makes a Van Cleef outing so much fun.
The widescreen transfer on both films is very acceptable for a spaghetti western and will not disappoint. You will definately want to pick up this double feature for The Grand Duel alone and I very highly recommend getting your hands on the CD soundtrack which has seen a couple of printings over the years.
For those looking for more great Van Cleef spaghetti, I recommend Death Rides a Horse, The Big Gundown, Captain Apache, Grand Duel and El Condor - all much better than the waaay overrated Day of Anger...
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