I know this isn’t a Spaghetti Western, but Sebastian wrote an amazing review of this release from Plaion Pictures. Wondering if anyone knows where one might acquire a copy without giving up a kidney to get it. Thanks in advance.
This is the review in question
the 4K looks fantastic, not sure why Plaion has so far been the only one to issue it on 4K?
Fantastic write-up! You made me want to get this 4K even more.
As the film was shot for TV the 1,33:1 aspect ratio must be the original one, the intended one.
Hemingway’s The Killers is only a short story (an excellent one) of a few pages, actually 9 pages in my version, and I’m not sure if the 2 films use any of its dialogues. In fact both films have nothing in common with Hemingway, both just use an idea of the short story of 2 killers looking for a man, who apathetically accepts to be killed by them. The protagonist of the story is actually one who only witnesses the killer’s behaviour in a diner and tries to warn their victim. We don’t find out why they want to kill him, why he does not want to run, not even if they ever find him, but assume that it might happen within a few hours or days.
The film just uses this basic idea and does what the story is not in the slightest interested in, to show the whys and hows.
And Siegel’s film is for that all indeed a remake of Siodmak’s film, using the ideas of the film and not of the short story. Both are similar good, yet quite different in style and story.
Siegel also remade another noir film for TV, which also was shown theatrically in some countries. The Hanged Man was also shot in 1964, and is based on Ride the Pink Horse (1947). It also has a prominent cast with Robert Culp, Vera Miles and Edmond O’ Brien.
intended for TV that is. I am militantly anti-4:3 
I need to rewatch this, I notice that when I wrote the review I didnt even have a 4K TV…
1 Like
Why?
So you don’t watch films made before the mid 50s, which nearly all have an 1,37:1 aspect ratio?
I also prefer easily widescreen formats, but the intended aspect ratio is the one I want to have. Similar to that I would never watch a b/w film in a colorized version.
In that case here, if it was shot for 1,33:1 a 1,85:1 version should lead to stuff like scenes with cut-off heads. But of course it is also possible that Siegel shot for 1,85:1, but that does only make sense if a theatrical release was maybe intended.
Siegel started directing features in a time when 1,37:1 was the only used format, and later made the step to widescreen by making both, films using anamorphic lenses and making them open matte. The last ones could be shown full screen on TVs and in 1,85:1 theatrically, but on TV you watched them then usually with unnecessary stuff on top and bottom.
No that’s fine, of course the widescreen version here is a result of masking, but as long as they don’t bring 4:3 TV screens and theater screens back, I prefer to watch movies in widescreen typically, and I despise modern day artsy filmmakers who go academy aspect ratio on me just to be funky (e.g. “American Honey”)…
Yes, but if it was shot for 1,33:1 the masking must result then in odd looking picture compositions.
Would be interesting to check The Killers for such.
And calling all modern 1,37:1 films “artsy” is a bit discriminatory … 
Actually Nolan’s the Odyssee was shot in the IMAX 1,43:1 aspect ratio, but at the same time also so that it could be shown in the usual 2,35:1 format for the standard theatres.
That’s at least kinda odd, cause you see in IMAX only lots of unnecessary stuff then, but it’s huge of course.
but that applies to all flims shot open matte, and I would assume they compose their shots usually with the idea in mind that they may later have to mask it somewhat to accomodate theatrical exhibition… but i will keep an eye out next time i watch it