There really is no good reason for the lack of a BluRay. I am watching this now on German Amazon Prime and while it’s not the best HD transfer in town, it surely is sourced in a way that a BluRay might be on the cards. Someone talk to Minverva and do this.
But oh boy that German dub, mostly improvised jokery
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Copied from the Spagvemberfest 2022 thread:
Raro is bringing this to blu-ray in March and I am in. Always enjoyed this!!!
oh wow thanks for the tip. Will research and update the home video calendar
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This movie’s page in the SWDb has been upgraded to the new “SWDb 3.0” format. Please have a look and let us know if there’s something you can add (information, trivia, links, pictures, etc.).
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The Belle Starr Story now has a poll available on the original post at the top of the thread! 
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Just finished watching this. The beginning titles reminded me of James Bond films, even the song sounded like something out of a 007 movie.
I wanted to like the film but it progressed so slowly and felt boring at times. Also, I felt like there was something missing from Belle Starr as a character even though the characters were well written (everyone had their own personalities and all those small details). Belle could’ve been more badass but she seemed to soften towards the end of the film. But I have to say, Elsa Martinelli and Francesca Righini were absolutely gorgeous and George Eastman was amazing too.
An okay film but could’ve been so much better
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Yeah, pretty much.
Don’t forget to put a rating on the poll… if you’re so inclined.
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This is just me, and I am probably reading too much into it, but I had a nagging feeling through the whole film that Elsa Martinelli didn’t really want to be there. It felt as if she were just going through the motions and trying to get it over with as soon as possible.
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Can anybody tell me if there is a uncut version ?
Amazon 1:35:28
German Blue-ray 1:39:45
English version on YouTube 1:39:56
German Leonine DVD 1:35:28
Onceuponatimeinawestern.com 1:43:00
Comingsoon.it 1:43:00
THX
who says it’s cut somewhere? just checking, but these discrepancies are rather minor and could be due to different opening/closing credits, pal/ntsc/hd differences etc…
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I have the Wild East DVD which runs 96m45s and compared this to a 99m56s version on You Tube. Both films seem to run at the same speed which I assume is NTSC.
There are several minor differences between the prints. Nothing of substance but the 99m print is a few minutes longer. For example, in the scene in which Belle sneaks up to Cole Harvey’s camp in the dark her voiceover is heard over shots of the camp in the 99m version; in the Wild East version the voiceover is heard over a shot of Belle instead. This shot of Belle is longer than in the 99m version but the camp shots are missing and there is less voiceover overall so the WE version is shorter. There are a few other scenes with similar small differences like this.
I agree with the consensus that this one is quite poor. The whole 30m flashback section with voiceover isn’t very good and could have been cut out entirely. I didn’t think much of the editing in the shoot out in the saloon either. The sex scene between Belle and Larry (what sort of name is Larry Blackie - is that in Italian also?) was typically Italian of the period with Belle enjoying being slapped. There was a good spaghetti torture scene towards the end though.
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Thinking of this film again and something bothers me. It’s the strong women who are strong because they were harassed and abused in the past. Can’t we have strong female characters who are strong just because they can? I mean, look at Little Rita — kind, strong, independent, smart, has a good sense of justice — and she doesn’t have a tragic background.
Also, this is the only SW directed by a woman. I know times were different back then, but why make a remarkable unique film that tries to show female power in this way, in a way where the women are objectified and have to go through hell? Where’s the feminism?
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I think you have answered your own question … Simply put, ‘Things were different’ … very different and extremely unfair … but never expect filmmakers of any era to get behind political or social questions, … They’re made by people who wish to make a lot of money, not right wrongs and feel good about themselves - Belle is made to look sexy, obviously to sell the film to as wide an audience as possible, the same way that we generally have handsome actors in the lead roles … is that not also ‘objectifying’ ?
The film is a fantasy with almost nothing to do with historical accuracy … Have you ever seen photos of the real Belle Starr ? The prettiest thing about her is her name.
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That’s true too. Good point. I want more films with people who look… normal, and not like supermodels. It gets tiring to see perfectly beautiful people in every film. And the “uglier” people always play bad guys or side characters who are treated badly, which sucks 
Don’t do her like that 
Every woman is beautiful. Everyone has a different taste though and beauty standards are what they are (I hate them)
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I think this is gonna get even worse as the years go on. Every celeb now has perfect pearly white teeth and a chiseled face, it just doesn’t work for movies. It’s why I love the new Furiosa so much, Miller picks actors with great faces and interesting features and it works wonderfully for the aesthetic of the film.
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That’s not really true though. I think moviestars were more beautiful and glamorous in the 40s and 50s than they are today.
And you can’t have some ugly uncharismatic person play the hero in a movie, not even in a SW. Part of the success of the Dollars trilogy was Clint’s looks and his charisma. It made him the most popular actor in Europe in the mid 60s, according to Sophia Loren.
Yes, that would just be a case of bad casting or nepotism … There’s quite a few less than handsome leading men in mainstream films, but charisma and acting ability is key. So, I would guess that the director is looking for a combination of qualities, talent, good looks etc … but there are still some outrageously bad actors out there, not necessarily in leading roles, but significant supporting cast.
Moonfall (2022) The most embarrassingly inept, unfunny, comic relief performance I’ve ever witnessed. Amateur school plays have better actors than this chump.
John Bradley, come in, your time is up!
Handsome guys with the looks of Cary Grant and James Dean are nowhere to be seen today in movies I think.
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