The Specialists / Gli specialisti (Sergio Corbucci, 1969)

Whatā€™s the english options on this one? Any?

I believe thereā€™s only German subtitles and optional French or German dub.

Global Video has announced the same title and Naushad has never sent a western out without English dubbing so the chances are better there (if the release will ever see the day of light that is).

Only French and German are mentioned

Iā€™m also looking forward to the Release of Kinowelt. I hope that also once all the other Corbucci Western (even if they are not so good as Django, Il grande silenzio, Companeros and Il Mercenario) will be released in Germany.

I have a fan version sourced from DVD in 2.35 and has english subtitles, so looking forward to viewing this one.

I just watched the ā€œGli Specialistiā€. I liked it but the movie has a problem: Corbucci is the director. So everyone is expecting a Masterpiece. The same problems have all his other movies too. It is a rather good western and a very unusual too. But thatā€™s the reason why I prefer SW, there is always a little surprise for the audience.

Again Corbucci directed some great sequences in ā€œGli Specialistiā€ with a good and interesting cast: Johnny Halliday, Mario Adorf and the beautiful ladies Francoise Fabian and Sylvie Fennec. Unusually the landscape photography wasnā€™t shot in Almeria but in the Alps. Photography and Music have a psychodelic touch, which makes ā€œGli Specialistiā€ different from other western.

I wasnā€™t quite happy with Johnny Halliday as Hud(or Brad). I would like to see Anthony Steffen in this role. But the cast round him was quite satisfying. For me ā€œGli Specialistiā€ wasnā€™t as violent as Django or Navajo Joe, disturbing as The Great Silence or quite entertaining as Il Mercenario and Companeros. It isnā€™t the best work of Corbucci but in my opinion better directed and more interesting as a lot of other SW. :wink:

All his movies have the problem of having Corbucci as the director? :slight_smile: Even as a huge Corbucci fan Iā€™m unsure if he ever did ā€œa Masterpieceā€, the flaws are always there but they are often outweighed by some remarkably insightful and powerful stuff. This certainly applies to THE SPECIALIST, currently in my Corbucci top 3 and SW top 10 as the least recognized (to date, the optimist in me adds) underdog fave. Technically itā€™s among his finest efforts along with THE MERCENARY and I love the downbeat but not humourless moodā€¦ The unusual scenery and the new genre face of Hallyday bring some real freshness to the mix and Johnnyā€™s probably limited acting range is well utilized in his Bronson-type stoic avenger part. Of course Franco Nero would have been better, but Iā€™m not complainingā€¦

When I 1st saw the 84 min full frame (with bad colors) german version in the 80s, I was disappointed. Called it a mediocre film and added it to Corbucciā€™s sloppy works.

After seeing a 2,35:1 uncut version (great colors) last year, this has changed a lot. Itā€™s now one of my darling Spags, but thanks to several underdeveloped scenes (the sloppiness verdict wasnā€™t made without reason) The Specialists has not managed to make my top 20 (21 actual, #5 of the Corbucci SW euvre).

After making the year before the 2 films (The Great Silence, The Mercenary) which (except for a few moments) imo are his most perfect and his most intelligent, Corbucci seems to lose again his interest to make a complete inspired film. Thatā€™s a pity because this film had enough unusual ideas to become a classic. The whole end e.g. is a clever rendition/travesty of the classic and trendsetting AFoD finale.

And I like this unbelievable shot with all these naked citicens kneeling in the street, one of the most bizarre ideas in the SW history. Very unusual for itā€™s time, 6 years before Pasolini made Salo.

Thereā€™s much more to say about the since now widely unrecogniced merits of The Specialists. Many was said already in this thread.

But I canā€™t ignore all the flawed moments. Especially nearly every scene with Francoise Fabian is made in an astonishingly unimaginative way.
Worst are her scenes where she tries to seduce the bashful sheriff (itā€™s not even erotic), and of course the ridiculous way how she breaks with a horseless coach through the wooden wall of a barn.

But in The Specialists, like thereafter in Companeros, Corbucciā€™s visual skills, his often brillant composed pictures are dominating the film as a whole, whereas in his later efforts, beginning with Sonny & Jed, the process was sadly inversed.

Yes, completely ridiculous that scene! Corbucci apparently needed a transitionary scene to trigger the (brilliant) action that follows immediately and couldnā€™t find anything else than making poor FranƧoise jump on that coach!

Thanks Kinowelt that I could watch this extremely special SW. As a fan of the strange Blindman and Django Kill I actually liked this movie as well. It is a little slow in the first half but gets better with every minute to its end. Outstanding supporting actors - first of all Mario Adorf. His character was so great and actually would be worth getting more moments. Finally Halliday fits perfect. Although the music istnā€™t typical spaghetti western like, but nevertheless definetely fits into the entire situation. It isnā€™t Corbucciā€™s best, but again shows the great ideas in his mind.

I think this one is rather interesting and one of corbuccis better ones. It might not be as clean maded as companeros, but again he has some great ideas, even though not all are working.
Good points: location(superb)
plot:revenge, betrayal, old friendship gone off.very cool
action:i like the fights, even though the final is a bit too much, i tend to be more forgiving than on the machine gun use in companeros. There the gun seems to apear everytime nero just needs it.
Actors:Adorf is no question, just great. The sherrif was okay as well. And i did think Halliday did quite well. He is not the quite anti-hero, he knows what he is capable off and says it as well. but he is deeply hurt by the death of his brother. I think it was played convincingly.
The weird stuff: of course the mexican band is out of place, but all the scenes with them are still better than the ones in Django, i think.
The hippies are also interesting, i guess sherp could start a whole topic just about the significance of their portrayal in this movie. And the scene with the naked townspeople is just great.

Bad: the chain mail was just a bit too much for me, but it was used propely though for the plot.
the misplacement of the mexican gang.

So not much on the bad side for me. And you have some hotties in the film as well, and yes i think the bathtub scene is nice 8)
This is one of the corbucci movies where the female part was not that annoying. I have a problem with them often:
In great silence she falls in love with him, shortly after her husband was killed :o
And in companeros iris berben marries il vasco, even though he mistreaded her and is not a very nice or intelligent guy at all. The feminist in me kind of finds that unbelievable, but maybe the girls want the bad boys.
The girl that is after halliday is not as pushing and it is understandable that she likes him.

So i like this one a lot.

Iā€™m really looking forward to seeing this.
Iā€™ve had an almost unwatchable dvdr (English language) of this, and since bought (for quite a lot of dosh) an original German video of it that was no better (in fact probably just the same) - then I got a Japanese dvd of it (with no English subs) and now - Finally - Thanks to a forumite (who gets a great big thanks from me - cheers amigo) - I finally get it in great nick with English subs. Hooorah!!!
Tomorrowā€™s treat.

[quote=ā€œReverend Danite, post:52, topic:243ā€]Iā€™m really looking forward to seeing this.
Iā€™ve had an almost unwatchable dvdr (English language) of this, and since bought (for quite a lot of dosh) an original German video of it that was no better (in fact probably just the same) - then I got a Japanese dvd of it (with no English subs) and now - Finally - Thanks to a forumite (who gets a great big thanks from me - cheers amigo) - I finally get it in great nick with English subs. Hooorah!!!
Tomorrowā€™s treat.[/quote]at least you have something to post in the nudity in SwĀ“s topic

Good news indeed Brother valenciano, itā€™s about fuckinā€™ time I must say!! - Thereā€™s been a real dearth on that score - so let us praise the Lord!

I agree with the sloppiness mentioned above, for my complete thoughts of course see my DVD review, which I think I havenā€™t translated into English yet :wink:

Some have complained about the soundtrack, I like the music.

[quote=ā€œstanton, post:56, topic:243ā€]Some have complained about the soundtrack, I like the music.[/quote]me too.

IMO if this film ditched all the scenes with the street urchin hippies it would be terrific. I felt the last scene was pointless and so was glad to read this

Not just me thenā€¦I too thought that this is where the film should end.
As I said elsewhereā€¦a good film spoilt. I should have said a bloody good film spoilt. Even with the hippies itā€™s still good

Well worth a watch.

Me like the hippies. PEACE LOVE and so on. Especially how it is portrayed when they try to win the girl over by offering her marijuana to bring her to the ā€œdark sideā€. Somehow marijuana is portrayed like the worst drug in SWĀ“s, at least Leone and Corbucci: Indio is high like a motherf**er after one puff, the hippies and the coruption of skoming; and of course our psychopathic jack palance who needs the smoke to calm and get into a nother wordl. They all surely had the best amsterdam shit available.

And the bizarre scenes add to the movie in my eyes, but hey different tastes. Just donĀ“t say iĀ“d like to see a bunch of naked man.

I would rate it as one of Corbucciā€™s best. Itā€™s the 3rd one on my ā€œCorbucciā€™s best SWā€ list, after ā€œThe Great Silenceā€ and ā€œThe Mercenaryā€. The weird elements work well and it has got some of the best spaghetti western gunfights. I simply love the one when Hud disposes of El Diablo gang - itā€™s fierce, violent and abrupt, even if the carriage scene is pretty stupid.