A “Noir 3D” image from the new, tinkered-with version of Ferdinando Baldi’s COMIN’ AT YA!
more than gets the job done. The original elements did not contain a copyright; the presentation here boasts a brand new 2015 one. A multitude of extras are on-hand. Producer Ronald J. Schneider and joins Anthony and Battista on an audio com- mentary. The film’s financing was precarious and much of the talk is devoted to how corners were cut because the production was constantly running out of money. The participants also reminisce about what they were going for, their respect for Baldi’s contributions, Battista’s second career as a dubber, an unfinished Anthony project called SCRATCH, and the be- hind-the-scenes machinations that secured some of the amaz- ing locations they managed to use. Moderator David Gregory keeps things moving along, though he is not entirely suc- cessful at getting Anthony to fin- ish all of his stories (we never get all of an interesting anecdote about Anthony’s dealings with Cannon Films over TREASURE OF THE FOUR CROWNS) and stopping him from occasionally lapsing into play-by-play. No less than four featurettes are included. “The Story of the
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Stranger” (23m 12s) finds Tony Anthony discussing his origins in the film business and how direc- tor Luigi Vanzi crafted Anthony’s “Stranger” character. The rea- sons for him ending his collabo- ration with Vanzi in favor of Ferdinando Baldi, Anthony’s off-the-wall approach to his characters, and the picture’s unconventional funding are also covered. In “Looking for Ri- chard” (11m 33s), Lloyd Battista discusses his longtime associa- tion with Anthony, his desire to play Sombra as Richard III, and Anthony’s savvy as a producer. Producer Ronald J. Schneider discusses his side of the produc- tion in “Beating a Dead Horse” (9m 50s). We learn that he is the nephew of Allen Klein, producer of Anthony’s earlier westerns, and that the plan for financing this picture immediately collapsed af- ter buyers decided that the mar- ket for spaghetti westerns was dying. Finally, Ferdinando Baldi discusses his association with the star in “Tony & I” (8m 19s). Con- ducted in the years before Baldi’s death in 2007, it covers how the two became introduced, and de- votes much of the running time to the pair’s 3D pictures, COMIN” AT YA! (1981) and TREASURE
OF THE FOUR CROWNS (1983). Some of the info offered in the featurettes is also in the commen- tary, but the interviews provide a nice condensation of the most in- teresting stories for those who pass on listening to the second audio track.
There are also 8m of deleted scenes from a fullscreen VHS source, a theatrical trailer, a French trailer, four radio spots (narrated by the great Adolph Caesar), and an extensive poster, still, press kit, and contract gal- lery (including a deal signed with Marvel for an unproduced comic book continuation of the Stranger’s adventures). In- formative liner notes by film historian Howard Hughes cover- ing most of Anthony’s western career round out the package. English SDH, French, and Span- ish subtitles are included for the feature. The enclosed DVD offers the same content. The packag- ing incorrectly lists the PG-rated picture as being unrated (it was classified by the MPAA under the BEAT A DEAD HORSE title). We reviewed Rhino’s anag- lyphic 3D DVD of Baldi’s COMIN’ AT YA! In VW 56:9. This new 3D Blu-ray incarnation represents a major improvement in terms of
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