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Released by: Kinowelt
Released on: 3/25/2003
Director: Terence Young
Cast: Charles Bronson, Ursula Andress, Toshiro Mifune, Alain Delon, Capucine, Luc Merenda, Tetsu Nakamura
Year: 1971
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The Movie:
In the Arizona of the late 1800s, two bandits named Link (Charles Bronson of Death Wish) and Gauche (Alain Delon of Le Samourai) who, along with their gang, attempt a bold train robbery. Aside from the money on board, the train also contains the Japanese ambassador (Tetsu Nakamura of The Mysterians) who is on his way to Washington D. C.
While on board the train, Gauche finds a gold sword and figuring it has to be worth something, takes it with him when he leaves. Unfortunately for Gauche, the sword was meant to be a gift from the emperor of Japan to the president of the U.S., which means it's not going to go unnoticed. Add to that the fact that Gauche, in his infinite wisdom, decides to try to kill Link in an attempt to get all the loot for himself, and you can see that he's pretty much digging himself deeper into trouble - you never mess with Bronson. Ever.
Kuroda (Toshiro Mifune of The Seven Samurai) is the only survivor the ambassador's group of samurai bodyguards. Kuroda teams up with Link and has to put aside his issues with him so that they can work together to find Gauche. They've each got a score to settle with him, even if they are for very different reasons. Further complicating things is the fact that if Link doesn't help Kuroda track down Gauche in seven days, he's going to kill him just on principal.
Known internationally under its French title of Soleil Rouge, the film moves along at a brisk pace and makes the most of its eclectic cast. Bronson and Mifune get the most screentime, and rightly so as they're terrific together and have a nice on screen chemistry, but the supporting characters are interesting as well. Delon makes for a nice villain - having only seen him in more noble roles or playing anti-heroes before. I was impressed with his turn as the weaselly backstabbing Gauche, he brought a nice sense of sleazy menace to the proceedings. Ursula Andress pops up in the film as well, in a bit part, playing a love interest and having the decency to disrobe briefly for the camera. Any time Ursula does a nude scene the movie is worth watching but even aside from the nudity the film holds up.
Bronson and Mifune aren't given top billing for nothing though. They display an interesting love/hate relationship throughout the film and while their characters may be complete opposites, of course they find out by the end of the film that they have more in common than they thought. The screen presence these two giants of action cinema bring to the screen is evident from the first scene they share together. The pairing, unique as it is, makes sense when you consider the roles these two gentlemen played before making this film - both often cast as loners fighting a just fight against a worldly evil.
Video/Audio/Extras:
Unfortunately, this film was meant to be seen 1.85.1 and is presented 1.33.1 and the image does suffer for it. Matting aside, the picture quality is pretty solid with only minor print damage evident (though it is noticeable throughout the duration of the film). Colors look good with nice, consistent hues and solid black levels. Compression artifacts aren't really a problem but there are a few times where some shimmering occurs on the picture that proves mildly annoying.
The sound on this release is presented in Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono in either English or German with optional German subtitles. There's some hiss in a few scenes but it's nothing too distracting. Some of the scenes sound a little canned with very little range at all, but considering this is a mono track from over thirty years ago, it's forgivable. The sound mix is adequate, if unremarkable.
The only extra is a rather lengthy documentary on Charles Bronson, Charles Bronson - Der schweigsame Rí¤cher, that is completely in German and sadly doesn't have any English subtitles available.
The Final Word:
While it's a shame that the documentary isn't subtitled, you can't fault a German release for being in German. The movie itself is a good one though, and holds up well over the years. Red Sun is worth a look and this release is the way to go until a better domestic version comes out.