From Sergio Leone, the acclaimed director of A Fistful of Dollars, For a Few Dollars More, The Good, the Bad and the Ugly, and Once Upon a Time in the West comes his final western–a relentlessly entertaining film that teams an Irish explosives specialist with a Mexican peasant-turned-revolutionary leader with thunderously explosive results. Starring acting giants Rod Steiger (In the Heat of the Night) as Juan Miranda, a cigar-chomping, salt-of-the-earth peasant with a Robin Hood heart and James Coburn (Harry in Your Pocket) as John Mallory, a dynamite-tossing Irish revolutionary who has fled to Mexico to practice his skills. Together, they’re a devilishly volatile mix of anti-establishment philosophies and violent tendencies as they attempt to liberate political prisoners, defend their compatriots against a well-equipped militia, and risk their lives on a train filled with explosives. Featuring a haunting and rousing score by iconic composer Ennio Morricone (Death Rides a Horse, Navajo Joe).

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Video Quality

This new Blu-Ray from Kino Classics gives A Fistful of Dynamite an AVC-encoded 1080p transfer in its original aspect ratio that looks decent enough. The film was released on Blu-Ray back in 2018 by the label, and this appears to be the exact same disc with a new slipcover for the case. There was previously an announcement that this would receive a new 4K UHD Blu-Ray release, but exigent circumstances caused that release to be canceled for the foreseeable future. There have always been some source limitations for this one, but there is little doubt this could look better with a new restoration. Nevertheless, this still does the job for now.

The Western setting offers up a striking image with warm colors saturated consistently. Black levels could be stronger, but they provide some amount of depth to the image even with signs of crush present. There are no egregious instances of damage to be found in this presentation, but you will find the expected specks and scratches throughout. The feature has a heavy grain structure that retains the filmic look of the picture that stumbles slightly when you run into some of the aforementioned source limitations. The transfer showcases some adequate detail in the costumes, production design, and landscapes. A new master would have been a godsend, but Kino Classics has done a fine job with what they have.

Audio Quality

The Blu-Ray comes with a DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio surround sound track and a DTS-HD 2.0 Master Audio stereo track in English. We do not have a long history with this title, but from what we can tell, the main issue here is that the original mono track has not been provided. Apparently, the track as provided has some censored dialogue and incorrect musical cues that have been carried over across multiple releases of this film. While fans are waiting for the true ultimate presentation, these tracks are fine for what they are.

A few moments are a bit on the weak side, but you never hear outright damage or distortion. These are the instances where you can find age-related wear and tear. Dialogue comes through clearly and balances well with environmental noises and other competing elements. The impeccable score from Ennio Morricone maintains grand fidelity and does not overshadow the dialogue or other important information. The audio track holds up pretty well even if there is room for improvement. There are optional English (SDH) subtitles included for the feature film.

Special Features

Audio Commentaries: This disc provides two different commentary tracks from experts who provide a very informative commentary track in which they discuss the production of the film, how this fits into the career of Sergio Leone, the background of the performers, the hiccups experienced during the making of the film, the critical reception, and more that is worth exploring.

- Audio Commentary #1: Filmmaker Alex Cox

- Audio Commentary #2: Film Historian Sir Christopher Frayling

The Myth of the Revolution: A 22-minute piece in which Frayling discusses how this compares to other films from Leone, the slower pace of this narrative, the themes of the story, the filmmaking process of Leone, the evolution of his style, and more.

Sergio Donati Remembers: A seven-minute featurette in which screenwriter Sergio Donati reflects on this story, working with Leone, and more.

Once Upon A Time In Italy: A six-minute look at the career of Sergio Leone and the efforts to preserve his legacy.

Sorting Out The Versions: A 12-minute exploration of the different versions of the film across territories and the various titles used to promote it.

Restoration Italian Style: A six-minute featurette that spotlights the production history of the film and the efforts to preserve its most complete intended version.

Location Comparisons: A nearly ten-minute look at how locations from the film look in a more modern era.

Trailers From Hell with Brian Trenchard-Smith: A nearly five-minute analysis of the film and its production history by the filmmaker.

Animated B&W Image Gallery

Animated Color Image Gallery

6 Radio Spot: A four-minute collection of radio spots is provided here.

Trailers: The three-and-a-half-minute trailer for A Fistful of Dynamite is provided here. There are also trailers for A Fistful of Dollars; For A Few Dollars More; The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly; and Once Upon A Time In The West.

Final Thoughts

A Fistful of Dynamite finds Sergio Leone operating in somewhat familiar territory as his Dollars Trilogy, yet there is a clear identity to this outing that allows it to stand apart as something equally as special. The pacing is a bit more deliberate as characters are allowed time to execute a full, unhurried arc. Rod Steiger and James Coburn are great in their lead roles, and the thematic impact is as strong as you would hope from Leone. Kino Classics has delivered a Blu-Ray release that shows off a pretty solid A/V presentation and a nice assortment of special features. Leone fans should have this one in their collection. Recommended

A Fistful of Dynamite (Special Edition) is currently available to purchase on Blu-Ray.

Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the Blu-Ray.

Disclaimer: Kino Classics has supplied a copy of this disc free of charge for review purposes. All opinions in this review are the honest reactions of the author.