An engaging spaghetti western, mastered in 2K, tells the story of seven dangerous men hired to escort a sick woman and her husband across treacherous territory. Each of the mixed bag of seven has lives altered by circumstance and their own unique motives in helping the pair. They meet hostile Indians and then must brave through the expansive, barren desert in a seemingly doomed trek to civilization, overcoming death in more ways than one. This gritty masterpiece of ill-fated hope, the power of love and the burning desire for revenge, is considered as one of Spanish director J. R. Merchant’s most impressive westerns.
For thoughts on The Seven From Texas, please check out our discussion on The Video Attic:
Video Quality
The Seven From Texas comes to Blu-Ray with a disappointing 1080p transfer noted as stemming from a 2K master. The film is littered with dirt and damage throughout, but this could be forgiven if other elements were as strong as they should be. The biggest issue with this transfer is the washed out nature of the color timing. Instead of rich, dusty vistas, the environments look like they are covered in snow instead. Skin tones are simply atrocious, offering up nothing in the realm of anything natural. We can forgive damaged prints to some extent, but viewing something so washed out is an unpleasant experience in the modern age.
That being said, there are some elements that at least take advantage of the Blu-Ray format. There is an increased level of detail and clarity provided with some amount of natural film grain intact. There does not appear to be any unsightly digital anomalies such as compression artifacts, banding or any other such nuisances. We appreciate the effort to rescue a forgotten gem, but I wish a more stable source could have been used.
Audio Quality
The film has been given a Dolby Digital 2.0 presentation that holds up slightly better than the video side of things. Even still, the decision to only provide the English dub instead of the original Spanish audio is very disappointing. The dubbed dialogue comes through clearly from beginning to end without being burdened by any competing elements. There are obviously some issues with vocal sync since this is a dub. The score is firm with its handling of the different core elements. The track balances vocals with the environmental sounds with good clarity. There are a few odd moments where the track shows its vintage, but it is not a consistent issue. This release has provided a solid audio presentation that presents the film quite capably. The disc also comes with optional English, Spanish, Italian, German and Brazilian Portuguese subtitles.
Special Features
- 100,000 Dollars For Lassiter on DVD: The full 100-minute movie is provided on its own DVD with Dolby Digital 2.0 audio. This print is not in terrible shape, but it does make you appreciate the improvement in clarity of the main feature on the Blu-Ray.
- Trailers: There are trailers provided for The Implacable Three, 100,000 For Lassiter, Seven From Texas and The Relentless Four.
- Booklet: There is both a 12-page booklet featuring an essay from Michael Hauss and an 8-page booklet featuring an essay from Tom Betts which reveal some useful insights about the film.
- Mine Poster Cards
Final Thoughts
The Seven From Texas is a steadily entertaining spaghetti western that has long been overlooked. This particular story does not break any new ground, but it executes things in interesting ways. The action of this film is typically less “shoot ‘em up” than your standard fare, choosing instead to lean in on the tense character moments that work just as effectively. This new Blu-Ray release from Dorado Films offers up an underwhelming A/V presentation due to the poor condition of the source material available, but the inclusion of an additional film on DVD at least provides a better value for the package.
The Seven From Texas 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: Dorado Films 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.
Dillon is most comfortable sitting around in a theatre all day watching both big budget and independent movies.