In my frustration over the lack of international titles being available in Region One, I decided to purchase Faccia a Faccia (Face to Face, disk no. IMBS-1148) at a DVD outlet online, from the U.K. You know, sometimes, it's better to simply take a gamble and purchase a title out of region, than wait for whether or not some company may - or may not - decide to print a DVD title.
I enjoyed the acting of Tomas Milian and Gian Maria Volante enough to gamble on whether I'd even be able to play the film. Fortunately, my Macintosh allowed for several out-of-region plays on my burner, and I found a hack online to play the disk on my portable player.
From the opening credits, which exploit every hue of color, much of the film was worth the effort of dealing with the pesky region codes. A bit of the story line was a little far-fetched, as far as Volante's character is concerned, by the final third of the film. The ending left me a bit disappointed.
Milian's character truly captured the show, however, from the moment he fell into the scene. And the music by Ennio and Bruno Nicolai. One can't go wrong with the musical scoring when this pair works together on an Italian Western.
As for the DVD, it's too bad that it isn't optimized for widescreen. I understand that there is a boxed set, which may have this film and other favorites of mine widescreen-ready. Check to be sure.
In closing... honestly, I am an Ennio fan, and a fan of Milian and Volante. My review is biased somewhat. I am also a fan of Sergio Leone, which makes me enjoy Italian Westerns a little less when he's not at the helm. But I made no mistake in purchasing this film.
I enjoyed the acting of Tomas Milian and Gian Maria Volante enough to gamble on whether I'd even be able to play the film. Fortunately, my Macintosh allowed for several out-of-region plays on my burner, and I found a hack online to play the disk on my portable player.
From the opening credits, which exploit every hue of color, much of the film was worth the effort of dealing with the pesky region codes. A bit of the story line was a little far-fetched, as far as Volante's character is concerned, by the final third of the film. The ending left me a bit disappointed.
Milian's character truly captured the show, however, from the moment he fell into the scene. And the music by Ennio and Bruno Nicolai. One can't go wrong with the musical scoring when this pair works together on an Italian Western.
As for the DVD, it's too bad that it isn't optimized for widescreen. I understand that there is a boxed set, which may have this film and other favorites of mine widescreen-ready. Check to be sure.
In closing... honestly, I am an Ennio fan, and a fan of Milian and Volante. My review is biased somewhat. I am also a fan of Sergio Leone, which makes me enjoy Italian Westerns a little less when he's not at the helm. But I made no mistake in purchasing this film.