MovieChat Forums > Il terrore dei barbari Discussion > Will we ever see a high quality print of...

Will we ever see a high quality print of this on DVD?

posted 17 years ago by Dejael
11 replies | jump to latest

I saw this movie when I was a boy of 12 in 1959 at the theater and I must say in retrospect as an adult, I think it was one of the best movies of that year!
I saw the USA version released by AIP, and it was fantastic! I loved it, and haven't seen it since. In 1960, I bought the soundtrack album by Les Baxter and from an adult perspective of today, I also think it was an excellent film score,
one of Baxter's all-time best.
Steve Reeves is truly magnificent in this larger-than-life cinema epic, and oh, how I would love to see this film lovingly restored to its original wide-screen Eastmancolor brilliance and in its original Stereo sound (it was so advertised as in Stereo at the theater where I saw it in 1959). The soundtrack LP album I have is also in Stereo, on American-International Records, titled "Barbarian".
This film is among Steve Reeves' finest work, and should be preserved for posterity and for digitally remastered sound and image on DVD.
The problem is this was an Italian film, and as many of you know about these sword and sandal epics, is most of them are poorly preserved now; and so if we are to see a finely restored print it would have to be the American version.
I met Steve Reeves at a film convention in 1996 and told him I loved his films, and recall this one fondly as one of his finest, along with HERCULES and HERCULES UNCHAINED, MORGAN THE PIRATE, DUEL OF THE TITANS, THE WHITE WARRIOR, THE SLAVE [SON OF SPARTACUS], and THE GIANT OF MARATHON.
ALL of these films deserve to be restored and preserved and released in deluxe DVD special editions in widescreen and stereo sound.

Dejael

[–] eddyw78 17 years ago

You will be pleased to know that this has just been released onto DVD.Its a region 2 version(UK and Europe)and you can pick it up from Xploitedcinema.com or Amazon.co.uk.Its in widescreen(2.35:1)but i,m unsure of quality as i havent seen it yet.Hope i have been of help!

[–] Dejael 17 years ago

Thank you! However, I am in Los Angeles, California which is DVD Region 1 NTSC and we do not have access to PAL equipment so we will have to wait until this company releases it in Region 1 DVD format. Thanks so much for the news!
This is one of Steve Reeves' all-time best films, and one of his best movie posters also. The American version has an excellent soundtrack score by Les Baxter, which was released on LP records in full Stereo sound in 1960. (The LP was titled "Barbarian" and it was released on American-International Records, a division of the studio which distributed the American version of the film, AIP.) The soundtrack was reissued on CD briefly in the 1980s.
I also have a copy of the original AIP movie pressbook from 1959 and it is a real collector's item too. The movie was released in 4-track magnetic Stereo sound at selected theaters when it was first exhibited in America. That is the way I recall seeing it, at the Pantages Theater in Hollywood.

Dejael

[–] eddyw78 17 years ago

Wow you are a fan of this movie!!Shame you havent got a multi-region DVD player as the region problem would'nt be a problem.Its been released through Warner so maybe a region 1 NTSC version will become available for you soon.
I don't think the DVD has got stereo sound but I maybe wrong

[–] Dejael 17 years ago

Thanks Eddy, it's a real marketing mystery why classic films are often released on VHS Video and DVD by the major studios in foreign markets first before they are released right here in the Hollywood film capital. Go figure!

Dejael

[–] heybhc 17 years ago

This has just been announced by Wild East as part of a two-movie feature, with GOLIATH AND THE VAMPIRES (Gordon Scott) on the flip side. WE is a company that specializes in spaghetti westerns, and this is a departure for them, but Scott starred in a couple of SWs, and Sergio Corbucci is involved in one of the two films, so maybe it's not so strange. They usually find the best quality prints for their releases, so I'm optimistic.

[–] moondoggiedaddy2007 17 years ago

It is available in Region 1 from Sinister Cinema for under $17.00. It is titled "Terror of the Barbarians" (1959). Postage/S+H are extra. DVD item # X118D or VHS item # SS141. It is in color and made from a 35mm print. I don't know if it is in letterbox or if it has any extras. You can get more information by going to <http://www.sinistercinema.com>;.

[–] fwmurnau 16 years ago

Sinister's print is beautiful and it's properly widescreen-letterboxed.

[–] venoms5 16 years ago

The Wild East disc is a port of the Spanish Warner DVD and the quality is beautiful. Mono only.

[–] jamesroo 16 years ago

try wild east a company that puts out double features they now have
goliath and the barbarians & goliath and the vampires in wide screen.very good.

[–] jamesroo 15 years ago

never all the copies of this movie come from some
italian print and is not very good best chance is to
hope it comes on tv where u are and make a copy.i had
one but over yrs lost it.theres a double feature of it
called goliath and barbarians and goliath and vampires
with gordon scott.its ok but not great again copied
from italian print.until american international puts it
out on vhs or dvd forget getting a good copy.it copy
says goliath and barbarians and has lex baxter music
it wont be a good copy.

[–] Dejael 15 years ago

All of American-International movie releases are now the property of MGM-UA, and some are being released on DVD. American-International Pictures (AIP) went out of business in 1979, and part of it (the part belonging to producer Roger Corman) became New World Pictures. The original two principals, Nicholson and Arkoff, both passed away in the 1970s and their heirs broke up the studio and sold it off instead of keeping it together.
So seeing a beautiful restored version of the American version of this Italian picture on DVD will only happen when there is enough of a public demand made for it, and someone decides to spend a small fortune restoring this film from whatever elements are left in a vault somewhere. Unfortunately, Eastmancolor printed by Pathe Labs was very poor film stock and tends to deteriorate and fade red, so if the negatives are not in decent condition, the only way to restore this film will have to be a computerized digital version.

Dejael