Prime Cut

Good flick

A terrific neo noir with touches of Hitchcock, “Prime Cut” revels in the cliches of many of the genres- the criminal with the heart of gold and the sleazy underworld of the bad guys.Spoilers:Set in the Heartland, the film. Follows Nick (Lee Marvin) an enforcer hired by the Irish Mob who is send to collect from Mary Ann (Gene Hackman-really!) the owner of a meat packing planet who has a prostitution racket on the side for young and underage girls. Mary Ann had been stiffing the Mob on a debt and each enforcer has been killed and sent back in an interesting way. Nick is horrified at the prostitution ring that Mary Ann runs; they have history as well and that history plays into the animosity of both men as they fight it out Ina thrilling conclusion. Towards the end of his career as an enforcer, Nick disliked the way his world has turned out.Michael Richtie was at the beginning of his career as a director but was clearly in control as a director staging some thrilling scenes with echoes of Hitchcock’s classics “North by Northwest” and other classics. Richtie doesn’t ape Hitch so much as may the sequences work in the context of his film.The 4 K and Blu-ray look terrific from a fresh transfer of the original camera negative. There’s virtually no issues with the films. Colors are strong, detail excellent and it looks of its time without any messing about with the image.The mono audio pushes dialogue up front but there is a nice, robust feel to the rest of the mono soundtrack.The film has two commentary tracks both very good (one has to use the audio selection to hear them as I didn’t see it in the main menu for the 4K). We find out, for example, that Hackman took his second billed role because he had just finished “The French Connection” and hadn’t worked for six months. Richtie and Marvin butted heads because Richtie wanted Marvin to do a love scene with the much younger Sissy Spacek in her debut. Marvin felt uncomfortable with that because of their age difference (she was 23 and Marvin was 49).A Blu-ray (that was previously released a couple of years back) is also included. Kino has done a fine job of brining this minor classic to 4K and Blu-ray. One may feel like they need to take a shower after watching the film because of how sleazy Hackman plays an already nasty character like Mary Ann. Putting this in the heartland with all the corruption of the big city adds an element that is missing from many films like this. The corruption at heart of Mary Ann and the community he has tainted by his presence points to the rot that was growing in America at the time.

Wow. Practically a night and day difference from the earlier bluray. There are the usual increases in clarity, sharpness and even less grain overall, though still entirely natural and healthy-looking. But, the biggest improvement is that the dark areas of the many true night shots, mostly found in the beginning, are much improved over that bluray, which, in that respect, looked horrid. When I first viewed it then, I had to wonder if it was a less-than-ideal print or if the original film was just that down-and-dirty in its production values. But, now I feel like I’m seeing the real quality of this film brought back to life. I’m sure Kino’s working from the 35mm, camera negative had a big impact on all that.The film is terrific, a gangland action-adventure that also doubles very well as dark comedy. Once we're initially introduced to the laid-back and even ‘leisurely amusing’ take on its own, dark material this film has to offer – then we're off and running. That, and Ritchie’s eye for detail of middle America makes for a ‘pleasing’ viewing experience, even for this otherwise, sober-minded, sordid, dark and violent content. But, this overlooked, unusual entry of a film, and it's not even really a true noir, is just as uniquely a worthwhile find today as I think it was back then - well worth going back for. Unexpectedly, it's actually a hoot!Even with the violence and nudity here, on the whole this one somehow manages to rise above. Maybe it’s the hero aspect, but also Ritchie’s effective and insightful handling of both the ambiance and material. And in every category, it’s a well made film. Evidently it wasn’t marketed as dark comedy per se, but that’s clearly what it was always meant to be – and I think it's a great one! Glad to see Kino now giving it its due in a form that finally does it justice!Don’t sleep on this one!

Good action stunts and a topic that seldom being addressed by film makers. Child trafficing and sex slaves . A parent’s nightmare .

A real treat from Michael Ritchie (The Golden Child) with an excellent script, an A+ cast and plenty of action, despite the fact that it's really a very dark – almost surreal – comedy/satire about the meat industry in the 'American Heartland.'As usual, Lee Marvin, Gene Hackman and Sissy Spacek bring their best work. very graphic cinematography, real physical special effects (no CGI) and good plot twists make it a riveting experience.Highly recommended for those who like their dark satires well-done!