Director – Roland Klick (Supermarket, Dear Fatherland Be at Peace)
Starring – Mario Adorf (The Devil Strikes at Night, Devil’s Paradise), Marquard Bohm (Satan’s Brew, Spider’s Web), and Anthony Dawson (Dial “M” for Murder, Dr. No)
Release Date – 1970
Rating – 3/5
UHD Release – 3.5/5
Vinegar Syndrome has brought so many films to my attention that I had never heard before through their exploitation, horror, and sci-fi releases. This is a company that I quickly fell in love with and eagerly await their monthly releases like a child waiting for their parents to return home from work. Not only have they turned me on to hundreds of movies I had never heard of before but now they are bringing even more entertainment our way with their partner labels.
Sometime back Vin Syn posted the pre-order for the UHD release of the 1970 German western Deadlock from their new partner label Subkulture USA. I had never heard of the film nor the company before but if Vin Syn has a hand in it then you can bet your ass I’m going to check it out. Once I found a small window of opportunity in my work schedule I worked it some time to check it out.
**Spoiler Alert** The film follows a man who finds another man wounded and towing behind a suitcase filled with cash. He leaves the man to die in the desert with a bullet hole in his arm but he doesn’t. He follows the man home to retrieve his suitcase. Eventually the two bounce back and forth as they fight over the cash but a third man arrives which completely changes everything. **Spoiler Alert**
Honestly, I didn’t know what to expect from Deadlock but I was giving it a chance considering Vin Syn was attaching themselves to it. The movie was not a disappoint. A little long winded and repetitive but I still enjoyed it.
The acting in this one is pretty well done. The cast is relatively small and relied heavily on the three lead’s and the way they interact with one another. The characters are pretty generic for a western especially by the early 70s but the cast sticks with it resulting in some fun performances.
The story for this one is straight forward and plays heavily on the spaghetti westerns from the 60s. We get some moments of action, drawn out scenes, and story progression. With that being said, it does repeat itself several times without giving the viewer something new to grab on to. Also, the movie does drag on at times which will try your patience. Some of the scenes could have been trimmed down a good bit to help with pacing.
Finally, the film has blood but don’t expect a gorefest. It’s focus is on story and character development over blood and gore. Overall, Deadlock is a fantastic first time watch that I enjoyed. It’s not perfect and some may say it’s better than it actually is but I enjoyed it. I recommend snagging a copy and checking it out for yourself.
Special Features:
Region Free 4K Ultra HD / Blu-ray Set
4k UHD presented in HDR
Audio Commentary with director Roland Klick and Ulrich Von Berg
Video interview with Roland Klick
German Ending with Dedication
English Opening & Insert
English Ending with Dedication
Opening Textless
Trailer
Reversible cover artwork
English & German subtitles
