- Aspect Ratio: 1:85:1
- Video Codec: AVC/MPEG-4
- Resolution: 1080p/24 (23.976Hz)
- Audio Codec: English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1, French DTS 2.0 Surround, Spanish DTS 2.0 Surround
- Subtitles: English SDH, French, Spanish
- Region: A (Region-Locked)
- Rating: PG
- Run Time: 108 Mins.
- Discs: 1 (1 x Blu-ray)
- Studio: HBO Home Entertainment
- Blu-ray Release Date: November 22, 2011
- List Price: $14.98
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BestBuy.com:
Purchase Three Amigos! on Blu-ray at CD Universe
Shop for more Blu-ray titles at Amazon.com
Overall
[Rating:3.5/5]
The Film
[Rating:3.5/5]
Video Quality
[Rating:3.5/5]
Audio Quality
[Rating:3/5]
Supplemental Materials
[Rating:2/5]
Click thumbnails for high-resolution 1920X1080p screen captures
(Screen captures are lightly compressed with lossy JPEG thus are meant as a general representation of the content and do not fully reveal the capabilities of the Blu-ray format)
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The Film
[Rating:3.5/5]
I never saw ¡Three Amigos! In the theatre, but I have vivid memories of watching it at home on HBO as a teenager, so it is fitting then that the first time in years I have have seen the film again it would be on newly remastered Blu-ray release from HBO Home Entertainment. There’s no need, really, to give too much of an in depth analysis of this film, for it would be unwarranted. ¡Three Amigos! is what it is, a silly, mindless, often funny comedy starring three titans of the genre, Steve Martin, Chevy Chase, and Martin Short, who was at the time just beginning to really make a name for himself. The story has the three comedians playing a group of silent film stars in 1916 who find themselves out of work and agreeing to take a job in Mexico that they believe will be an easy pay out for a simple appearance. Unbeknownst to them, the woman who hired them believed them to be real heroes and wants them to help save her remote village from the grips of the notorious bandito El Guapo (Alfonso Arau). It’s part musical, part silent film, part Magnificent Seven, and wholly absurdist comedy, but it is fun for the whole family nonetheless.
Video Quality
[Rating:3.5/5]
Director John Landis oversaw the transfer of ¡Three Amigos! himself, so one can assume it looks exactly how he wants it too. With that being said, the AVC/MPEG-4 1080p encodement is uneven at best. The opening sequence of the Amigos riding on horseback singing shows a heavy layer of grain, while other spots of the film look excessively clean, like it has been overly DNRd. Colors have been greatly improved in this transfer and really pop, especially in some comparison shots I’ve seen of the original master, but flesh tones show some definite red push, looking far too pinkish most of the time.
Audio Quality
[Rating:3/5]
The lossless DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 soundtrack is disappointing to say the least. I realize this is a pretty old film, but the mix could have been better than this. The low frequencies sound out of balance with the rest of the mix, sounding quite unnecessarily boomy at times, while much of the sounds in the mix sound on the thin side. Dialogue also has a lot of clipping in many spots and that becomes increasingly disruptive. The surround channels have an unnatural sounding amount of ambience.
Supplemental Materials
[Rating:2/5]
The supplements include a brief interview with Steve Martin, Chevy Chase, and Martin Short from twenty-five-years ago and deleted scenes that recover portions of a long-lost subplot featuring a rivalry between the Amigos and a character played by Fran Drescher. There is also a booklet that includes a brand new interview with the reunited stars of the film.
The supplements:
- Cast Interview (1.33:1; 480i/60; 00:05:39) – From twenty-five years ago
- Deleted Scenes:
- Original Opening – The village of Santa Poco
- Hollywood – The Mansion and Extended Studio Scenes
- El Guapo’s Photo Tableau
- Dusty, are you ready yet?
The Definitive Word
Overall:
[Rating:3.5/5]
A bit of 1980s hilarity returns in high definition, allowing film fans to view these comedians at something closer to the heights of their comedic talents. Was ¡Three Amigos! any kind of Oscar material? Not now and not then, but it is a wonderful bit of popcorn escapism.
Additional Screen Captures
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[amazon-product]B005ERX1UU[/amazon-product]
BestBuy.com:
Purchase Three Amigos! on Blu-ray at CD Universe
Shop for more Blu-ray titles at Amazon.com
Overall
[Rating:3.5/5]
The Film
[Rating:3.5/5]
Video Quality
[Rating:3.5/5]
Audio Quality
[Rating:3/5]
Supplemental Materials
[Rating:2/5]
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