Grand Slam

Reviewed by Jason Lockard

Crime Thrillers take viewers on a rollercoaster ride through amazing adventures. The action the chases it's an exhilarating experiences film fans can never seem to get enough of. We even love the classic crime thrillers so much more as they are so retro.

Kino Lorber under the division KL Studio Classics have went back to the 1960s and grabbed a classic thriller with an amazing cast and released it on Blu-ray. We are talking about 1967's Grand Slam.

Professor James Anders (Edward G. Robinson) is quiet schoolteacher, but he has an amazing plan that if pulled off will set him up for life. He recruits an elite team of criminals all in the hopes of robbing $10 million in diamonds from an impenetrable Rio de Janeiro vault at the peak of the city’s Carnival. It is a longshot, but if they can pull this off, they may not be ready of the surprises yet to come?

Along with the great Edward G. Robinson he is joined by a great cast including Janet Leigh (Psycho), Klaus Kinski (For a few dollars more), Robert Hoffmann (Wake Up and Die), Riccardo Cucciolla (Un Flic), George Rigaud (All the Colors of the Dark) and Adolfo Celi (Thunderball).

The direction by Giuliano Montaldo (Sacco & Vanzetti) is masterful to say the least and an movie score by Ennio Morricone (The Good, the Bad and the Ugly) keeps you invested every second. Now wonder Roger Ebert called it “one of the best heist movies”. Now while this film may run 2 hours, you would never know it, as the ride is such an enjoyable one.

Kino Lorber has transferred this film to Blu-ray in 1080p and it is in 2.35:1 aspect ratio. The film looks really nice in HD. The pictures is crisp and colors really pop off the screen and the soundtrack is clear giving maximum quality to Ennio Morricone's fantastic score. 

Now Kino Lorber didn't just give us a bare bone Blu-ray here, no way. They added some nice bonuses, take a look at what is included.

* NEW Audio Commentary by Film Historians Howard S. Berger, Steve Mitchell and Nathaniel Thompson

* Theatrical Trailer

* Optional English Subtitles

Watch The Trailer Below:

As a fan of Edward G. Robinson it was so nice to see another film by this screen legend. But the others just enhanced the cool factor of this film exponentially. Now I enjoyed this film leaps and bounds and I can not recommend it enough for fans of classic crime thrillers. 

If you love Edward G. Robinson as much as me or are a fan of those classic crime dramas this new Blu-ray from Kino Lorber is an absolute must own. Head over to Amazon and get your copy today.

Out of 4 film reels (4 being the best) KL Studio Classics Blu-ray release of Grand Slam receives...