{"id":32873,"date":"2026-01-27T02:24:44","date_gmt":"2026-01-27T10:24:44","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.cinemastance.com\/?p=32873"},"modified":"2026-01-27T02:24:44","modified_gmt":"2026-01-27T10:24:44","slug":"blasts-from-the-past-blu-ray-review-illustrious-corpses-1976","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/?p=32873","title":{"rendered":"Blasts from the Past! Blu-ray Review: ILLUSTRIOUS CORPSES (1976)"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

This \u201cLimited Edition\u201d Blu-ray is now available from\nRadiance Films.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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When you look back at cinema history, you often see features\nwith elements that still feel modern. In Italy during the late 1960s through\nthe 1970s, there was unrest in the streets and in government. Known as the\n\u201cYears of Lead\u201d, extremist political factions and supporters resulted in acts\nof violence and suppression. This period also inspired films that dealt with\nthese struggles, presenting the horrors average citizens and low-level civil\nservants faced due to corruption of those in power.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One of the notable Italian pictures that dealt with these\nthemes was Illustrious Corpses<\/em> aka Cadaveri Eccellenti<\/em>, a hit\nthat didn\u2019t specifically attack political parties (the film is set in a\nnameless European country, but it\u2019s hard to imagine the tale being set anywhere\nelse), but certainly made its feelings known on prevalent issues of the day.\nIt\u2019s a dark and impressive picture that, more than three decades after its\nrelease, was awarded the honor of being one of 100 films to be saved from the\nItalian Ministry of Culture. It is now arriving as a \u201cLimited Edition\u201d Blu-ray\nfrom Radiance Films.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The plot involves a series of murders involving prominent\njudges. Inspector Amerigo Rogas (Lino Ventura) is assigned the case. Things get\ncomplicated when other judges meet untimely ends and the officer is bluntly\nordered by the far right-wing government Security Minister (Fernando Ray) and\nhis underlings to find the \u201cmadman\u201d responsible (or at least an appropriate\nsuspect) in order to alleviate public fears.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Rogas sees the first murder as a revenge killing by a\npharmacist who was unjustly imprisoned by the judges. The inspector sets out to\nfind the downtrodden figure, but as the number of victims increase, tying all\nthe slayings to one figure becomes impossible. The protagonist also reconnects\nwith a school chum and leftist journalist Cusan (Luigi Pistilli), who listens\nto Rogas\u2019 growing concerns about who might be responsible. The lead\u2019s life is\nput at risk when evidence suggests a conspiracy involving the country\u2019s\nleaders. Paranoid, he fears that he is being followed, becomes unable to trust\nanyone at work, and doesn\u2019t know how to move forward with the case.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This is a political thriller and not a genre film, so the\nmany murders are seen after the fact. Despite this, there is a sense of tension\nthroughout as Rogas learns more about ways in which events are being\nmanipulated and controlled. The views of superiors are increasingly\ndistressing, including those of the Supreme Court\u2019s president (Max Von Sydow),\nwho considers himself all-powerful and incapable of error in any ruling he\nbrandishes. A few unexpected connections are also drawn between various politicians\nas Rogas attends a party late in the picture. And, while the various officials\naren\u2019t overly explicit in their threats, they do manage to intimidate the\nprotagonist and, by extension, viewers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The movie is impressively shot too, opening with a character\nwandering through a crypt lined with actual ancient corpses displayed all\naround. As mentioned, there were many real-life protests during this period,\nand a few normally picturesque sites are littered with grime and dirt, adding a\nsense of unease. The architecture of many buildings is impressive to behold,\nthough the interiors become increasingly darker, narrower and more\nclaustrophobic. The film generates atmosphere in abundance and maintains the\nfeeling as pieces of the truth are slowly revealed. When Rogas starts believing\nhimself to be a hunted man, he moves through darkened night environments and is\ninterrupted by flashes of light and sound. These well-captured moments generate\na palpable threat.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Not to give away too many spoilers (skip this paragraph if\nyou don\u2019t want to know more), but this is not a happy story, and so the\nfilmmakers deliver an appropriately grim and unsettling finale. Justice is not\ndelivered and villainous, extremist forces running the country are left to\ncontinue influencing and controlling the government and county without\nreprisal.  That may turn some off, but it feels appropriate given the tone\nof the picture and helps deliver the message with assurance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Overall, this is an excellent picture. While its story is\nexaggerated, it manages to paint a believable picture of important figures\ninvolved in corrupt activities and feels relatable, not only during the era it\nwas produced, but in the modern day as well. One can see why Italians admire\nthe film so much, as well as its commentary on politics of the era.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The Blu-ray disc itself is equally impressive.  While\nthe original negative of the movie appears to be lost, multiple elements\n(including two first generation reversal film elements) were located and\nrestored in Italy to create a new 4K scan. The picture on display looks very\ngood. There is only a tiny amount of natural grain in only a handful of scenes\nthat is barely noticeable. Otherwise, the movie looks remarkably clean and\nclear. Many of the interiors, including the crypt, look excellent. This is a\nvery strong transfer that will leave any fan pleased.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The disc contains a film historian commentary from Alex Cox\n(director of Repo Man, Sid & Nancy, Walker<\/em> and many other titles).\nAs with other movies he has presented, there is a great deal of informative\ndiscussion about the film, its history and the clever ways in which director\nFrancesco Rosi frames the action. He notes early on how Rogas is often seen out\nin the open early, before the world around him begins to close in. Cox also\nnotes that this is one of the few films in which a detective takes public\ntransit. It hadn\u2019t occurred to me, and was fun to see this as a technique that\npotentially helped to make the protagonist even more relatable to viewers. The\nspeaker also notes the director\u2019s interesting philosophy about using characters\nto engage audiences in his stories on an intellectual level. Cox makes many\nastute observations that I found enlightening, making for another engaging\ncommentary.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There are also two archival interviews with director\nFrancesco Rosi from a 1976 television interview. He expresses his political\nviews and what he was trying to accomplish with the movie. Rosi is a compelling\nspeaker, although his insistence that the story isn\u2019t specific about Italy\nseems a bit of a stretch. While these kinds of events could and have since\ntaken place in various countries under various regimes, it seems obvious he was\nspecifically referencing issues in his homeland. Star Lino Ventura also takes\npart in one of the discussions, noting how he was cast and his working\nrelationship with the filmmaker.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Professor Gaetana Marrone appears in a recently recorded\nsegment, discussing the source material, how it changed under Rosi\u2019s hands, and\nthe sociopolitical context for the movie. Again, it\u2019s a very informative piece\nand helps bring a lot more understanding about the background of the film and\npolitical strife in Italy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The disc also contains a trailer and an image gallery.\nFinally, a booklet is included containing writing on the movie, as well as a\nnewly translated interview on the movie with Rosi.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This is another great Blu-ray title from Radiance Films. Illustrious\nCorpses<\/em> is another impressive title that still holds up nearly 50 years\nafter its release. The picture quality is excellent and the extras add plenty\nof background information that help audiences unfamiliar with Italian history\nunderstand the movie even better. Any film fan who appreciates international\ncinema is well-advised to check it out.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

This \u201cLimited Edition\u201d Blu-ray is now available from Radiance Films. When you look back at cinema history, you often see features with elements that still feel modern. In Italy during the late 1960s through the 1970s, there was unrest in the streets and in government. Known as the \u201cYears of Lead\u201d, extremist political factions and […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":32874,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[107,2923,2939,7493,7809,9672,9673,9674,10042,12462,13485,14405,16234,16584],"class_list":["post-32873","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-dvdblu-ray-reviews","tag-107","tag-blasts-from-the-past","tag-blasts-from-the-past-blu-ray-review-2","tag-fernando-rey","tag-francesco-rosi","tag-illustrious-corpses","tag-illustrious-corpses-blu-ray-review","tag-illustrious-corpses-review","tag-italy","tag-lino-ventura","tag-max-von-sydow","tag-murder-investigation","tag-political-thriller","tag-radiance-films"],"blocksy_meta":{"styles_descriptor":{"styles":{"desktop":"","tablet":"","mobile":""},"google_fonts":[],"version":8}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32873","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=32873"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32873\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=32873"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=32873"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=32873"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}