Sharpshooter Matthew Quigley (Tom Selleck) has traveled from Wyoming to Australia after answering an ad for a long-range rifleman. As he exists the boat after his three-month journey, he sees some men roughing up a woman they call Crazy Cora (Laura San Giacomo), a prostitute who isn’t quite right in the head. Cora insists she knows Quigley, but keeps referring to him as her love, Roy. Quigley tries to distance himself from Cora, but she ends up on the same wagon to the ranch to meet his new boss. British ranch owner Elliott Marston (Alan Rickman) is obsessed with the American West, and insists he was born in the wrong country. After Quigley provides a demonstration of his custom Sharps rifle and his ability to hit a target from an extremely far distance, Marston explains that he has hired Quigley to trake care of the local Aborigines who are “stubbornly outside normal rifle range” around his property. This does not go over well with Quigley, who throws Marston out his own window. So Marston orders his men to take Quigley and Cora into the middle of the desert, and let Australia take care of them. However, Marston has underestimated just how resourceful, resilient and lucky of a man Matthew Quigley is. Quigley doesn’t give up easily, and soon makes it his mission to put an end to Marston’s reign of terror against the Aboriginal people, becoming this mythical hero fighting for justice. Along the way, he unexpectedly starts to bond with Cora, whose dark past helps to explain some of that craziness.
Quigley Down Under was one of the first films I owned on laserdisc, and I watched that disc so many times. But since my laserdisc player has been boxed up for the past 20-or-so years, it’s been a long time since I revisited this movie. However, as soon as I heard Basil Poledouris’ iconic score on the main menu of the 4K disc, I was so excited to watch it again… and it did not disappoint.
Even though the film is set in Australia, it still feels like a classic Western. Matthew Quigley is a man of his word, and has strong morals. He’s a gentleman who is always well-spoken, even more-so when people are rude or annoying to him. He also always has some witty quip or remark for every situation. Even as Crazy Cora offers herself up to him, he refuses like a gentleman, wanting her to at least call him by his correct name, and to get to know her better first. Tom Selleck is perfectly cast in this role. He has the look and charisma of an American cowboy, and perfectly embodies the character. His horseback riding and gun-slinging feels so natural and authentic. He also adds this fun element of physical humor to some of the more action-packed fights.
Laura San Giacomo also does an excellent job. Crazy Cora could have been this ridiculous, annoying character, but San Giacomo really gives her a lot of heart, making you really care about Cora as she slowly reveals her devastating backstory. While her crazy antics often bring humor to film, it’s Cora’s more dramatic moments that really stick with you. The character gets this great full-circle redemption moment that is very moving to watch.
When we first meet Elliott Marston, he seems like a nice, genuine guy, who is just obsessed with the American West. But once Quigley learns that Marston wants him to kill innocent people in cold blood, and he refuses to take the job. That’s when we start to see Marston’s true colors, and exactly why the brilliant Alan Rickman was cast in this role. Elliott Marston is so deliciously evil, and your typical Western villain, as he tells his men, “Matthew Quigley is really beginning to annoy me.” He may be a British ranch owner living in Australia, but he idolizes the idea of facing off in the streets of Dodge City like Wild Bill, with his Colt pistol in hand. Rickman is so good at playing the baddie, and it’s fun to see just how despicable Marston can be as he sends wave after wave of men after Quigley, and even tries to set up one of his men to serve as a shield when he knows that Quigley is coming for him.
Quigley Down Under was just as fun and entertaining as I remembered. The cast is great, the characters are well-developed, and the film finds this perfect blend of drama, action and humor. Plus there’s a delightful, jaunty score that really sets the tone.
Shout! Studio’s new 4K release is remastered from a new 4K scan of the original camera negative, and the result looks fantastic. There is a natural and pleasant level of film grain throughout, and an excellent level of detail in faces and textures, such as the dry, cracked desert ground. The release is Dolby Vision color graded, giving the film a natural earth tone color palette that evokes the era. Darker nighttime scenes also look great, with solid blacks, and the the orange glow of firelight that doesn’t bleed. The audio track is only stereo, so it doesn’t have a fully immersive feeling, but it is still quite satisfying. Dialogue remains clear throughout, the score sounds wonderful, and there is nice use of the left and right to add some dimension when the gunshots ring out.
This 4K release includes both a 4K UHD disc as well as a Blu-ray disc, which are packed on either side of a standard 4K keepcase. As with all Shout! releases, there is no digital copy, and our review copy did not include a slipcover. The bonus material can only be found on the Blu-ray disc, and the contents are identical to Shout’s previous Blu-ray release of the film—two retrospective interviews, a vintage EPK featurette, some TV spots and the film’s trailer. However, the new 4K scan has been used for both the 4K and the Blu-ray disc, so the Blu-ray disc is not just a duplicate of the one from the 2018 Blu-ray release.
What’s Included:
Film: (1:59:59)
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4K Ultra HD:
- 2160p / Widescreen 2.35:1
- Dolby Vision / HDR10
- Audio: English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Stereo
- Subtitles: English SDH
- 1080p / Widescreen 2.35:1
- Audio: English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Stereo
- Subtitles: English SDH
- ”This One Shoots a Mite Further” — A Closer Look At The Sharps Rifle With Master Armorer, Mike Tristano (23:09)
In this featurette originally recorded for Shout! Factory’s 2018 Blu-ray release, master armorer Mike Tristano talks about the role of an armorer on a TV series/movie, the history of the Sharps rifle and its ammunition, other guns of thr era, how the film increased the popularity of the rifle, the 1860 Army Colt used by Elliott Marston, the weapon used by the British troops in the film, and more. He demonstrates some of the feature of the rifle on a real gun. - “Finding Crazy Cora” — An Interview With Laura San Giacomo (17:51)
In this featurette originally recorded for Shout! Factory’s 2018 Blu-ray release, actress Laura San Giacomo talks about how she got the role, filming in Australia, learning to ride a horse, researching her character, her costume, working with Tom and Alan, the Aboriginal performers and the baby, and more. - ”Rebirth of the Western” (7:14)
Vintage narrated promotional EPK featurette featuring behind-the-scenes footage, clips, and on-set interviews with stars Tom Selleck & Laura San Giacomo, and director Simon Wincer. Presented in 4:3 full frame format. - TV Spots (1:04)
Two 30-second TV spots play back-to-back. - Theatrical Trailer (1:52)
Blu-ray:
Extras:
The bonus material is identical to Shout! Factory’s 2018 Blu-ray release.
Final Thoughts:
Quigley Down Under is probably my all-time favorite Western. It has all of the elements—a gun-slinging, horseback-riding gentleman hero, an evil, ruthless villain, and a damsel in distress (even if she’s a bit crazy). The film’s gorgeous setting instantly transports the viewer back to the 1800s, and the tone of the film adds a lot of humor in with the action and drama. Shout Select’s new 4K release looks and sounds great. However, those who already own Shout’s previous Blu-ray release won’t find any new bonus material. That said, I enjoyed the two Shout-produced interviews that were carried over from that release. The release comes highly recommended for any fan of the film, or of Westerns in general.
Quigley Down Under – 4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray [4K UHD]
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