By Lee Pfeiffer
Fox continues to release "quadruple features" in DVD sets at outrageously low prices. The Sean Connery Collection consists of repackaged, previously released titles, but it's hard to resist getting four films for about $15. This collection consists of:
- Shalako- Connery's first post-Bond film was this 1968 Western produced by Euan Lloyd in 1968 and co-starring a stellar cast including Brigitte Bardot, Honor Blackman, Stephen Boyd, Woody Strode and Jack Hawkins, among others. Based on a Louis L'Amour adventure novel, the film is fun in a goofy sort of way, beginning with the schlocky title theme song. Bardot looks like she stepped out of a Beverly Hills salon, even when blasting bad guys with a six-shooter. Connery, seemingly miscast in a Western as a guide for an ill-fated hunting party of European aristocrats, acquits himself well, largely by playing it all straight. The action is well handled by director Edward Dmytryk and the film boasts some memorable sequences. (Blackman's rape and torture at the hands of hostile Indians is almost too unbearable to watch). Producer Lloyd has always been a master of giving the audience more than their money's worth, and Shalako does just that.There are no bonus features for this title.
- Cuba- Richard Lester's 1979 film was a box-office and critical bomb, but I've never quite understood why. The movie is totally engrossing and presents Connery with a great role as a soldier of fortune who is hired in a vain attempt to prop up the Batista regime as Castro's revolutionaries move on Havana. Connery reunites with former lover Brooke Adams amidst the chaos and undergoes a change of heart to side with the rebels after seeing the abuses of the government. The film balances comedy with lively action sequences and feature stellar turns by an impressive supporting cast that includes Jack Weston, Hector Elizondo, Chris Sarandon and Denholm Elliott. The film's theatrical trailer is included.