Not to be confused with Frisco Kid the 1935 crime drama film starring James Cagney, The Frisco Kid is a 1979 American Western comedy film directed by Robert Aldrich, stars a pair of screen icons in Gene Wilder and Harrison Ford.
Gene Wilder (Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory) is Polish rabbit Avram Belinski, who is traveling to a synagogue in San Francisco and gets into all kinds of predicaments with bad luck following him. His lack of traveling experience nearly gets him killed several times as he is robbed and nearly killed by three outlaws, Matt Diggs (William Smith, Black Samson, Any Which Way You Can), his brother Darryl Diggs (George Ralph DiCenzo, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Back to the Future) and partner Mr. Jones (Ramon Bieri, The Andromeda Strain, Badlands). He is also nearly burned to death by Native Americans on his trip. During his travels, he is accompanied by bank robber Tommy Lillard (Harrison Ford, American Graffiti, Cowboys & Aliens, Star Wars) who befriends and becomes his traveling companion, often getting Avram out of jams. They start to learn more about each other’s cultures and beliefs, leading to more antics!
In my opinion, The Frisco Kid is an amusing and at times a heartwarming, touching film with a few funny moments. Gene Wilder and Harrison Ford have some great chemistry together and hand in excellent performances. I don’t think this was Robert Aldrich’s finest moment with some of the comedic moments were flat to me. Robert B. Hauser handled the cinematography for this movie, and he captures a wealth of beautiful, panoramic scenery. Looking at the scenery alone in this movie is worth watching!
The Frisco Kid receives a Blu-ray release courtesy of Warner Archive. Colors look sharp with excellent details to the vast amount of outdoor scenery. Mainly browns such as the ground and greens tend to look the sharpest under cool blue skies. Scenes by the beach look exceptionally sharp! Indoor scenery is also nicely textured. Flesh tones look accurate. No DNR or digital enhancements appear to have been applied and overall, this is a satisfactory viewing experience!
The DTS-HD 2.0 Master Audio track does a fine job with The Frisco Kid’s source elements. Dialogue, music, and other action and background sounds such as horseback riding, gunshots, are clean and balanced. No drop-offs or other audio issues were detected. English subtitles are available for this release.
The Frisco Kid comes with a theatrical trailer and that’s it for the supplemental package!
Fans of Robert Aldrich, Gene Wilder and Harrison Ford should give The Frisco Kid a spin to see if tickles your funny bone, and those who already had the movie on DVD should upgrade to this Blu-ray! Recommended!
The Frisco Kid
Director- Robert Aldrich
Cast- Gene Wilder, Harrison Ford
Country of Origin- USA
Distributor – Warner Archive / Warner Brothers
Number of Discs – 1
Reviewed by – David Steigman
Date –8/19/22