Trinity Twin Pack

The two films collected in this boxed set—They Call Me Trinity (1970) and the sequel Trinity Is Still My Name (1971)—both directed by E.B. Clucher (i.e., Enzo Barboni), are almost certainly the best of the Terence Hill-Bud Spencer collaborations. They Call Me Trinity teamed Italian actors Mario Girotti (i.e., Hill) and Carlo Pedersoli (i.e., Spencer) in an action-packed, rib-tickling spoof of the spaghetti western. Playing cheerfully corrupt brothers holed up in a town coveted by the local land baron (Farley Granger), Hill and Spencer kidded Italian horse-opera conventions mercilessly and appeared to be having a whale of a good time in the process. The unanticipated international success of this raucous romp inspired several sequels and kicked off a professional pairing that not only lasted a full quarter century but also spread to other genres. Trinity Is Still My Name was even better, adding more humor to a tale in which the duo muck up a gun-smuggling operation. Hill and Spencer were delightfully anarchic antiheroes, and their films blended action and comedy in perfect proportions, although the relatively restrained They Call Me Trinity now seems tame in comparison to the pair's later, increasingly outrageous efforts. DVD extras include a photo gallery of lobby cards and trailers. Recommended. (E. Hulse)[Blu-ray Review—Sept. 5, 2017—Hen's Tooth, 2 discs, 233 min., not rated, Blu-ray: $29.95—Making their first appearance on Blu-ray, 1970's They Call Me Trinity and 1971's Trinity is Still My Name both sport fine transfers and DTS-HD 2.0 soundtracks. Extras include a photo gallery. Bottom line: these classic spaghetti Westerns make a welcome debut on Blu-ray.]