Comparison between the shortened German DVD (including the Italian version) released by 3L and the uncut German DVD released by e-m-s


- 13 cuts / damages of the master
- Difference: 50 sec

A few damages of the master that are shorter than 0.2 seconds were ignored for lack of relevance.

Background

In 1979, The Sheriff and the Satellite Kid was the first of 2 (nowadays really trashy) sci-fi comedy movies starring Bud Spencer that did not include his usual partner Terence Hill but a little boy who plays an alien named H7-25. The special effects are really old-fashioned and many people feel annoyed by the little boy's (Cary Guffrey whom we know from Stephen Spielberg's Close Encounters of the Third Kind) performance. However, the family friendly comedy movie still has its very own charm and is accompanied by a catchy soundtrack composed by Oliver Onions.

In Germany, the movie was released several times. While the first few releases included an uncut version, later releases were based on an Italian master. As a result, the movie included several scenes that were missing out on some of the original footage (a problem German viewers nowadays also come across when watching other Bud Spencer movies).

The Versions

While all the previous German versions of the movie were uncut, the newer DVDs released by 3L include a version that misses out on about 50 seconds. The reason for this should be the usage of the Italian master. We do not have the Italien DVD, but an Italien TV broadcast had the exact same running time. Besides that a short re-cut scene during the end of the film is another evidence for this.

During the first half of the movie there are several short cuts due damages regarding the master resp. several scenes miss out on a few frames towards the beginning/the end. During the big brawl at the end there are a few pretty long parts that were cut out.



Time designations are given as follows:
3L DVD / e-m-s DVD

The shortened 3L-DVD starts a little later resp. at first includes a black screen at the beginning of the movie.

+ 1.3 sec




04:40 / 04:39-04:40

Master mistake: both the end of the tracking shot of Craft's sheriff's star and the beginning of the next shot are missing out on a few frames.

1.2 sec




Opening

The 3L-DVD includes the original Italian opening while the e-m-s shows a translated version.

3L DVD	e-m-s DVD

06:50 / 06:50-06:51

Craft's car drives a little longer.

0.8 sec




34:40 / 34:41-34:43

After H7-25 talked about bio-magnetic energy you see him a little longer. Craft then is shown a little earlier who therefore also starts to mutter a little earlier - H7-25's statement confused him.

1.9 sec



34:48 / 34:51-34:52

The long shot begins a little earlier.

0.7 sec



48:30 / 48:34-48:39

A shot where you only see the soldier's legs (who are directed by Craft using the proton beam) was cut out. The following scene misses out on the first 2 frames.

5.4 sec

48:32 / 48:41-48:46

In the 3L-version this scene is trimmed down to the last 1.5 seconds where the men leave the screen.
You don't see Craft directing them back and forth.

4.9 sec

77:30 / 77:44-77:55

This shot is considerably longer: H7-25 crawls back out from under the table and holds the proton beam in his hands - he grins. Then follows a short clobbering. After a close-up shot of the proton beam the scene where 2 soldiers accidentally hit each other (Craft ducked down) is repeated several times. Then Bud Spencer lunges out. The 3L-version also misses out on the first 2 frames of the following scene, however, you do see how Bud hits him in the face.

11 sec

77:37 / 78:02-78:16

A panning shot of the brawl in the foreground was cut out. Then you hear deputy sheriff Allen saying that he would easily beat up 22 or 23 of these guys if it wasn't for an illness he suffers from (in the German version it's rheumatism).
The guy next to him says something. Then follows another shot of the brawl.

14.2 sec

78:19 / 78:59-79:02

Additional shots of H7-25 and Brennan.

3.2 sec

79:32 / 80:15-80:19

Before the soldier moves forwards with a dive, the scene before he jumps off is "rewinded" twice - H7-25 messes around with his proton beam again.

3.6 sec

79:41 / 80:28-80:32

Before Brennan continues to bandy, H7-25 sneaks behind a table and places the proton beam there.

4.4 sec

79:52 / 80:43-80:48

Along with the jumpcut, a few repetitions of Brennan's move are chopped. Then he throws his enemies to the front.

4.8 sec

Re-Cut / Alternative Scene
79:53-79:58 / 80:49-80:50

The 3L-version now includes the shot of H7-25 which was cut out at 79:41 (not illustrated again).
At least the cut during the previous scene now makes a little sense: H7-25 now starts to influence the events (the previous repetitions wouldn't fit to this chronology).

In return, the e-m-s-DVD shows H7-25 in his previous place - this is about 1 second of alternative footage from a scene that obviously takes place a little later.

3L-DVD 3.2 sec longer

Different Colors

During the final brawl (where H7-25 says goodbye and is teleported back intos space) are pretty dark/take place in the evening in the older German version. In the Italian version they apparently revised the image - it looks like the scene takes place in broad daylight.

3L DVD	e-m-s DVD