Lookin' Italian (Blu-ray Review)

• Reviewed by: Tim Salmons
• Review Date: Apr 09, 2026
• Format: Blu-ray Disc

Director

Guy Magar

Release Date(s)

1994 (February 24, 2026)

Studio(s)

Vision Quest Entertainment (Severin Films)

• Film/Program Grade: B-
• Video Grade: A-
• Audio Grade: A
• Extras Grade: B+

severinfilms.com

Review

After the failure of his 1987 film Retribution, filmmaker Guy Magar returned to television for a time, working on a few TV shows and helming a couple of TV movies, 1990’s Dark Avenger and 1992’s Stepfather 3, before re-entering the motion picture world. Scraping the funds together personally and self-producing, he directed his “homage to Scorsese and to Italian-American culture,” 1994’s Lookin’ Italian. Unfortunately, it suffered an even worse fate than his previous film, going straight to video after unsuccessfully convincing distributors to give it a chance. However, it regained interest in the aftermath once one of his leading stars, Matt LeBlanc, had a new hit TV show that you might have heard of. Subsequently, Lookin’ Italian was retitled Showdown and released on video by Leo Films with a cover that featured a mock close-up of Matt LeBlanc holding a gun, insinuating it to be a solo action movie, which it isn’t at all.

In the film, Vinny (Jay Acovone) is a former mafia lieutenant trying turn his life around after a violent shootout that continues to haunt him. Working in a used book store for Manza (Ralph Manza), he takes in his younger nephew Anthony (LeBlanc), whom the ladies can’t kept their hands off, leading Anthony to not being able to keep his mind on his work. Constantly frustrated with him, Vinny implores upon him to try and do better, and to stay out of a life of crime to avoid winding up like him. Attempting to loosen him up, Anthony invites his friends over for cards and Vinny is able to finally let go and have a fun for the first time in five years. Vinny also receives a visit from his former boss Don Dinardo (John LaMotta), who occasionally checks in on him, this time inviting him over for dinner. He reluctantly agrees and brings Anthony with him, but the visit has major repercussions for both Anthony and Vinny. Other cast members include Lou Rawls, Stephanie Richards, and a fresh-faced Denise Richards who appears in one scene.

Like Guy Magar’s previous film Retribution, Lookin’ Italian is anything but poorly-made. Performances are terrific across the board, although Jay Acovone steals the show entirely from his co-lead, out-acting him at all times. It’s not to say that LeBlanc is an inadequate performer, but this feels more like Acovone’s movie, and he brings the goods. He and LeBlanc have some genuine screen chemistry and play well off each other, but the narrative thread of Anthony constantly sleeping with women and Vinny being in complete disbelief or annoyed tends to be a bit on the repetitive side. Pacing is also an issue, and there’s a lot of scenery-chewing with not enough plot to justify it. It’s a very long time, almost an hour into the film, before there’s any true conflict. Yet at the same time, hanging out with Vinny and Anthony for an hour and not only seeing their relationship progress but actually grow as characters, is still rather enjoyable. It’s not necessarily that the plot is a problem, but it makes the film feel lopsided when it does show up.

Lookin’ Italian also looks and sounds good, thanks to cinematographer Gerry Lively (Waxwork, Friday) and composer Jeff Beal (Carnivàle, House of Cards), giving the film a visual and aural language that works well. You can certainly lobby criticisms at the film for being overly familiar, as it does in some ways feel like a continuation of Goodfellas (that is if you can imagine Henry Hill hiding out in a used bookstore after the events of that film), but it’s exactly what Guy Magar was going for. It’s not so much a pastiche of gangster movie clichés as much as it is a loving tribute to them, but also an examination of two characters. It’s a shame that Lookin’ Italian wound up as mostly a footnote in the career of Matt LeBlanc. It’s a much better film than that.

Cinematographer Gerry Lively shot Lookin’ Italian’ on 35mm film with Panavision Panaflex and Arriflex cameras and spherical lenses, finished photochemically, and intended for a theatrical aspect ratio of 1.85:1. Severin Films debuts the film on Blu-ray with a new 4K scan of the original camera negative, encoded to a dual-layered BD-50 disc. Being that the film has only ever been available on VHS in the US under the title Showdown, there’s nothing here to complain about as it’s a top notch picture. Detail is abundant with a solid layer of grain and a bitrate that sits at a consistent 35 to 40Mbps. The color palette offers a nice range of blues, reds, and greens, as well as deep blacks and excellent contrast. Indoor and outdoor environments alike have an often stylized appearance with some golden hues, as well as blue overtones, all of which are well-represented. The opening titles and some of the other opticals are derived from interpositive elements, but the footage surrounding them is sharp and organic. The image is stable and clean aside from some mild speckling. It’s a terrific-looking picture.

Audio is included in English 2.0 DTS-HD Master Audio with optional subtitles in English SDH. Recorded in Ultra Stereo, it offers some fine spread with atmospherics occurring all around. There’s also plenty of space for Jeff Beal’s score, which can be very bombastic at times. Dialogue exchanges are perfectly discernible and sound effects have some nice punch, including gunfire. It’s a clean and problem-free stereo experience.

The Region-Free Blu-ray release of Lookin’ Italian sits in a black Amaray case with an insert featuring a version of the artwork used for a Variety ad on the film, but also a couple of non-US VHS and DVD releases. The following extras are included:

• Directin’ Italian (HD and Upscaled SD – 10:56)
• Archival Interviews with Cast and Crew:
  • Guy Magar (HD and Upscaled SD – 12:35)
  • Jay Acovone (HD and Upscaled SD – 10:12)
  • Matt LeBlanc (HD and Upscaled SD – 11:03)
  • Stephanie Richards (HD and Upscaled SD – 7:37)
  • Lou Rawls (HD and Upscaled SD – 6:54)
  • John LaMotta (HD and Upscaled SD – 10:32)
• Q&A at the 1994 Palm Springs International Film Festival (SD – 20:04)
• Inside Edition Exclusive Look (SD – 3:56)
• On Set of Lookin’ Italian (SD – 3:53)
• Gag Reel (SD – 12:59)
• Trailer (HD – 1:56)

In the newly-shot interview Directin’ Italian, writer/producer/director Guy Magar talks about his early years as a film student, working in television, making Retribution, being inspired by Martin Scorsese for Lookin’ Italian, casting Jay Acovone and Matt LeBlanc, taking advantage of another set for another film to save money, shooting the aerial footage during editing, post production and searching for theatrical distribution, and his own definition of the title.

Next is a series of vintage interviews shot during the making of the film on and off the set, all of whom talk about the material and their roles on the project. They include Guy Magar and actors Jay Acovone, Matt LeBlanc, Stephanie Richards, Lou Rawls, and John LaMotta. Following that is a post-screening Q&A with Guy Magar, Jay Acovone, Matt LeBlanc, Stephanie Richards, and Ralph Manza from the 1994 Palm Springs International Film Festival. It was shot using a consumer-grade camcorder, so the video and sound aren’t always the greatest, but it’s good enough for questions after a showing of the film, which was finished just ten days prior to the screening.

A snippet from Inside Edition highlights the film, even though it hadn’t been released theatrically, focusing mostly on Matt LeBlanc’s participation since he had just become a star because of Friends. It also features an exclusive interview with Guy Magar. On Set of Lookin’ Italian is an assortment of behind-the-scenes footage from the shooting of various scenes. Last is a thirteen-minute Gag Reel, which also features some moments cut out of the film, and the trailer.

Severin Films is single-handedly resurrecting the work of Guy Magar and giving it the due that it deserves. Retribution and Lookin’ Italian are terrific films, and I hope that someday they get around to doing something with Stepfather 3. Regardless, their Blu-ray presentation of Lookin’ Italian is super solid and worth seeking out for fans of truly independent productions that didn’t get their flowers when they should have. Highly recommended.

- Tim Salmons

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