EUROCRIME RARITIES: VOLUME 1 - BLU-RAY REVIEW

Following the runaway success of William Friedkin’s THE FRENCH CONNECTION (1971) and Don Siegel’s DIRTY HARRY (1971), it didn’t take long for Italy to begin producing countless imitations. With their distinctly anarchic tone and scenes of gritty violence, many of these homegrown pictures also reflected the societal ills and political climate in Italy at the time (a timeframe that became known as anni di piombo or the Years of Lead) while blazing a trail towards a new kind of filmmaking during the ’70s. Commonly referred to as polizieschi, landmark films such as Stefano Vanzina’s THE EXECUTION SQUAD (1971), Enzo G. Castellari’s HIGH CRIME (1973) and Umberto Lenzi’s undisputed action classic THE TOUGH ONES (1976) are just a few of the titles that, if mentioned today, are usually synonymous with briskly-paced action and some effectively disturbing violence. But, as with any filmmaking trend in Italy, this surge in popularity quickly resulted in several films which were wildly diverse in genre and tone, not unlike the films included in Vinegar Syndrome Labs’ first volume of EUROCRIME RARITIES.

 

In the noir-inspired DAY OF THE COBRA (1980), the film marked the sixth time director Enzo G. Castellari had the satisfaction of working with Franco Nero. Better known under his serpentine namesake, “The Cobra,” Nero plays Larry Stanziani, a disgraced narcotics agent who was framed by powerful bureaucrats and jailed for three years. While struggling to earn his keep as a second-rate PI in San Francisco, Stanziani is approached by his old narcotics bureau chief Goldschmidt (Willam Berger) with an offer to crack an important case in Genoa, Italy involving his old nemesis Serge Kandinsky, a club-footed international drug-smuggler with a stiletto swordstick and shadowy identity (“He’s a homosexual. The worst kind. Violent.”). But when Kandinsky is murdered, Stanziani must track down the bigshots behind the lucrative heroin syndicate, which includes locating a key to an elusive safety deposit box containing a list of all the dealers’ top-level dope connections.

 

Incessantly chewing gum in his perpetually rumpled fedora and trenchcoat, the “incorruptible” Nero is first seen driving an AMC Gremlin around the Frisco streets, while trying to relieve his daily stress by squeezing on a black rubber ball. Nero, as quirkily charismatic as ever, kicks impressive butt as the outwardly mild-mannered but durable lead who weaves his way through the film’s numerous plot twists. The somewhat messy scenario also embraces Castellari’s stock-in-trade with several top-notch if no-frills stunt choreography. Highlights include a dockland footchase / shootout that ends with exploding gasoline drums, a smackhead Kungfu vixen puts the foot to Nero in a nightclub only to be unwigged as Kandinsky’s draghag gay lover, and a climatic shootout at an abandoned warehouse, which sees Castellari regulars Romano Puppo and Massimo Vanni going through the rounds. 

 

Thanks to Media Home Entertainment’s widely distributed VHS and Beta videocassettes, Castellari’s film was available in just about every video store during the ’80s and ’90s. However, it wasn’t so fortunate during the DVD era with Televista’s unauthorized bootleg (which was nothing more than a VHS rip ported to DVD) being the sole option, at least here in North America. With the advent of Blu-ray, DAY OF THE COBRA was released on several English-friendly discs in Germany from the likes of FilmArt, Media Target and Cinestrange. Featuring a nicely detailed restoration, Vinegar Syndrome’s Blu-ray is noticeably more colourful and better balanced than FilmArt’s release, which does appear more faithful to its original presentation highlighting many of the gritty textures of the Genoa docklands and abandoned warehouses. Audio options are available in both English and Italian, both of which are DTS-HD MA 2.0 mono with the latter option having proper English translated subtitles. Both audio tracks are effective with Paolo Vasile’s rugged score perfectly accenting the film’s hard-hitting veneer. SDH subtitles are also included. 

 

Included on the disc are a nice selection of special features beginning with an audio commentary from the always welcome trio of authors and film historians Nathaniel Thompson, Troy Howarth and Eugenio Ercolani. In this immersive discussion, they explore the film’s place within the world of polizieschi (or if the film qualifies as such) and its place within Franco Nero’s filmography, Enzo G. Castellari’s fondness for stunt-laden films, the film’s colourful cast and crew, and plenty more besides. It’s an engaging, must listen, which covers a wide spectrum of topics that offers plenty of insight and valuable information into Castellari’s working methods and the peculiarities of the genre itself. In The Director Who Looked Like a Stuntman (24m16s), Castellari sits down for an on-camera interview, which has him discuss his enthusiasm for action scenes and the “supportive” collaboration he had with stuntmen. He also charts the genesis of the film and how co-writer Aldo Lado was originally slated to direct, his choice of setting the film in the port city of Genoa, “the Humphrey Bogart and Jennifer Jones kind of vibe” he added to the film, his first rocky meeting with “actor on the rise” Nero prior to making HIGH CRIME, and the casting for said film, which usually required finding actors that were “highly expressive physically as well as agile on their feet.” In the second featurette Henchman with a Heart of Gold (21m57s), prolific actor / stuntman Massimo Vanni (who would later adopt the Alex McBride alias for his string of Philippine-lensed action / horror films such as Claudio Fragasso’s AFTER DEATH [1989]) goes over his work in the ’70s, which required a lot of physical action alongside the acting, the spontaneous nature of the action scenes, his work with mentor and friend Castellari who always “enjoyed a great relationship with his stuntmen,” working in San Francisco, and so much more. 

 

In DIRTY GANG, the second film on Vinegar Syndrome’s set, trigger-happy robbers hole-up in a fancy residence with a number of hostages. To stall for time, District Attorney Alberti (Mario Brega) agrees to their increasingly agitated demands for safe transportation elsewhere, but as they impatiently await their promised car, determined Inspector Ghini (Luc Merenda) leads his Special Squad on a surprise raid. No sooner has Ghini mopped up his mess – except for the paperwork – than he is dispatched to the scene of Chief Inspector Taddei’s homicide by masked bandits, making this the sixth policeman murdered in less than a year. This latest murder has armed robbery specialist Antonio Lanza’s name written all over it, even though Lanza (Franco Citti) has recently been locked up in a Sardinian prison. Obviously not convinced, Ghini then has the unenviable task of proving otherwise…

 

Providing added comic relief, Tomas Milian reprises his role as “Monnezza” or “Err Monnezza, if one chooses to replicate the Roman dialect (usually referred to on English prints as either “Trashy” or “Garbage Can”), a character that was first introduced in Umberto Lenzi’s FREE HAND FOR A TOUGH COP (1976). Essentially a cross between his “Cuchillo” character from his two Sergio Sollima westerns and a far less sociopathic variation of Aldo Caponi’s “Blade” in Mario Bava’s RABID DOGS (1974), Milian once again sports a resplendent yet laughable ‘Afro’ wig and an increasing amount of eyeliner, and this time maintains his shaky cover by running a pasta restaurant. An underworld player who has a heart of gold underneath his coarse exterior, he also plays Fagin to a motley mob of petty street crooks giving seminars on the creative art of theft via his Free Independent Gangsters’ Academy. But when one of Monnezza’s ‘graduates’ (Paolo Bonetti) takes a job as a getaway driver on a diamond robbery for slick Sicilian bandit Belli (Elio Zamuto), Belli considers a dead accomplice way less of hindrance than a live one. Needless to say, Trashy’s gang – though avowed pacifists all – are determined to see their friend avenged.

 

Thanks to Milian’s performance as the casually lawless Monnezza, DIRTY GANG is more personable and generally less mean-spirited than some of Umberto Lenzi’s work within the genre. Outside of his cartoonish appearance, Milian invests his character with some depth and pathos (here wonderfully dubbed on Italian prints by Milian’s dubber of choice Ferruccio Amendola), which is an interesting contrast to Merenda’s unorthodox conduct punishing criminals in his own inimitable style. That said, DIRTY GANG attains a nice middle ground, balancing its comedic elements with sufficient straight-ahead action, which should easily satisfy Eurocrime enthusiasts. 

 

Also referred to as THE RASCAL’S GANG on Vinegar Syndrome’s box set, this consistently watchable crossover was also released on U.K. videotape as DESTRUCTION FORCE (it’s most common title), which showed up in several grey-market editions throughout the ’90s from outfits such as Luminous Film & Video Wurks. In 2021, it surfaced in Germany as a limited edition Blu-ray/DVD mediabook (with variant covers), which finally allowed English-language viewers to see the film in its intended 2.35:1 aspect ratio, even if it was only 1080i. Three DTS-HD MA 2.0 mono audio tracks in German, Italian and English were also included with optional German and English subtitles, but the English subs were taken from the German dub track, so watching the film in its native Italian didn’t work at all. The shorter German theatrical version (84m34s) was also included, alongside an archival featurette produced by Nocturno with Merenda Milian and Massi (19m59s), the film’s German trailer (3m02s) alongside additional Italocrime trailers, and a 24-page booklet in German and English with writing from Giorgio Navarro.

 

As expected, Vinegar Syndrome’s new restoration offers a very pleasing experience with excellent detail, stronger colours, and a more film-like appearance. Aside from a few instances of brief instability due to some inherent damage on the film, this new presentation is a huge improvement, which goes the same for the DTS-HD MA 2.0 mono audio options in English and Italian. Thanks to the inclusion of properly translated English subtitles for the latter track (and SDH subtitles), this Italian dub adds tremendously to the film’s overall enjoyment. While it’s always nice to have multiple audio options included, the film is severely compromised in its crummy English-language variant, which includes the most cartoonish succession of post-synched voices ever heard. Most amusing is the thick ethnic drawl given to Milian, while Mario Brega is dubbed with a comically shrill rasp that sounds like gravel-throated actor Lionel Stander after inhaling helium. One dubbing artist (the best of the lot, but that ain’t sayin’ much!) with a pompous uppercrust English accent also modulates his tones and dubs several characters throughout the film! This notorious group of English dubbing artists also worked on several Eurociné productions as well as other Italocrime pictures that include Segri & Ferrara’s VIOLENCE FOR KICKS (1977) and Stelvio Massi’s otherwise entertaining HUNTED CITY (1979). 

 

As for extras, both Eugenio Ercolani and Troy Howarth return for another excellent audio commentary with observations on Stelvio Massi’s entire career, Milian’s numerous crime films and the “fierce debate” over the creation of “Err Monnezza,” Merenda’s contributions to the genre and the animosity between the two lead actors, the odd “schizophrenic” nature of said film, the re-purposed music of Bruno Canfora, the very “complex world of producers in Italy,” and their final thoughts on Massi’s cop films. Complimenting this informative and thoughtful discussion, the VS disc also offers a pair of on-camera interviews beginning with The Nonviolent Professional (20m01s), which has Merenda going over his career and his attempt to make films that were “a little different,” his respect for Milian, even though Milian wanted “nothing to do with him,” and his lasting relationship with director Massi. In A Beautiful Ugly Face (23m50s), actor Corrado Solari talks about his work in the theatre during the late ’60s, his fortuitous casting in Sergio Leone’s DUCK, YOU SUCKER (a.k.a. A FISTFUL OF DYNAMITE, 1971), his many crime pictures which he did with “great enthusiasm,” and the improvisational acting style of Tomas Milian in this well-edited piece that turns out to be a very enjoyable career overview of the man’s work.

 

Having already collaborated with Massi on the stunt-laden car crash spectacular HIGHWAY RACER (1977), which starred Merli in a rare appearance sans his trademark ’70s-style ’stache – THE IRON COMMISSIONER (1978) is far more restrained than your usual Merli headliner. This time the iconic lead stars as Maurizio “Mauro” Mariani, an overconfident (“I always luck out!”) police detective who, at the start of the film, thwarts a group of kidnappers and rescues a rich industrialist’s daughter at the behest of his superior Crivelli (Chris Avram). Urged by his colleagues to go visit his son Claudio (Walter Di Santo) on his birthday, Mauro also meets up with his estranged wife Vera (Janet Agren), who still resents him for putting his job before she and their son. Meanwhile, back at the station, Sergio Conforti (Massimo Mirani), an unstable young man who blames Mauro for killing his father, takes a group of people hostage, but when Vera and Claudio accidentally stumble into the precinct, Claudio is snatched for added security, and Mauro will stop at nothing to get him back…

 

Written by prolific writer Roberto Gianviti, THE IRON COMMISSIONER was most likely more ambitious in its conception than what actually transpires on screen. A subplot involving a kidnapping ring run by the “Moroccan” (amusingly played by Italian typecast ‘lowlife’ performer Franco Garofalo) and his main squeeze Rita (Mariangela Giordano who would later become immortalized in the Italian trash horror classics BURIAL GROUND [1980] and GIALLO A VENEZIA [1980]) accounts for much of the film’s compulsory action scenes (including a stylishly-realized shootout at a bottling factory). That said, a sizeable portion of the ‘action’ unfolds within the dreary confines of a police precinct, a fact which only further substantiates the film’s quickie status. As the title suggests, Mauro never wavers in his fight to uphold the law… even when he himself is breaking it! Mauro’s almost habitual dissention is, for the most part, reluctantly accepted (“…you gamble with your life as if you were playing cards!”), but when Mauro’s son is kidnapped, even his CO Crivelli doesn’t hesitate to stop him. As with many of the subsequent Massi / Merli collaborations, THE IRON COMMISSIONER is at times actually quite introspective, not only waxing philosophical on the futility of the thankless job of law enforcement (a typical observation of most Italocrime films), but also the sheer loneliness of it; which, in this case, is further exacerbated by the possibility of Mauro losing everything (i.e., his son). This situation not only pushes him right to the very brink, but just about breaks his ‘iron-clad’ persona in the process.

 

Announced in advance trade press notices as both THE IRON INSPECTOR and COP OF IRON, the Italian version has been released numerous times on Italian VHS videocassette by the likes of Avo Film, Cine International and Video 7. In 2004, Avo Film debuted the film on DVD and their bare bones disc featured a solid 16x9 transfer, but as expected, the only audio option was a Dolby Digital Italian track. In 2018, Cinestrange released this long-dormant Italocrime film on Blu-ray in its very first English-friendly edition under the German title KOMMISSAR MARIANI – ZUM TODE VERURTEILT (trans: “Commissioner Mariani – Sentenced to Death”) as part of their ‘Violenza All’ Italiana’ collection. Once again, Cinestrange’s transfer is middling at best, which appears to have succumbed to a fair amount of unnecessary noise reduction. Both German and Italian audio options are offered in DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0, with a choice of either German or English subtitles, and while many of the subs do include a fair amount of grammatical errors, they’re intelligible enough and are greatly appreciated indeed during much of the film’s talky stretches. Extras include a newly created trailer, and an extensive still gallery (33m02s) playing over Lallo Gori’s uncharacteristic electronic score, which was originally issued by Beat Records on CD with Gori’s score for Giuseppe Vari’s GANGSTERS (1977). Bonus trailers for Sergio Martino’s completely bonkers AMERICAN RICKSHAW (1990) and Karim Hussein’s experimental shocker SUBCONSCIOUS CRUELTY (2000) conclude the extras. Also housed within the Mediabook is a nicely-illustrated 12-page booklet with an essay by Leonhard Elias Lemke entitled “The Iron Detective and the Years of Lead”, but unfortunately, the article’s text is in German only.

 

While not the most vibrantly photographed film, the VS restoration of THE IRON COMMISSIONER is miles better in terms of detail and overall sharpness, even if it sports some brief water damage and mild imperfections here and there; it’s a very faithful, film-like presentation that respects DOP Sergio Rubini’s deliberately muted palette. As with their DIRTY GANG disc, VS include DTS-HD MA 2.0 mono audio options in both English and Italian once again, the latter with properly translated English subtitles. As for the special features, film critic Nanni Cobretti joins Ercolani for another insightful audio commentary which has the pair discuss Merli’s career at length (commonly regarded as “the face of the genre”) and how this little-seen film remains one of Merli’s most “representative” titles in his filmography. They regard the film as a “nice change of pace,” and offer some particularly interesting comments about Massi’s directorial style and how most of his crime films rely heavily on Merli’s persona, while further discussions include their thoughts on the derisive poliziotteschi moniker, which was originally coined by Italian film critics, most of the cast and crew, and plenty more besides in this relaxed and well-researched listen. In the fittingly titled Free Hand for a Tough DOP (23m36s), Rubini sits down for a chat about his start as a camera operator, his “work experiences” with Pier Paolo Pasolini, his dislike working on westerns which were unavoidable at the time, his eventually transition to becoming a DOP, working with the “unstoppable Massi” who was always up for a challenge, and how Merli was a “real pain in the neck” and obsessed with highlighting his hair and pearly blues. Stelvio’s son Danilo also has plenty to say about Merli’s “swashbuckling personality” in The Purest Form of Poliziesco (20m09s) while also discussing his work as an assistant director on his father’s films where he learned “the basics of the craft” and to “tell stories in a measured way.”

 

Housed in a beautifully designed rigid slipbox, VS have also included a thick booklet with informative essays from James Oliver, Adrian Smith and Francesco Massaccesi, all of which add further context to these once underseen films. Offering great restorations and a wealth of informative special features, this highly-pleasing set is an easy recommendation for anyone invested in Italian polizieschi or for those viewers wishing to expand their knowledge beyond the works of Umberto Lenzi or Fernando Di Leo. Order EUROCRIME RARITIES: VOLUME 1 from Vinegar Syndrome. 

MAGNUM COP - BLU-RAY REVIEW

By this point in his career, Maurizio Merli’s succession of militant police inspectors had virtually exterminated all the available criminal lowlife in Rome, Milan and Naples combined, but in Stelvio Massi’s MAGNUM COP (1978) we witness the Italocrime experience effortlessly transliterated to the mean streets of Vienna, Austria. Although released on tape during the VHS era as FEARLESS, New World Video’s U.S. videocassette version was promoted along the lines of a FATAL ATTRACTION (1987)-type erotic thriller (“A story of intrigue, deception and fatal seduction.”), which was re-edited and even re-scored, but thanks to Raro Video’s new Blu-ray, it’s great to finally have this enjoyable slice of Italian action back in circulation, which is a must-see, simply because it stars the great Maurizio Merli.

 

Massi wastes no time getting down to the nitty-gritty, and even before the opening credits roll, ex-cop-turned-private-eye Walter “Wally” Speda (Merli) thwarts a kidnapping of the French consulate’s daughter by masked bandits with his usual brand of shoot-first-ask-questions-later brand of law enforcement. In light of this brazen shoot-’em-up, Speda faces the possibility of jail time for “spraying bullets at people as if they there were targets”, but thanks to his quick-thinking actions, Speda informs the press that it was his former boss Inspector Nardelli (Andrea Scotti) that foiled the kidnappers. 

 

Soon after, Speda is hired by Austrian banking tycoon Von Straban (Alexander Trojan), to try and find his daughter Annelise (Annarita Grapputo), who may be held against her will by a Roman Hare Krishna cult. Even though he quickly locates her, Annelise soon makes her escape from Speda’s flat after getting naked and faking an epileptic seizure, only to be subsequently abducted by a group of unknown men. No sooner than Speda arrives in Vienna, Annelise’s father quickly drops the search for his daughter and dismisses Speda from the case, which even causes concern for Austrian police chief Karl Korper (Gastone Moschin). However, when a young girl named Gina (Claudia Messner) turns up dead and sexually molested, Speda correctly deduces that an underage prostitution ring is probably tied-in with Annelise’s disappearance as well. When not obsessing over his case, Speda makes the acquaintance of Brigitte (Joan Collins), an exclusive burlesque dancer who becomes increasingly smitten with Merli’s down-on-his-luck dick, but as his investigation progresses, Brigitte is just one more character hiding behind a phony façade…

 

Alias “The Fox” and described in advance press materials as “An ex-policeman, an adventurous, bragging and over-bearing type…”, Merli’s character jokingly refers to himself as “The greatest private eye in the world!” and whose apartment is decorated with numerous crime and detective film memorabilia (which includes Italian posters for John Huston’s THE MACKINTOSH MAN [1973] and Sam Peckinpah’s THE KILLER ELITE [1975] to name a few). In a nice change of pace, Merli’s role herein is filtered through some lightweight comedy, an attempt by the typecast actor to distance himself of his humourless vigilante cop mould, which is best characterized by his back-and-forth banter with Benny (Massimo Vanni), his PI agency partner, who does little except play scopa (one of three prominent card games in Italy) or imitates Robert De Niro’s “You talkin’ ta me?” schtick from Martin Scorsese’s TAXI DRIVER (1976).  

 

While endeavouring along with the help of detective Karl (Moschin drives a showy green Porsche Carrera and also wears a customary Tyrolean hat, just to make sure we know he’s Austrian), Speda must also resist the temptations of the enigmatic Brigitte, whom he first meets at a swanky nightclub called the Queen Anne performing a chaste burlesque routine. Later in the film, the ever-lurking henchman Strauss (Werner Pochath) and owner of the Queen Anne roughs-up Speda for “getting too close” to Brigitte, but she and Speda strike up an unlikely relationship just the same. However, dramatic tension soon escalates when Speda realizes that Brigitte is nothing more than a procurer for the prostitution racket luring underage girls into this sordid world with the promise of extravagant clothes and a glamorous life. When Renata (Jasmine Maimone), one of Speda’s underage informants, attempts to solicit him (“Do you wanna make love?”), she ends up the victim of a timely ‘hit-and-run’, which eventually leads to one of the more bizarre, revenge-driven denouements of any Merli film.

 

Co-produced by Austrian nudie specialist Franz Antel (best known for his ’70s “Sexy Susan” films with Terry Torday), the film offers noticeably more titillation than your average Italocrime film including plentiful topless scenes from imminent TV star Joan Collins and Annarita Grupputo, who also shed her clothes in Mario Imperoli’s far nastier polizieschi LIKE RABID DOGS (1976). Although lacking many of the genre’s traditional trappings, director Stelvio Massi still manages to stage a brief car chase on the outskirts of Rome, and an energetic foot chase through the Viennese metro, all of which is set to Stelvio Cipriani’s driving flute-and-guitars score.

 

Continuing to champion some of the lesser-seen Eurocrime films Italy had to offer, Raro Video’s new Blu-ray (distributed by Kino Lorber) includes a fine-looking transfer of this engrossing, albeit largely forgotten Merli film. Here retaining the film’s original export title FEARLESS FUZZ, this HD presentation is quite pleasing with plenty of depth and a nicely balanced colour scheme; overall this is an impressive transfer. The DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 tracks feature English and Italian (the latter with optional English subtitles) audio, which sound clean and without any faults, especially in view of the film’s original production limitations and Italy’s dubbing practices. For the record, prominent voice talent artist Ted Rusoff does a great job as the voice of Merli, and who is quite obviously having a blast doing so, while Robert Sommer adds a humourous Austrian accent to Karl’s character and the ubiquitous Pat Starke dubs Jasmine Maimone, the jailbait informant. Incidentally, Maimone would go on to star in Luigi Cozzi’s much later PAGANINI HORROR (1989), where she was again voiced by Starke in the English version. 

 

The one big – and very welcome - extra is an audio commentary with Mondo Digital’s Nathaniel Thompson, and authors Troy Howarth and Eugenio Ercolani who fill the entire running time very pleasantly. They casually discuss plenty of relevant points of interest about the cast and crew along with references to other polizieschi films, the era in which it was made, Cipriani’s terrific score, and plenty more besides; it’s the usual high standard you’ve come to expect from each of these very knowledgeable gentlemen, and well worth your time.

 

While it may lack the gritty gusto found in the best of Lenzi, Di Leo or Girolami, MAGNUM COP still amounts to an engaging and satisfying film which generally places dramatics over pyrotechnics, but is further boosted by Joan Collins’ presence and Stelvio Cipriani’s sturdy score. Order your copy from Kino Lorber or DiabolikDVD.

YEARS OF LEAD: FIVE CLASSIC ITALIAN CRIME THRILLERS (1973-1977)

Even as Italian crime thrillers (or polizieschi, if you prefer the Italian moniker) continue to reach a wider audience outside of Europe, most fans on this side of the Atlantic still associate the genre with the collected works of Umberto Lenzi, Enzo G. Castellari and/or Fernando Di Leo. While there’s no denying the impact of those directors’ works, a number of excellent Eurocrime pictures still remain largely unknown outside the borders of a certain sunny peninsula over on the Continent. Encompassing a wide array of subgenres, including troubled youths, terrorism, high-octane action and even a giallo-styled thriller, Arrow Video have released YEARS OF LEAD: FIVE CLASSIC ITALIAN CRIME THRILLERS (1973-1977), a staggering, beautifully-packaged 3-disc Blu-ray box set, which should definitely whet the appetite of anyone looking to branch-out into unfamiliar—but highly-rewarding—territory. 

A well-made, thought-provoking social drama, Vittorio Salerno’s SAVAGE THREE (1975) is usually regarded as a poliziesco, simply by virtue of its urban “street” setting and the inclusion of Vittorio’s big brother Enrico Maria Salerno, a distinguished actor—originally known as a leading man in sophisticated comedies—who became inseparable from the genre after his defining performance in Stefano “Steno” Vanzina’s ground-breaking THE EXECUTION SQUAD (a.k.a. FROM THE POLICE... WITH THANKS, 1971). In the city of Torino (“Turin”), Ovidio Mainardi (former Warhol stud-muffin Joe Dallesandro) and his co-workers Giacomo (Gianfranco De Grassi) and Peppe (Guido De Carli) suffer from the drudgery of the everyday rat-race. While working as a computer technician at a government-run statistics bureau, after Ovidio, curious to see what would happen, purposely overcrowds their shit-strewn cage, he observes a bunch of lab-mice as they tear each other apart (a scene censored by the BBFC for the UK BD release). Pondering whether humans would respond in the same way under similar overcrowded conditions, the presiding scientist responds confidently, “There’s always one who starts biting the others.”  After Ovidio and his pals incite a riot at a soccer match later that day, their crime-spree continues unabated, and, in one of the film’s defining moments—shot in super slow-motion—Ovidio sticks a truck driver with a screwdriver during a motoring altercation.

 

Meanwhile, inspector and ex-Flying Squad member Santagà (Enrico Maria Salerno) is assigned to the ongoing case, and he firmly believes these ‘incidents’ are not politically motivated, as his superiors would have him believe, but merely a result of ordinary people cracking under the strain and stresses of living in modern society (“We’re always under pressure. It might be the stress, the mistreatment,” he surmises). A succession of murder and sexual assault continues for much of the film’s running time, culminating with the abduction and rape of a pair of ‘upper class’ women (Carmen Scarpitta and Ada Pometti). It turns out that one of these victims was the wife of a highly-influential government official, so, at the behest of the deputy minister, the apprehensive police commissioner (Luigi Casellato), offers Santagà a deal: clean things up as quickly and quietly as possible!

 

Punctuated by a terrific progressive rock score by Franco Campanino (who also scored Dallesandro’s first foray into Italian crimeslime, Pasquale Squitieri’s superb THE CLIMBER [1975]), Vittorio Salerno’s SAVAGE THREE appears to be—on the surface, at least—yet another entry in a short-lived subgenre of mid-’70s Italo ‘youths-run-wild’ films. In spite of their boyish looks, these are not the usual spoiled rich kids with negligent parents unaware what their offspring are up too. Ovidio, Giacomo and Peppe all have regular jobs and ‘normal’ unassuming lives, but are simply bored by the drudgery of it all and looking for some ‘kicks.’ Never fully-explained or expounded upon, the jaded trio’s collective boredom may have been the primary instigator of their initial crime-spree but, in an interesting turn of events, their underlying sadistic streaks are antagonized by the aggressive environment in which they live… just like (symbolism alert!) those desperate lab-mice seen at the start of the film. 

 

Originally released in Italy as FANGO BOLLENTE (trans: “Seething Swamp”), SAVAGE THREE was barely released outside of Italy in the pre-DVD days (an English dubbed VHS tape was released on the Greek NK Video label), but it did finally garner a superb Region B Blu-ray in 2017 thanks to Camera Obscura. Arrow’s new disc features the same superior transfer, with optimally-balanced colours, strong contrasts, excellent black levels and a nice, consistent amount of natural film grain; in fact, it looks just about perfect! The DTS-HD MA mono Italian audio also sounds perfectly-balanced and clear throughout. 

 

In Rat Eat Rat (39m08s), the first featurette, ported-over from CO’s earlier release, director Vittorio Salerno and actress Martine Brochard discuss how the film came about, as well as discussing the formation of the independent production company Comma 9, which unfortunately only ever produced just this one film. Further topics of discussion includes Goffredo Lombardo’s Titanus distribution company; some of the film’s locations in and around Turin; and the casting of Joe Dallesandro (“I like his somewhat weird face!”). In The Savage One (40m56s), yet another doc ported-over from the CO BD, Severin’s David Gregory interviews Dallesandro in what is essentially a career overview, beginning with his early years working on Andy Warhol pictures, and also covering just about every other facet of Joe’s time working in Europe, including all of his polizieschi(precisely five in total). Unafraid to tell it like it is, Dallesandro even refers to his SEASON FOR ASSASSINS (Marcello Andrei, 1975) co-star Martin Balsam as a “knucklehead!” 

 

On the same disc, Mario Imperoli’s rarely-seen LIKE RABID DOGS (1977) is, like SAVAGE THREE, yet another variation of the ‘troubled youth’ (a.k.a. JD / “juvenile delinquent”) film. Following an armed robbery by a pair of hooded men at a soccer match, commissario Paolo Muzi (Jean-Pierre Sabagh) is soon on the case, but this latest robbery turns out to be connected to an ongoing spate of rampant criminality that is plaguing the city. Paolo suspects Tony (Cesare Barro) and his accomplices Rico (Luis de la Torre) and Silvia (Anna Rita Grapputo), but due to Tony’s influential father, Arrigo (Paolo Carlini), he can’t prove anything.  Despite having his hands tied, Paolo and Germana (Paola Senatore), his girlfriend and fellow poliziotta, team up in hopes of busting these sociopathic miscreants.

 

Despite the generic synopsis given above, this proves to be quite a departure from the usual Eurocrime films of the period. Director Imperoli (who also helmed the unusually nasty provincial vendetta flick CANNE MOZZE [1978], starring Antonio Sabato), chooses to explore many of the genre’s darker aspects, placing a particular emphasis on the politically-motivated upper classes, who, rather than play fair on a level playing field, simply use their financial and political clout to subvert the system to their benefit. When Arrigo, Tony’s equally-unbalanced pops, attempts to give him some much-needed advice (“The ultimate goal in life, as in a game, is victory!”), he essentially allows his son to do as he pleases so long as he gets away with it. Much like Aldo Lado’s brutally-effective thriller NIGHT TRAIN MURDERS (1975), Imperoli flips the dynamic on its head by instead having the affluent so-called ‘elites’ viciously tormenting their perceived social inferiors (i.e., those from the so-called ‘lower classes’) simply because they can, which culminates in a particularly nasty scene that looks like it stumbled in from another film altogether. LIKE RABID DOGS’ gut-punch conclusion is also particularly effective.

 

Impressively lensed in Technoscope by Romano Albani (Imperoli’s usual DP of choice), he makes great use of the format with some interesting compositions and moody lighting, which look terrific on Arrow’s new Blu-ray. Utilizing the same restoration as Camera Obscura’s 2014 Region B Blu-ray, this is another top-notch transfer, that still holds up very well after all these years. The DTS-HD MA mono Italian audio also sounds excellent, with Mario Molino’s funky Nico Fidenco-styled soundtrack sounding especially robust and full-bodied. 

 

A couple of highly worthwhile extras are included (also taken from CO’s disc), beginning with When a Murderer Dies (51m57s), an in-depth interview with the late Albani and film historian Fabio Melelli, who discuss at some length the (quote) “beloved” Imperoli and his short-but-impressive career. In It’s Not a Time for Tears (32m55s), assistant director Claudio Bernabei (a frequent collaborator of Joe D’Amato) discusses both details about the film in question and also his career in general. LIKE RABID DOGS’ no-holds-barred trailer and a much-appreciated two-track music sample from the film’s rare Italian 45rpm vinyl single are also included. 

 

The second disc starts things off with the HD debut of Massimo Dallamano’s final film, COLT 38 SPECIAL SQUAD (1976)—he died later that year as the result of a car crash at age 59—an impressive action programmer that provided the template for subsequent imitative ‘Special Squad’ actioners, such as Domenico Paolella’s STUNT SQUAD (1977), which also shared cast members Marcel Bozzuffi and Riccardo Salvino. After so memorably playing Pierre Nicoli, the relentless, cold-hearted hitman in William Friedkin’s THE FRENCH CONENCTION (1971), Bozzuffi made a string of Eurocrime appearances wherein he switched to the ‘right’—make that extreme Right!—side of the law (he eventually slipped back into criminality to play another vicious killer in Lucio Fulci’s ultraviolent CONTRABAND [1980]).

 

The city of Turin is once again the setting for COLT 38 SPECIAL SQUAD. After Inspector Vanni (Bozzuffi) kills his brother during a shootout, a criminal leader known as “The Black Angel” (Ivan Rassimov) swears revenge. In retaliation, Vanni’s wife is subsequently shot dead in full view of their juvenile son. With the District Attorney’s (Armando Brancia) permission, Vanni forms the Special Squad: four crack policemen, under his leadership, given autonomous power by their superiors. Their trademarks are driving motorcycles and—hence the title—powerful .38 Police Special handguns. Meanwhile, The Black Angel and his right-hand man Guido (Antonio Marsina) steal a shipment of dynamite and proceed to plant bombs throughout the city. Demanding a $10-million ransom in uncut diamonds, The Black Angel organizes an exchange enabling Vanni and his ‘SS’ to finally make a move.

 

Several well-choreographed, fast-paced action sequences are some of the film’s many highlights (including a car driving atop a moving train!), which proves the Special Squad are a force to be reckoned with. However, they soon begin abusing their new-found power (and the tenets of the Geneva Convention) when they employ deadly ‘dum-dum’ bullets that cause maximum internal damage to their unlucky human targets; it’s shoot first, ask questions later. As the Black Angel, Rassimov’s ice-cold character is also not without a sense of humour, albeit as dark as the wings of his celestial namesake. Using a TNT charge detonated via remote control, he disposes of a stool pigeon (Bernardino Emanueli) while the man takes a piss behind a tree. Elsewhere, one of the Angel’s underlings (Franco Garofalo) gets his fingers chopped-off by the slamming door of an accelerating getaway car. 

 

One of the many notable DVD titles from No Shame’s relatively short tenure on the market, Arrow Video’s new 2K restoration is a markedly-improved upgrade in every way; altogether sharper and more finely-detailed, with colours that truly pop, especially during the various nightclub scenes. The LPCM mono audio (included in both Italian andEnglish) really emphasizes all the screeching tires and gunshots, with Stelvio Cipriani’s propulsive score sounding especially spectacular. New wave / disco diva Grace Jones contributes two songs to the film, but no matter which language option you choose, both are—not unexpectedly!—poorly lip-synched.

 

Several worthwhile extra features are once again re-included from No Shame’s 2006 DVD, including A Special Groove for a Very Special Friend (here retitled as Always the Same Ol’ 7 Notes in the menu [25m48s]), a delightful career-spanning interview wherein late, great maestro Cipriani discusses his time working on Eurocrime films, collaborating with Grace Jones, and how he went about scoring the present title under discussion. In A Tough Guy (9m31s), editor Antonio Siciliano talks about getting his start in the industry and collaborating with much-revered director Dallamano. A video intro with Cipriani which precedes the film, its Italian theatrical trailer and a meagre image gallery round out the extras.

 

Having by then honed his directorial skills on a number of high-profile Italocrimers, director Stelvio Massi embarked on what was to be the second ‘phase’ of his prolific association with polizieschi when he helmed HIGHWAY RACER (1977), the second film on disc two. The first of no less than six actioners he made in conjunction with mighty genre icon Maurizio Merli, Massi substitutes much of the usual nastiness associated with such films, as he and scribe Aldo Capone instead channel most of the film’s energy into a wide range of increasingly risky, over-the-top autobatics, which rarely—if ever!—let up! And yes, signor Merli also appears without his trademark ’stache, which may catch some first time viewers a little off-guard.

 

Merli stars as Marco Palma, a wannabe ace wheelman with the Squadra Volonte / “Flying Squad”, a highly-trained unit of the Italian State Police whose main specialty—in this film, at least—is driving real fast. His superior officer, the legendary ex-squad car driver maresciallo Tagliaferri (Giancarlo Sbragia), is understandably growing weary of Palma’s excuses after he totals car after car. Sure enough, in yet another high-speed auto pursuit—this time involving a gang of crash-helmeted armed robbers in customized Citroëns led by the highly-respected French getaway driver Jean-Paul Dossenà (alias “il Nizzardo” / Angelo Infanti)—Palma wrecks his ‘new-and-improved’ car too, same as all the others. Taking the hot-headed Palma under his wing, he personally trains and equips him with his old hopped-up 1960 Ferrari 250 GTO and a fake ID in a ploy to infiltrate Dossenà’s seemingly uncatchable gang…

 

Human performances all-round are solid enough, but not surprisingly of superficial depth and placed strictly secondary behind their non-human (i.e., mechanical) protagonists: the cars! This really is a showcase for the talents of veteran stunt arranger extraordinaire Rémy Julienne (who passed away early into 2021 at the age of 90). At the height of his career as a stunt arranger, Julienne had provided plenty of breakneck metallic mechanized mayhem for such top Eurocrime flicks as Henri Verneuil’s THE BURGLARS (1971), Alberto de Martino’s Canadian-shot-and-set STRANGE SHADOWS IN AN EMPTY ROOM (a.k.a. BLAZING MAGNUMS [1976]) and Maurizio Lucidi’s STREET PEOPLE (1976). In HIGHWAY RACER, frenetic and at times sloppily-executed stunts endow action with a realistic tone, including a logistically-impressive sequence that has Julienne driving (or rather tumbling end over end!) down the Spanish steps outside of Rome’s Trinità dei Monti church.

 

While far from his grittiest or best poliziesco (that honour would be reserved for EMERGENCY SQUAD [1974]), the present film’s lighter tone and almost playful approach to the material clearly demonstrated that lowest-common-denominator smash’n’crash action was undeniably its prime selling point, but it also proved Massi’s versatility as a director. HIGHWAY RACER is technically most accomplished, with enough inventive camerawork (it took two cinematographers to capture Julienne’s chaotic stunts) to keep things fresh and exciting for each and every elaborate chase sequence. Given the enormous impact of Merli’s previous successes in such prime Eurocrimers as Umberto Lenzi’s THE TOUGH ONES (1976), his appearance herein is also a bit of an anomaly, as the atypically clean-shaven, youthful-looking upstart whose only interest is to become the most skilled driver in the entire police force and then nab—or perhaps just outdrive—that gentleman bandit, il Nizzardo. 

 

Outside Italy, Massi’s film probably got its biggest exposure in Japan, where it was released onto Japanese Betamax/VHS videocassette by Pony Canyon as “FERRARI FALCON” (the Anglo translation of its Japanese title). Released in 2020 as part of their long-running Italian Genre Cinema Collection, Camera Obscura’s all-region Blu-ray was yet another absolutely gorgeous release, which is thankfully preserved on Arrow’s new disc. Boasting a beautifully-detailed and colourful image, with no digital enhancement of any sort, Arrow have, unlike the earlier CO disc, seen fit to include both Italian and English LPCM Italian mono audio options. A nice added touch, indeed!

 

The featurette Faster Than a Bullet (19m43s), a superb interview with Roberto Curti, author of the indispensable Italian Crime Filmography, 1968-1980 (McFarland, 2013) has also been carried over from CO’s disc. He talks about the filmmakers’ attempts to make a film as a (quote) “detachment from the news stories”; the film’s original aborted ending when one of Julienne’s stunts didn’t quite work out; Brigadiere Armando Spatafora, the real poliziotto sprint on which Merli’s character was based; Massi’s (quote) “exciting use of the camera”; as well as a number of the film’s many cast members, including Sbarigia’s (quote) “fatherly role” and Lilli Carati’s rather nondescript part as Merli’s girlfriend, Francesca. Another brief image gallery is also included.

 

Treading much the same territory as Elio Petri’sOscar-winning INVESTIGATION OF A CITIZEN ABOVE SUSPICION (1970)—including such themes as the abuse of power and the divisive socio-economical strata of society—disc three begins with Vittorio Salerno’s remarkably tense and entertaining thriller NO, THE CASE IS HAPPILY RESOLVED (1973), which focuses primarily on the powerless: a ‘lower-class’ citizen, who, through no fault of his own, gets caught up in a murder investigation. 

 

While out fishing at Lake Bracciano just north of Rome, Fabio Santamaria (Enzo Cerusico) happens to witness the brutal murder of a woman and, in an incredibly nerve-wracking moment, merely stands there, frozen into immobility like a deer caught in the headlights, as he and the murderer make eye-contact for what seems like an eternity. Following an equally-intense drive back to Rome, the murderer in question turns out to be Eduardo Ranieri (Riccardo Cucciolla), a well-respected schoolteacher. Understandably anxious and disturbed by what he has seen, unwitting eyewitness Santamaria chooses not to go directly to the police. Instead however, unfortunately for him, Ranieri the actual culprit beats him to it, implicating Santamaria as the murderer. This fabricated accusation reduces the innocent man to a state of utter panic as he tries to cover up his tracks and stay out of reach of the long arm of the law…   

 

Right from the get-go, this is an absolutely riveting thriller, which not only takes elements from many of Alfred Hitchcock’s films (i.e., THE WRONG MAN [1956] or NORTH BY NORTHWEST [1959]), but also incorporates fundamental aspects of both the giallo and polizieschi.  Even though it does feature a hair-raising car chase from Rome’s Termini Station as Santamaria tries in vain to catch a bus through the windy streets of Rome, director Salerno is more concerned with exploring the flawed and equally-corrupt so-called ‘justice’ system with its societal profiling and the authorities’ unwavering commitment to simply have the case, as per the title, “happily resolved” by checking all the proper boxes and balancing the stats. During this time, a seasoned and highly-influential reporter, informally referred to as “don Peppino” (Enrico Maria Salerno), is also conducting his own investigation after a few questionable meetings with Ranieri, and he is convinced that everything isn’t as it might appear to be.

 

Despite the star-status of Riccardo Cucciolla, who won numerous accolades and awards for his role as anarcho-commie accused murderer Nicola Sacco in Giuliano Montaldo’s SACCO & VANZETTI (1971), it is popular actor Enzo Cerusico who carries the entire present film squarely on his shoulders, delivering an affecting performance of a depth and believability that just about outshines his fellow highly-regarded cast members. Usually relegated to playing ‘good guy’ roles, Cucciolla is also topnotch in his portrayal as the morally-conflicted and guilt-ridden murderer, who not only knows full-well that he has the upper hand, but is also continuously tempted by his affliction to murder again; it’s a wonderfully-nuanced performance filled with regret, sorrow and even all-out malevolence. Aside from the two central performances, which dominate the bulk of the film, Vittorio’s older bro Enrico Maria also adds immeasurably to the film as the “seen-it-all” ornery newshound, who, after all his years of experience at ferreting-out the truth, knows when something’s amiss. In what would typically be a stereotypical throwaway part, even French-born female lead Martine Brochard as Santamaria’s distraught wife contributes a great deal of pathos, further accentuating her husband’s ever-escalating torment, confusion and frustration.

 

Expertly-lensed by veteran DP Marcello Masciocchi, NO, THE CASE IS HAPPILY RESOLVED looks absolutely stunning on Arrow’s new disc, which is once again taken from CO’s immaculate 2016 restoration. Not only is this the long-unseen director’s cut of the film with its original—far more effective—ending (which continues to resonate long after the end-credits roll), but this transfer features excellent detail and bold, naturalistic colours, whereas the DTS-HD MA Italian mono audio likewise offers nothing to complain about. For the record, Arrow Video's disc contains the film's "happy" ending, but the film's original ambiguous ending is included as a bonus. The biggest extra is a 40-minute featurette entitled Mother Justice (40m36s), which contains interviews with director Salerno and actress Martine Brochard, who talk candidly about all sorts of terrific facts related to the film’s origins and production. The Italian theatrical trailer and a brief image gallery are also included. 

 

Arrow Video’s exhaustive set finishes off in fine style beginning with Will Webb’s Poliziotteschi: Violence and Justice in the Years of Lead (20m17s), a superb video essay about the differing Eurocrime subgenres, with a particular emphasis on the films included herein, plus a thick 60-page book featuring detailed essays from the likes of Kat Ellinger, Troy Howarth, Michael Mackenzie, Rachael Nisbet and James Oliver. This is a stunning, must-own collection, which comes highly recommended!