Leofwine_draca Another superior slice of Italian crime, once again teaming director Enzo G. Castellari and star Franco Nero to good effect after their successful previous collaboration on HIGH CRIME. REVENGE is a straightforward tale of violent thugs, an insufficient police force, and one just man out for revenge. As is mostly the case with Italian "polizia" flicks from the 1970s, it's not the plot that's important here, which is good because this particular vigilante-themed exercise in blood and bullets is no different from dozens of others made over the years. What makes REVENGE special is the effort that both the star and director put into the movie; this may not be Castellari's very best film but it's certainly up there with his better movies.As is generally the case with the director's movies, the film has some fine editing and photography, and makes great use of slow motion during the various staged action sequences. Every penny of the budget is put to good use, making for one slick, exciting, and often gripping adventure. REVENGE also takes care to build up characterisation of the lead characters, sometimes at the expense of putting more action into the film, but the pay off works as star Franco Nero gets a meaty and interesting character to explore. His Carlo Antonelli is an everyday guy with strict moral upbringings, who has always been taught that the only way to save face is to battle dangers head on. Therefore, after being humiliated, beaten, and robbed by the gang of crooks, he can't let the crime slip from his mind and must hunt down the thugs at whatever the cost.Although Castellari's direction is stylish, it's never flashy, and you get the impression that this is a director who really understands cinema and what he can do with his camera. The film always retains a strong sense of realism which make the action sequences all the more powerful when they do arrive - the moment in which an exhausted Nero is chased by a crook in a car and nearly run down is sweaty, exciting, and feels dangerous to boot (partly because Nero does his own stunts here!). The film is pretty gory and culminates in a very violent shoot-out in an empty warehouse, which is a fully appropriate way to end such a movie and pays off nicely.Performances are generally spot on, with Nero leading the way; special mention goes to Giancarlo Prete as the small-time crook Tommy, who ends up befriending Nero's character: his portrayal of the edgy but non-violent criminal is one of the most realistic I've seen on film. Also around are veteran Renzo Palmer as an exasperated cop, and the beautiful Barbara Bach playing Nero's surprisingly frumpy wife; sadly she is forced to wear unflattering glasses and cardigans for this (relatively small) role - what was Castellari thinking?! The music from the famous De Angelis brothers fits the bill nicely and proves to be perfectly hummable, whilst the pacing is spot on and the action sequences as good as ever. The criminals are sufficiently rotten and hateful enough to provide suitable menace, whilst the viewer is given the opportunity to identify with Nero's on-the-edge character throughout thanks to some excellent outbursts that the actor gets to spit as he is repeatedly foiled by both police and robbers. A perfect evening's entertainment and a must for the Italo crime fan.

gareth633 A bit different to the usual vigilante films, half expected something like Death Wish, the Exterminator or The Big Racket (Which are all great films by the way) and instead it's something a bit more realistic and well thought out. Maybe the action sequences should have been more evenly spread through the film though. What makes it different to the other films is the main character doesn't wipe out hundreds of punks, it is more a story of his calculated revenge and builds it's story up more steadily. Franco Nero plays the most haphazard, cack-handed vigilante ever but is great in the role, certainly more expressive than Robert Ginty in the Exterminator. Not that that's difficult mind. His character is obsessed with revenge and it is well portrayed. It is easy to sympathise with his character and it is engrossing watching him get his revenge. Nero does a lot of his own stunts too including some great stuff with him getting chased and knocked down by a Ford Mustang in slo mo. How he didn't get killed or crippled is incredible.Talking of cars poor Franco has to make do with an Austin Allegro through most of the film.Anyway to summarise a good solid well acted film, quite violent, great music score, very well staged action sequences and satisfying climax.Very much worth a watch.

Michael A. Martinez The best part of this film is definitely the scene where a filthy and beaten-up Franco Nero has to outrun a '66 Mustang in a junkyard, complete with a really good long lens slow motion shot of Nero running toward the camera with a car right behind him.The plot details Nero's quest to bring three bank robbers (Romano Puppo, Nazzareno Zamperla, and Massimo Vanni) who took him hostage and beat him up to justice. To do this, he blackmails a local street thug (Giancarlo Prete in a good role) and forces him to show him around the underworld and eventually find them to exact vigilante justice on them. What sets this mundane tale apart are the frequent changes-of-alliance and doublecrosses, as the action sequences are relatively weak (considering it's a Castellari movie). STREET LAW is not really that violent either when compared with most other Italian crime films. (Compare Romano Puppo's final scene here with a similar scene in Lucio Fulci's CONTRABAND.)Guido and Maurizio De Angelis's score is certainly similar to their work for the many Bud Spencer / Terence Hill films (though not under their usual Oliver Onions pseudonym), but to me sounds a lot better. While the songs are weird and use seemingly every possible instrument and sound in the book, the "Good Bye My Friend" song is a great song even though the lyrics in most of it make no sense. The same can be said of "Driving All Around". Nero once again plays the same character he plays in every movie, but his character is not totally developed (though that may have been hurt severely by the confusing re-editing of the US version that I saw) and his relationship with his girlfriend Barbara Bach is barely touched on. While the plot is simple, it often becomes uninteresting, and certainly doesn't have the more epic feeling of Castellari/Nero's previous film High Crime. Castellari's next film (the goofy but surreal CRY ONION) tried to capitalize off this one, with Nero once again up against the same trio of thugs along with another over-the-top De Angelis score, though any similarity with this film ends there.Watch for an amusing cameo by charismatic American actor Mickey Knox (who made a career as a dubbing voice in many Italian movies and Japanese Anime cartoons) as a gangster who runs a gaming parlor.Not a great film, but colorful and different enough to make it entertaining to most casual viewers.

freudstein Shot in the same year of the american "Deathwish" with Charles Bronson, has a similar plot but it results much more realistic and exciting. The great Franco Nero's performance and the brilliant music by the De Angelis brothers make of this an "absolutely must see" for all the fans of this kind of movies !