Comeuppance Reviews Two goons, Dave Catania (Silva) and Frank Webster (Strode) are sent from New York to Italy to kill a small-time pimp named Luca Canali (Adorf). Helping out the two men is Eva (Paluzzi). Luca seems to be outsmarting his killers at every turn so the whole situation escalates and Don Vito Tressoldi (Celi) is not happy. Claiming Luca is starting a war, and he "doesn't want to be beaten by a loser", Tressoldi cruelly ups the stakes by attacking Luca's family. Now Luca is out for revenge, as opposed to just deflecting all the attempts on his life. Will he succeed? Fernando Di Leo cranks out another winner here. Milano Calibro 9 (1972) is better (though it's always open for debate) but La Mala Ordina, as it was known originally, is a very strong movie as well, with its masterfully shot and edited climax (like the rest of the movie), a similar sense of toughness, the decor, the style, and of course, the movie highlight, the car chase. The chase, along with a fairly tenuous connection to a heroin shipment (it's not mentioned very much in the movie), were obviously the catalysts to retitle this movie in the wake of the success of The French Connection (1971).Adorf, who also put in a great performance in Milano Calibro 9, excels in the lead role of Luca Canali. It was wise to put Adorf out front, even if it seems now like an obvious choice. Henry Silva is kind of a fan favorite even though he doesn't have any facial expressions. But his hair is better here than we can remember anyplace else. His partner, played by Woody Strode, seems a bit out of sorts, but Di Leo thought enough of him to put him in The Violent Breed (1984) later on in their careers. Three well-known beauties of the day, Luciana Paluzzi, Femi Benussi and Sylva Koscina are on hand to make things more interesting, as is Cyril Cusack as a mob boss. The whole thing is topped off with one of Armando Trovajoli's funkiest and best scores.There's also a certain counter-cultural element at work here which would be fleshed out more completely in later Fernando Di Leo films, most notably Avere Vent'anni (1978). The underground culture of the day is a recurrent theme in Di Leo's movies and found its way into whatever he was working on, regardless of the genre. This sets his movies apart to a certain extent and it's fascinating to see, simply as a document of the era.If you have seen and liked other Di Leo movies, you will certainly also like The Italian Connection (if you see the Raro DVD that is, not one of the innumerable cheapo VHS releases). If not, this is as good a place as any to start, mainly because there's nothing really NOT to like about this fine film.

skullislandsurferdotcom Although two New York hit men, Henry Silva and Woody Strode, supposedly templates of Quentin Tarantino's Jules and Vincent PULP FICTION thugs, are far better villains than local Mario Adorf is a antihero, this Italian mobsploitation juggles each character decently enough... and everything narrows down to one thing only: Adorf, as small time pimp Luca Canali, is – if Silva and Strode can help it – a dead man.The endearing traits of imported crime movies are here in droves: the wah-wah peddle guitar vibrates through the bursting horn section orchestrating insert-heavy action scenes, naked ladies, and a pivotal car chase as Canali, with a fierce boar-like countenance, seeks the thug who killed his family.More attention on Silva, a sly womanizing braggart, and Strode, the brooding baseline, would have been nice – they're far too cool to serve as an eventual backdrop to Canali's quest to survive and then seek answers. That is, until the incredible climactic shootout between all three within a junkyard. Tarantino swears by this one, and who's to argue? For More Reviews: www.cultfilmfreaks.com

lost-in-limbo Two professional hit men from the States are hired to track down a small-time pimp Luca Canali in Milan, as this man was accused of the disappearance of a shipment of heroin between Milan and New York. Well that's what they are to believe by local crime boss Don Tressoldi. Their job is to brutally kill Luca and make a message of it. However Luca doesn't know why they want him and he won't go down too easy, as he tries to get to the bottom of it.This confidently gritty 70s Italian crime thriller might start off slowly, but when it hits its strides. Boy it doesn't let up. What starts off talky where you are waiting for things to happen gets better as it moves along, where plot threads unfold and it suddenly becomes impulsively hazardous. There's one sensational car / foot chase sequence that packs brute force and never gives you a chance to catch a breath. It's very well done. Most of the action follows the same dynamic pattern. Thrilling, tough and intense with constant roughness. Fist fighting, scuffles and shootouts… as the sweat pours and the bruises are inflicted. Hear and see it! Not escaping is the seedy hook, brassily loud instrumental score, compact camera-work and authentic European locations.Some well known players feature in the cast. Woody Strode and Henry Silva are the American assassins. Strode plays the quiet, steady head and Silva's a live-wire, womanizer. Complete opposites, but the same rather deadly and downright bad-asses. This shows in the lethal cat and mouse climax in a car scrap-yard with Mario Adorf's character. Adorf holds his own with a respectable turn, constantly making a slip when the manhunt begins, but after a tragedy hits. Now he's fuelled by revenge… going in head first. The script is just as jagged, as like the editing but there's a sardonic edge to it and the excessive melodramatics ups the emotions and motivations.Hard-boiled, if bittersweet Italian crime entertainment.

dbborroughs Stars Henry Silva and Woody Strode as two hit men who are dispatched to Italy to find a low level mobster who had "lost", really stolen, 6 million in heroine and who resold it. They are told to make his death as painful and public as possible. The trouble is that target has a knack for getting loose and despite the best efforts of all involved things go far from smoothly.Good but not great mob story has the advantage in that in keeps moving. Once things are set in motion the film just goes. You want to see how this is going to come out and to me makes it worth a bowl of popcorn and a soda, even if you won't need to see it again.