digitalconquest Blog

Directed by Tonino Ricci in 1973 (not found on Spout!)

One of Sicily’s most highly regarded businessmen turns out to be the region’s biggest criminal and there are few that would stand against him. Giancarlo Prete arrives as the new commissioner and is known for his integrity and ability to get things done! When the inevitable clash that follows leads to the death of a young child and the violent rape of Prete’s lover, everybody soon learns how big the family really is! As is common for Italian crime movies made in the early to mid 1970’s (the golden age of the genre), there is a lot more happening than just shotgun fights and car chases, though there’s plenty of that! This movie, and many others like it, is a violent poem about corruption, loyalty, morality, honor and so much more. Along with the under-appreciated 1971 giallo Cross Current, this is probably Ricci’s most accomplished film. Beautiful Italian locals act as scenic backdrops to this stylish tale of blood and retribution that unfolds on the screen. Mixing Bruno Nicolai’s almost troublingly urgent music into moments of suspense and/or action make this even more recommendable!

Under discussion:

Black Cobra 2  (1989)

Detective Robert Malone is back at it again! This one jumps right into it as Malone is part of a seemingly simple bust that goes bad. He ends up chasing a determined criminal through the streets of the city. When the chase turns into a hostage situation Malone must make a decision… He shoots the jerk-off in the face! Well, that doesn’t sit well with his superiors who feel that his violent methods are far too over the top. So, they send Malone to the Philippines to work under the supervision of an Interpol agent (Hammond of 70’s TV Spiderman fame) so that he can learn restraint and tolerance. Just about as quickly as he can step off of the plane, our heroic detective finds that he is mixed up in a dangerous murder case and perhaps a little romance with the catalyst-victim’s daughter? Perhaps indeed! Sound crazy? It is! Just the way it should be! It’s all a little far-fetched, granted, but Williamson is always cool to watch and the movie is a lot of fun, even if not for the right reasons! A quick note for fans of the original, with Stelvio Massi no longer at the helm, it’s wise to approach this as a reinvention or reinterpretation of Black Cobra rather than as a proper sequel. That being said, it’s also important to point out that you can now finally enjoy The Black Cobra 2 totally uncut & widescreen!

Directed by Umberto Lenzi (not found on Spout!)

We have seen low budget Italian movies try to get away with some fantastic things over the years, but this has got to be the topper! Theres gratuitous nudity, theres some major soundtrack thievery (during a car chase/kidnapping scene they play just about the whole theme from Exterminators of the Year 3000!) but there is no Fred Williamson! Well, there is, but all his scenes are from earlier Black Cobra entries, the first in particular. His voice is even dubbed because of the altered dialogue! Karl Landgren (the villain from the original) returns, as do a couple of other incidental characters, in a most failed attempt to create continuity within the framework of the new story. Oh yeah, the plot! Well, a bunch of studded leather jacket wearing terrorists kidnap a professor of something that isn't really clear for purposes that aren't really clear. Later, the bad guys go after the professor's wife, but again, there doesn't really seem to be any reason why this is happening. Williamson lives on as the Black Cobra in a number of repeated scenes but is nowhere to be found in the climax that showcases Bobby Rhodes more than anything else. The newly filmed material is notably bad and often times hilarious but this will definitely be a movie for brave bad-film fans or perhaps for die-hard Umberto Lenzi completists.