THE SALAMANDER (UK - 1981; US release 1983) Directed by Peter Zinner. Written by Robert Katz and Rod Serling. Cast: Franco Nero, Anthony Quinn, Eli Wallach, Martin Balsam, Claudia Cardinale, Sybil Danning, Christopher Lee, Cleavon Little, Paul Smith, John Steiner, Renzo Palmer, Anita Strindberg, Jacques Herlin, Marino Mase, Fortunato Arena, John Stacy, Andre Esterhazy, Nello Pazzafini, Tom Felleghy, Gitte Lee. (R, 101 mins) Based on the 1973 novel by Morris West, the long-in-the-works conspiracy thriller THE SALAMANDER began life as a screenplay adaptation by TWILIGHT ZONE and NIGHT GALLERY creator Rod Serling, left unfinished following his death in 1975. It languished for several years until Robert Katz (THE CASSANDRA CROSSING, THE SKIN) reworked and completed it. The film finally went into production in 1980, with veteran editor Peter Zinner making his directing debut at 62, fresh off his Oscar win for editing 1978's THE DEER HUNTER. Zinner was a late-blooming hot commodity at the time, as his other credits included 1967's IN COLD BLOOD, 1972's THE GODFATHER and 1974's THE GODFATHER PART II, but he really was a hired gun at heart, as his work on THE DEER HUNTER was sandwiched between esteemed prestige projects like 1977's TINTORERA and 1979's THE FISH THAT SAVED PITTSBURGH. Shot entirely in scenic locations throughout Italy and featuring an all-star cast, THE SALAMANDER should've been a hit but was a DOA dud worldwide. It was another in a string of flops from Sir Lew Grade's ITC Entertainment, the British company that produced THE MUPPET SHOW and had some hits like THE MUPPET MOVIE, ON GOLDEN POND, and THE GREAT MUPPET CAPER, but lost a ton of money over 1980-81 on expensive bombs like the Village People's CAN'T STOP THE MUSIC, the Farrah Fawcett-pursued-by-horny-robot-in-space sci-fi dud SATURN 3, the Clive Cussler adaptation RAISE THE TITANIC!, and the ill-fated THE LEGEND OF THE LONE RANGER. ITC had distribution through various means, whether it was their own Associated Film Distribution or major studios like Universal and 20th Century Fox, but after being released in Europe in 1981, THE SALAMANDER remained unseen in the US until it turned up in one theater in NYC in May 1983 before being bum-rushed off to television and a belated VHS release in 1986. Pathfinder released it on DVD with no fanfare in 2002 but otherwise, it's spent 30 years in relative obscurity despite a cast packed with cult icons and big-screen legends and it's just been resurrected on Blu-ray courtesy of Scorpion Releasing. It's nice that it's available again and in a quality presentation, but it should come as no surprise that THE SALAMANDER isn't exactly an unsung classic waiting for its day in the sun.
The film opens in Rome with the assassination of beloved Gen. Panteleone (Fortunato Arena), a beloved statesman, WWII hero, and champion of democracy in his younger, post-war years. The truth behind his murder is buried and "natural causes" is the reason given to the public. Carabinieri officer Col. Dante Matucci (Franco Nero) is assigned to investigate, along with his big brotherly mentor Capt. Stefanelli (Martin Balsam). Both are stonewalled by everyone, from Panteleone's heir apparent Gen. Leporello (Eli Wallach) to Italy's counterintelligence chief Prince Baldasar (Christopher Lee), and the body count rises as anyone Matucci questions or is about to question turns up dead. After tying Panteleone's death to a decades-long string of assassinations of war criminals staged to look like suicides--pulled off by a hit man known as "The Salamander," the long-retired alter ego of billionaire industrialist Bruno Manzini (Anthony Quinn)--Matucci uncovers a plot to orchestrate a coup d'etat by a renegade group of military officials and high-powered politicos attempting a Make Italy Great Again move by taking the country back to the Mussolini glory days.
Matucci's investigation also involves a momentum-killing romance with Polish spy Lili Anders (Sybil Danning, who had just co-starred with Nero in Enzo G. Castellari's THE DAY OF THE COBRA), some ballbusting with his NATO-based USMC buddy Malinowski (Cleavon Little), and a sadistic and profusely sweaty torturer known as "The Surgeon" (Paul Smith, doing his usual MIDNIGHT EXPRESS stink-eye side-glancing act). Even with the cast and the potentially intriguing story, THE SALAMANDER just never catches fire despite the heroic efforts of a typically excellent score by Jerry Goldsmith that belongs in a more exciting movie. It gets bogged down in sequence after sequence of Matucci going to see someone, interviewing them, and then moving on to the next person. Zinner offers one low-energy car chase in which both cars crash through oddly-placed fruit stands right on cue. Intermittently-deployed voiceover narration by Nero is a clear indication of Zinner scrambling to cover gaps in the narrative, and most of the big names--Quinn, Lee, Little, Wallach, Claudia Cardinale (as Leporello's wife)--have little more than extended cameos. Balsam has one great bit where the camera slowly moves in on his aging face as he delivers a devastating monologue about how he, as a young man during WWII, stepped out for cigars and returned home to find his entire family massacred, but then Zinner ruins it, breaking the spell by inexplicably cutting to a reaction shot from a cat. There's a little oomph offered by some third-act sleaze, with Mrs. Leporello having a torrid affair with her husband's aide-de-camp Roditi (John Steiner, dubbed by Larry Dolgin) and the discovery that Gen. Leporello has a thing for very young girls, plus some unintended hilarity with a torture scene leading to a Franco Nero/Paul Smith brawl, with a hirsute Nero sporting nothing but a jockstrap with his bare ass flailing all over the place and nearly giving Smith a faceful of his taint. THE SALAMANDER is an interesting curio if for no other reason than that cast, all of whom are fine and do what's expected of them (Lee's smug, sinister Baldasur allows him to pull out almost every move in his "pompous prick" arsenal), but it proved to be one-and-done for Zinner as a director. After the film's failure, he returned to his regular job, earning an Oscar nomination for editing 1982's AN OFFICER AND A GENTLEMAN and several Emmy nominations for various TV gigs, including the epic 1983 ABC miniseries THE WINDS OF WAR and its 1988 sequel WAR AND REMEMBRANCE, winning for the latter. Zinner died in 2007 at 88.
Made during the post-GODFATHER days when theaters were flooded with mob movies, the obscure Italian-U.S. co-production CRAZY JOE is a sufficiently entertaining but simplistic and superficial look at famed NYC gangster "Crazy Joe" Gallo, who was gunned down outside an Italian restaurant in 1972. The film opens in 1960, as Joe (Peter Boyle) and his older brother Richie (Rip Torn) are fed up with their status as low-level errand boys after years of busting their asses for powerful New York mobster Falco (Luther Adler). Branching out on their own incurs the wrath of Falco and the other bosses, not to mention the Boss of Bosses, Don Vittorio (Eli Wallach), a character based on Carlo Gambino. When Vittorio tells Falco to reach a compromise with the Gallo brothers, Falco instead orders a botched hit on them, which sets Joe off on a revenge spree that gets him ten years in prison. During this time, former Gallo associate Vince Coletti (Charles Cioffi) gets vocal in his political ambitions, which worries Vittorio, who unsuccessfully tries to talk Coletti into backing off and not bringing so much attention to the families.
Joe is eventually paroled in 1970 and is pulled back into "This Thing of Ours" as Don Vittorio talks him into a hit on Coletti, but Joe is already partnered up with a Harlem crime outfit led by Willy (Fred Williamson), a gangster he befriended in the joint, with the intention of removing Don Vittorio from his throne. Producer Dino De Laurentiis hired Italian journeyman Carlo Lizzani (THE LAST DAYS OF MUSSOLINI) to direct a mostly American cast (Italian actors like Fausto Tozzi, Guido Leontini, and others are dubbed by the usual crew of Eurocult voice actors) in a film shot entirely in NYC, and it's a weird mix of actors and genres that makes the film consistently interesting if not altogether successful. The script by Lewis John Carlino (THE MECHANIC) changes many of the key figures' names and glosses over the details in almost bullet-pointed, Cliffs Notes fashion. Second-billed Paula Prentiss plays Joe's moll and in her few scenes, she has nothing to do but cry and sob and scrrech some variation on "You're in danger, Joe!" and "They'll come after you, Joe!" and "Are you crazy, Joe?" Her big scene near the end with Boyle is just a soapy, florid embarrassment for both actors and the film an uneven fusion of old-school gangster movie and then-in-vogue blaxploitation.
CRAZY JOE is obviously no GODFATHER (hell, it's not even THE VALACHI PAPERS), but it's a decent time killer, with enough action and an unusual enough cast that it shouldn't have fallen off the face of the planet like it has. It aired in prime-time on ABC just a year later in 1975, it never got a US release on home video in any format, not even on VHS, and even syndicated, late-night TV appearances were rare (it most recently surfaced for one airing a few months ago on ThisTV, a network that constantly looks like it's streaming using dial-up). You also get Michael V. Gazzo (the same year as his Oscar-nominated turn as Frankie Five Angels in THE GODFATHER PART II), Carmine Caridi (THE GODFATHER PART II, PRINCE OF THE CITY), future FANTASY ISLAND star Herve Villechaize as an unlikely member of the Gallo crew, RAGING BULL producer Peter Savage, Cornelia Sharpe (SERPICO), Louis Guss (THE GODFATHER, MOONSTRUCK), Sam J. Coppola (SATURDAY NIGHT FEVER), Dan Resin (CADDYSHACK's Dr. Beeper) as an FBI agent, and, just on the verge of blowing up as The Fonz on HAPPY DAYS, which premiered on ABC a month before CRAZY JOE's release, Henry Winkler in a prominent supporting role as a loyal Gallo capo who becomes Joe's right-hand man once he's out of prison. (R, 100 mins)
PLOT OF FEAR aka E TANTA PAURA aka TOO MUCH FEAR (Italy, 1976)
Directed by Paolo Cavara. Written by Bernardino Zapponi, Paolo Cavara, Enrico Oldoini. Cast: Corinne Clery, Michele Placido, Eli Wallach, Tom Skerritt, John Steiner, Jacques Herlin, Quinto Parmeggiani, Eddy Fay, Sarah Ceccarini, Cecilia Polizzi, Claudio Zucchet, Greta Vajant, Mary Ruth League. (Unrated, 95 mins)
Raro USA has done a nice job with the restoration of this obscure late-period giallo from director Paolo Cavara, best known for 1971's Dario Argento-inspired BLACK BELLY OF THE TARANTULA. Long available in bootleg circles, PLOT OF FEAR (original Italian title: E TANTA PAURA) never made it to US theaters, nor did it ever turn up on home video, so this DVD marks the film's belated first official American release. Scripted by Cavara, Enrico Oldoini, and DEEP RED co-writer and regular Fellini collaborator Bernardino Zapponi, PLOT OF FEAR gets off to a clunky, confusing start and veers wildly between giallo and poliziotteschi, with some liberal doses of trangressive softcore porn. It's not a great film being rediscovered, but it's certainly an interesting artifact, not just for its rampant, cynical misanthropy (the rich are perverted and corrupt, men are petty and insecure, women are either vacuous models or dead hookers), but also for Eurotrash devotees, with its strange cast, terrible English dubbing (the original and better-preserved Italian audio track is also included), pervasive sleaze, and an infectiously catchy score by Daniele Patucchi, which is screaming to be covered by a present-day stoner rock band.
Opening scene. Credits and kickass music start around 1:30 into the clip
Bad-tempered Inspector Lomenzo (Michele Placido) is dealing with several violent murders. Heads have been bashed in, and bodies set ablaze. One guy is even shot in the head while being interviewed on a talk show. Pictures from a childrens book are left with the victims. The victims are all wealthy and members of "Wildlife Friends," which imports wild animals caught on African safaris but is really a front for diamond smuggling and an underground sex club at Villa Hoffmann. All of the murders are connected to the mysterious death of underage prostitute Rosa (Sarah Ceccarini) several years earlier at Villa Hoffmann, after a wild night that involved animated, surreal porn films, group sex, forced under-the-table fellatio, and an attempt to feed Rosa to a caged tiger. Someone is out to avenge Rosa's death, and is brutally offing the rich, decadent perverts one by one.
One of the suspects is Rosa's pimp (Claudio Zucchet), who, in this scene, gets picked up for questioning and bolts from the police car, instigating a brief but amazing foot chase through what has to be the busiest intersection in Milan. This brilliant bit looks as chaotic, awkward, and unchoreographed as a real pursuit would look (does that guy intend to tumble down the steps the way he does?), and I have serious doubts that the drivers of these cars knew that a movie was being shot.
Meanwhile, Lomenzo becomes romantically involved with Jeanne (Corinne Clery, fresh off the controversial, X-rated THE STORY OF O), a prostitute and part-time model who was also at Villa Hoffman the night of Rosa's death. As the murders continue, Lomenzo is torn between his relationship with Jeanne and her possible connection to the murders, and he also finds himself tangling with Riccio (Eli Wallach), an eccentric, chocolate-addicted private investigator who seems to have all of Milan under surveillance, hired by the surviving deviants to find out who's trying to kill them.
John Steiner as Hoffmann
Placido is a fine actor, but he doesn't seem well cast here. With its periodic delvings into polizia territory and with Lomenzo's ill temper, PLOT OF FEAR really could've benefitted from a Fabio Testi or especially a Maurizio Merli in the starring role. Placido just doesn't come off as intimidating enough. Eurocult vet John Steiner also appears as the owner of Villa Hoffmann. But the Strangest Casting Honors of PLOT OF FEAR (also known as TOO MUCH FEAR, and apparently released in Sweden, in what must set a new standard for "something lost in the translation," as BLOODY PEANUTS) go to visiting Americans Wallach and Tom Skerritt (yes, THAT Tom Skerritt), who has three brief scenes, wearing an entirely too-small leather jacket as Lomenzo's boss. Neither Wallach nor Skerritt stuck around to dub their performances, so they aren't heard on the English track (Skerritt is dubbed by the ubiquitous Ted Rusoff). For actors as recognizable as these two to be revoiced by others--especially with Wallach's gravelly tone--is more than slightly jarring. Other English dubbing regulars heard throughout include Carolynn De Fonseca dubbing one of the Wildlife Friends, Pat Starke dubbing Clery, and Frank von Kuegelgen dubbing Steiner. I'm not sure who's revoicing Placido and Wallach, but they sound very familiar. Wallach actually has a sizable role, but given his brief screen time, I doubt Skerritt was on the set for more than a couple of days. He had small roles in two other Italian projects around this time (the film LA MADAMA and the Italian TV miniseries ORIGINS OF THE MAFIA), so it's possible he knocked them all out in one trip and made a working vacation out of it.
"Buon giorno, Tom. I'm Michele, nice to meet you. Two quick questions:
why are you in this movie and exactly what is that you're wearing?"
"Italy? All expenses paid? Lots of naked women in
the movie? And I don't even have to hang
around to dub myself? Deal!"
Raro supplies plenty of extras, including a subtitled interview with Placido, who talks about the making of PLOT OF FEAR and shares warm memories of working with Wallach. There's also interviews with co-writer Oldoini, as well as Pietro Cavara, son of the late director (Paolo Cavara died in 1982). The 1.85:1 anamorphic transfer looks great and has to be a significant upgrade from Raro's original, non-anamorphic Italian release some years back. Raro USA's packaging mentions "new and improved English subtitles," but Wallach's character ("Pietro Riccio") is inexplicably referred to as "Peter Struwwel" in the English subtitles, even though "Riccio" is clearly audible on both audio tracks. This was apparently an issue with the original Italian DVD release. In lieu of the liner notes they used to provide, Raro USA gives us an appreciation of the film by Fangoria editor Chris Alexander, in the form of a PDF file. He can't explain BLOODY PEANUTS, either.
