What’s the big deal?
Though never a household name on this side of the pond, Franco Nero was a very big deal in Italy with a prolific decades-long career. He was the original Django, of course, but performed in a lot of genres, such as the three crime thrillers included in this set, all directed by Damiano Damiani.
Speaking of which, Damiani might be (dubiously) best-known to American audiences as the guy tapped to vomit-forth Amityville II: The Possession, which is not indicative of his body of work. Back home, he was also a big deal, known and respected for directing films which contained considerable amounts of social commentary. Many were thrillers, including some of the earliest which dealt with the Italian mafia in serious terms.
None of these mob-themed thrillers will seem like a big deal compared to, say, The Godfather, nor are any of them great artistic achievements. I’m also guessing that any social criticism present probably had more relevance back home than in my neck of the woods. But from a historical perspective, they provide an interesting look back at an extremely popular Italian subgenre.
In 1968’s The Day of the Owl, Nero plays Bellodi, a cop investigating the murder of a construction worker. This is easier said than done because the town lives in fear of local mob boss Don Mariano (Lee J. Cobb), so no one is really eager to risk helping him out (including corrupt government officials). It’s a good story, but sometimes kind of a snooze. Franco is decent in the role, but the film benefits most from Italy’s greatest national treasure, Claudia Cardinale, as a woman who’s certain Mariano is behind her husband’s disappearance.
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The best of the three is 1975’s How to Kill a Judge. Nero plays Giacomo Solaris, a director whose latest film is a scathing, thinly-disguised portrait of a corrupt real-life judge. Since it concludes with the judge being murdered, the movie creates a lot of controversy, especially after the man on whom it’s based is killed the same way. The story becomes an intriguing conspiracy-laden mystery as Solaris is obsessed with uncovering who murdered the judge. Meanwhile, others around him are being systematically knocked-off.
Individually, none of these films are big deals, but all three are fairly watchable. This set features good 2K restorations and comes with enough supplemental material for the viewer to develop an appreciation for Nero and Damiani’s collective efforts. For this writer, it’s also revealing to learn the latter was always a more talented & ambitious director than Amityville II once indicated.
EXTRA KIBBLES
(NOTE: Free Kittens Movie Guide was provided with “check discs” for review purposes. Additional supplements material included with the final product (booklets, artwork, inserts, etc) were not made available.)
THE DAY OF THE OWL
TWO VERSIONS OF THE FILM - The Italian & exported cuts.
NEW INTERVIEW - With star Franco Nero.
ARCHIVAL INTERVIEWS - 1) With co-star Claudia Cardinale; 2) With star Franco Nero,production manager Lucio Trentini & writer Ugo Pirro.
FEATURETTES - “Identity Crims-Sis” (featuring Mike Malloy, who discusses the mafia movie subgenre); “Casting Cobb” (video essay about Lee J. Cobb’s later career by Howard S. Berger).
TRAILER
THE CASE IS CLOSED, FORGET IT
NEW INTERVIEW - With star Franco Nero.
MAKING-OF DOCUMENTARY
“ITALY’S CINEMATIC CIVIL CONSCIENCE” - An excellent visual essay that might help the viewer develop an appreciation for director Damiano Damiani.
TRAILER
HOW TO KILL A JUDGE
NEW INTERVIEWS - 1) With star Franco Nero; 2) With Damiano Damiani biographer Alberto Pezzotta.
“LESSONS IN VIOLENCE” - Video essay about the film by filmmaker David Caims.
ENGLISH & ITALIAN TRAILERS
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