Oak Cliff Film Festival 2012 Review: EUROCRIME! THE ITALIAN COP & GANGSTER MOVIES THAT RULED THE '70S
The last couple of years have been boom times for Eurocrime fans in the US. While Blue Underground has been releasing these Italian police films here and there for a while now, it is Raro Video USA who've really put the pedal to the metal in getting Eurocrime back into the American movie geek's line of sight, and bully for them. Mike Malloy's long gestating documentary about this very overlooked subgenre of films takes a long (LONG) look at these films and the cultural and financial times that created them. While it is a boon for fans of the films, unfortunately the film suffers a bit from Malloy's enthusiasm and doesn't quite seem to coalesce into the kind of experience that will convert the non-fan. Nevertheless, if you love or have any interest in Eurocrime films, there's no more complete look at the genre than Eurocrime!
When the flame of the Spaghetti Western flickered out in the late '60s, Italian film producers went a little crazy in attempting to dig up another American film genre they could exploit, and thus the Eurocrime film was born. Italian genre cinema has always been dependent upon "ripping off" American cinema in a faster, cheaper way, and when films like Dirty Harry and The Godfather proved to be big hits in Italian cinemas, a lightbulb went off in studios' heads. They could make these films, populated by sleazy gangsters and even sleazier cops, quickly and cheaply by importing American B-movie stars and recycling plots and dialogue with abandon. The result was hundreds of Eurocrime films throughout the '70s that capitalized on the format, and often to diminishing artistic returns.
Malloy's passion for Eurocrime films is palpable. He's assembled a dream team of actors and directors to talk about their experiences. On the American side we get to hear from Henry Silva (The Italian Connection, Dick Tracy), Fred Williamson (Black Caesar), John Saxon (Tenebre, etc...), and many others; while the Italian actors interviewed include Antonio Sabato (in a FIERCE hot pink tank top/vest/cut off shorts combo), Franco Nero, Luc Merenda and more. Malloy also managed to round up some of the biggest living directors from the genre, including Claudio Fragasso (Troll 2), and Enzo Castellari (The Inglorious Bastards). All of the participants are more than willing to share their feelings and stories about the era, which probably adds up to one of the film's biggest flaws, its length.
Eurocrime! is two hours and fifteen minutes long, seemingly ignoring the seminal rule of Eurocrime films, which is to deliver a film that is all killer and no filler. A lot of the material in the film seems like it'd be more appropriate as DVD extra material, however, it seems that the director probably was worried that his film might not get that far and he wanted to get everything into the main feature. I understand the reluctance to leave stuff you love on the cutting room floor, but at times like these it is necessary.
One thing that separates Eurocrime! from other recent films about films is the production value. Whereas films like Not Quite Hollywood get the audience excited about the films it is covering through a combination of will chosen clips, snappy editing, and exciting graphics, Eurocrime! doesn't appear to have the technical wizardry necessary create that kind of spectacle. I know that content is king, however, part of the appeal of the recent spate of films on films has been that spectacle, and Eurocrime! is lacking severely in that department. The result is a film purely for the fans with a more inclusive feature lurking somewhere in the editing room.
If anything is evident about Eurocrime!, it is that this film is a passion project from the producers and director. Mike Malloy's enthusiasm is all over this thing, and he delves deep. The patience it must've taken to record all of these interviews over the course of the last several years (we first reported on the film in 2009 and it was already in progress then) is monumental. I share in Malloy's enthusiasm, for sure, however, the lack of editorial oversight, and relatively rough looking transitions and titles may be a bit trying for the casual viewer.
Adventurous souls will come out of Eurocrime! with a long list of titles to seek out, that's for damned sure. That's reason enough for me to recommend the film.
When the flame of the Spaghetti Western flickered out in the late '60s, Italian film producers went a little crazy in attempting to dig up another American film genre they could exploit, and thus the Eurocrime film was born. Italian genre cinema has always been dependent upon "ripping off" American cinema in a faster, cheaper way, and when films like Dirty Harry and The Godfather proved to be big hits in Italian cinemas, a lightbulb went off in studios' heads. They could make these films, populated by sleazy gangsters and even sleazier cops, quickly and cheaply by importing American B-movie stars and recycling plots and dialogue with abandon. The result was hundreds of Eurocrime films throughout the '70s that capitalized on the format, and often to diminishing artistic returns.
Malloy's passion for Eurocrime films is palpable. He's assembled a dream team of actors and directors to talk about their experiences. On the American side we get to hear from Henry Silva (The Italian Connection, Dick Tracy), Fred Williamson (Black Caesar), John Saxon (Tenebre, etc...), and many others; while the Italian actors interviewed include Antonio Sabato (in a FIERCE hot pink tank top/vest/cut off shorts combo), Franco Nero, Luc Merenda and more. Malloy also managed to round up some of the biggest living directors from the genre, including Claudio Fragasso (Troll 2), and Enzo Castellari (The Inglorious Bastards). All of the participants are more than willing to share their feelings and stories about the era, which probably adds up to one of the film's biggest flaws, its length.
Eurocrime! is two hours and fifteen minutes long, seemingly ignoring the seminal rule of Eurocrime films, which is to deliver a film that is all killer and no filler. A lot of the material in the film seems like it'd be more appropriate as DVD extra material, however, it seems that the director probably was worried that his film might not get that far and he wanted to get everything into the main feature. I understand the reluctance to leave stuff you love on the cutting room floor, but at times like these it is necessary.
One thing that separates Eurocrime! from other recent films about films is the production value. Whereas films like Not Quite Hollywood get the audience excited about the films it is covering through a combination of will chosen clips, snappy editing, and exciting graphics, Eurocrime! doesn't appear to have the technical wizardry necessary create that kind of spectacle. I know that content is king, however, part of the appeal of the recent spate of films on films has been that spectacle, and Eurocrime! is lacking severely in that department. The result is a film purely for the fans with a more inclusive feature lurking somewhere in the editing room.
If anything is evident about Eurocrime!, it is that this film is a passion project from the producers and director. Mike Malloy's enthusiasm is all over this thing, and he delves deep. The patience it must've taken to record all of these interviews over the course of the last several years (we first reported on the film in 2009 and it was already in progress then) is monumental. I share in Malloy's enthusiasm, for sure, however, the lack of editorial oversight, and relatively rough looking transitions and titles may be a bit trying for the casual viewer.
Adventurous souls will come out of Eurocrime! with a long list of titles to seek out, that's for damned sure. That's reason enough for me to recommend the film.
Eurocrime! screens at the first annual Oak Cliff Film Festival in Dallas at the Bishop Arts Theatre on Saturday, June 16, at 7 PM
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