Massimo Dallamano's last film, a Crime Movie, a Poliziotteschi if you like.
The man is already a legend of sort, in amongst the crowd who appreciate all those things to be found in a controversial film like his '...Solange?', but without that central idea of something unusual you won't easily find in any film, is he really a good Director? Well, yes, not just a good Director, but one that I think deserves more attention and consideration... another great R1 USA DVD release from NoShame, out earlier this week.
Pitching local crime boss (The Marsigliese) against top cop-on-a-mission Vanni, the two (very familiar with one another already) aren't set in a typical cat-and-mouse battle as you might expect from a form of cinema that can easily get all too pedestrian. Dallamano has each party independently journeying on their own paths for much of the movie. Vanni is allocated a band of four loose-cannon cops (the so-called Colt 38 Special Squad) to crack down on local crimes which begin to escalate, and through their off-duty actions they stumble into 5 Million Lire of cash in a trashed car. It's a hint, a pointer to something big bubbling under the surface, and Vanni, his fellow cops and their unusual-but-intelligent techniques go to work.
The ensuing car chases, the bikes and the gun shoot-outs are central to the action elements of the story, and they're very refreshingly functional - the feel very real, they are real - and they're an aspect of the movie which brings much of the pace, but it doesn't rely on them. I would say Dallamano could easily be seen too simply, his films as having little difference to the majority, and yet he clearly invests so much of himself, sprinkles so much style and effort into the film that it quickly and consistently rises above the norm. His sense of how to construct, frame and pace a film, the hidden touches (and the obvious ones too) create a strong mood, a very unusual atmosphere in a familiar-feeling city setting.
Instead of the predictable occurring, Vanni simply deduces that having come across 5 Million in Lire, these guys must have sold some serious stuff to someone with lots of cash to throw around. Asking around uncovers the main crux of the film, the missing 70 Kilos of dynamite, and the race is on to find the stuff and figure out what it's being used for - you would expect it to be one big job, and that's hinted at, one of many red herrings and references to lesser plot ideas. It clearly has to be a big job that's being planned, and the chase is fast, furious, unusual and inventive as a result of the sense of urgency. It's not too abstract, and it's not without its distractions, failings, drifting, plot holes, illogical happenings - the Colt 38 guys quickly fade into the background and don't figure in a key element until later elements, as and when necessary to patch a hole - we simply have a fast-paced, inventive cop movie with some really rich original ideas in there. Let's not over-analyse, but let's try to appreciate what's in there.
What does Dallamano throw into the picture in order to make the film rise above the rest? Well, he finds ways of taking familiar elements and making subtle changes to how the formulas work. The use of the dynamite and the gangs behavior leads to some very brief and truly brutal destruction, physical violence. There's hints at experience in other genres, and they're blended in for the unusual mix, and there's an understanding of adding individuality, pleasure for those involved in making the film, sprinkles of great visual style, a truly astonishing ability to capture a sense of time and place - which makes for a very escapist, slightly altered reality - and there's some great social study in the form of tempting the audience into higher or more unusual thoughts than such a genre might normally aim to induce. There's also hints at being very familiar with the genre he is working in right now too, and a sense of how to play on the audiences familiarity, how to lead them in other directions as a result
The quandary over not pitching cat against mouse so simplistically allow Dallamano to openly question if it's a series of politically-motivated attacks (using the dynamite - spread around and used in incidents rather than one crime) or simply the acts of a psychopath, and you're left not knowing all too well what exactly is heading your way. Great sense of tension, unpredictability, and originality, but easy to watch and follow, and it comes together to climax in typically-unusual style. Very enjoyable, certainly greats such an involving atmosphere, gives great cheap-thrills and high-brow concepts, lovely action sequences, stunning cinematography and sense of pace. Works so well, Dallamano easily goes onto my list of Directors I think deserve more attention, Directors that work well for me - so, more from this Director soon please.
Oh, and check out that massive car stunt at the end. It involves a train, a car that doesn't stop driving, a couple of jumps, and my mouth wide open in amazement. Gob smacking.
Well presented as is the norm from NoShame, there are compromises and problems with the print and the sound due to its age. There's minimal shifting the colors on occasion, due to some kind of damage to the print, and the sound often appears as those being played from a dusty old LP - complete with all the snap, crackle and pop you might expect. There's simply not enough issues to make this avoidable, nothing truly distracting to my eye or ear, and it's once again commendable that NoShame so such much taste, understanding and care for such a seletion of films. Bravo.
'Colt 38 Special Squad' Official Sub-page at NoShame, includes specifications, synopsis and trailer.
This R1 USA DVD, issued June 27th 2006, also includes Luciano Ercoli's lost film 'The Rip-Off' (aka 'La Bidonata') on Disc 2.
Dallamano at work on 'Quelli della calibro 38' in 1976, Picture from BuioOmega.com.