Who'd have thought that the guy who made Strip Nude For Your Killer and Burial Ground would produce one of the best Euro-crime films ever made? That said, if ever a genre needed someone that didn't hold back, it's this one.
The film basically starts as it means to go on. When a car crashes on the French/Italian border causing three fatalities (including the decapitation of the driver) it becomes apparent that the child on board had been dead for several days before hand. Even more horrifying is the discover that the child's body cavity had been used for transporting heroin. The police are astonished at what they find, and even the mafia are revulsed at how low one of their own is willing to stoop, and set out to put a stop to it and restore their already dodgy reputation.
Enter Mafia hitman Henry Silva, sent by one particular Don to Sicily to sort everyone out. Henry is a cold blooded killer who likes to whistle a creepy tune before putting a bullet through everyone's head, and quickly aligns himself with Don Scannapieco, the seemingly 'better' of the two Mafia gangs in the area. Then again, he also aligns himself with the other Don, who is prime suspect for the old child-stuffing racket. A Fistful of Dollars type scenario then arises as Henry plays the two gangs off each other, with over the top violent results.
Of course, there's a few other characters to take note of. Scannapieco's daughter is having a Romeo and Juliet type relationship with the other Don's son, which complicates matters (and hints at a possible positive outcome), Scannpieco's youngest son is a mentally-handicapped cripple who is a burden to his father, and strangest of all is the other Don's girlfriend, the totally messed up Barbara Bouchet, who threatens to claim that Henry raped her if he doesn't make love to her, which he does...up her wrong 'un. That scene alone will make or break those not used to this kind of madness.
The violence escalates as the film progresses, with some jaw-dropping gun battles. People are shot in the face with shotguns, Henry makes really sure two hitmen are dead by running them over with a steamroller, and Don Scannapieco's wife is so overcome with grief at the murder of one of her sons that she forces a hitman's corpse through a bandsaw head first. No one is safe in this film and even Henry can barely speak during the finale due to taking a severe beating and being thrown off a cliff.
Bianchi even throws in a little mystery as the cock-sure Henry starts breaking down a bit and suffering from flashbacks to the murder of a woman by a mystery person. This all comes to a head in a blood-splattered ending in a film that never lets up for the entire duration. This is one seriously-trashy film made even better by Henry Silva's terrifying stare. Result!
Oh, and if you've ever wondered what Barbara Bouchet would look like bathing in milk, this is the film for you.
The film basically starts as it means to go on. When a car crashes on the French/Italian border causing three fatalities (including the decapitation of the driver) it becomes apparent that the child on board had been dead for several days before hand. Even more horrifying is the discover that the child's body cavity had been used for transporting heroin. The police are astonished at what they find, and even the mafia are revulsed at how low one of their own is willing to stoop, and set out to put a stop to it and restore their already dodgy reputation.
Enter Mafia hitman Henry Silva, sent by one particular Don to Sicily to sort everyone out. Henry is a cold blooded killer who likes to whistle a creepy tune before putting a bullet through everyone's head, and quickly aligns himself with Don Scannapieco, the seemingly 'better' of the two Mafia gangs in the area. Then again, he also aligns himself with the other Don, who is prime suspect for the old child-stuffing racket. A Fistful of Dollars type scenario then arises as Henry plays the two gangs off each other, with over the top violent results.
Of course, there's a few other characters to take note of. Scannapieco's daughter is having a Romeo and Juliet type relationship with the other Don's son, which complicates matters (and hints at a possible positive outcome), Scannpieco's youngest son is a mentally-handicapped cripple who is a burden to his father, and strangest of all is the other Don's girlfriend, the totally messed up Barbara Bouchet, who threatens to claim that Henry raped her if he doesn't make love to her, which he does...up her wrong 'un. That scene alone will make or break those not used to this kind of madness.
The violence escalates as the film progresses, with some jaw-dropping gun battles. People are shot in the face with shotguns, Henry makes really sure two hitmen are dead by running them over with a steamroller, and Don Scannapieco's wife is so overcome with grief at the murder of one of her sons that she forces a hitman's corpse through a bandsaw head first. No one is safe in this film and even Henry can barely speak during the finale due to taking a severe beating and being thrown off a cliff.
Bianchi even throws in a little mystery as the cock-sure Henry starts breaking down a bit and suffering from flashbacks to the murder of a woman by a mystery person. This all comes to a head in a blood-splattered ending in a film that never lets up for the entire duration. This is one seriously-trashy film made even better by Henry Silva's terrifying stare. Result!
Oh, and if you've ever wondered what Barbara Bouchet would look like bathing in milk, this is the film for you.