The Family (1970)
"Città violenta" (original title)

A hitman is double-crossed by his girlfriend and barely escapes a murder attempt. He then sets out to take his revenge on the woman and the gang boss who put her up to it.

Director:

Sergio Sollima

Writers:

Massimo De Rita (story), Gianfranco Galligarich (screenplay),

Stars:

Charles Bronson, Jill Ireland, Michel Constantin

Cast

Credited cast:
Charles Bronson	...	Jeff Heston
Jill Ireland	...	Vanessa Shelton
Michel Constantin	...	Killain
Telly Savalas	...	Al Weber
Umberto Orsini	...	Steve
Ray Saunders	...	Prisoner (as Ray Sanders)
Benjamin Lev	...	Jeff's Mate
Peter Dane	...	Television Host
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
George Savalas	...	Shapiro

Storyline

After a bloody double-cross leaves him for dead, professional hit man Jeff tracks the shooter and his beautiful mistress to New Orleans. But when Jeff takes both revenge and the woman, he finds himself blackmailed by a powerful crime boss who wants the fiercely independent gunman to join his organization. Jeff refuses, and is hunted through an unforgiving city where love is like a loaded gun and debts of vengeance are paid in bullets.

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Plot Keywords:

revenge | hitman | murder | double cross | crime boss | 

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Taglines:

"The Godfather" Gave You an Offer You Couldn't Refuse. "The Family" Gives You No Alternative.

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Thriller

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

Italy France

Language:

English Italian

Release Date:

1 February 1973 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Family

Filming Locations:

Cinecittà Studios, Cinecittà, Rome, Lazio, Italy

Company Credits

Production Co:

Fono Roma, Target Associates, Unidis

Technical Specs

Runtime:

100 min 104 min (TV)

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

According to the DVD sleeve notes, this movie was inspired by Jean-Pierre Melville's Le Samouraï.

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Goofs

In the shooting scene after Coogan and Vanessa left in the Porsche, the P08 Luger, with which Jeff kills his three pursuers, is seen at one moment in a take from behind with the breech opened (magazine empty) and in the very next moment in a take from the front with the breech closed (pistol loaded). This continuity-error is about ten minutes into the movie, in a scene where Jeff lies in the sand and shoots the last attacker on the other side of the burning car.

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Connections

Referenced in Django Unchained (2012)

User Reviews

charlie b is the man for me!

in this brillant piece of cinema, charles bronson plays a sniper who is double crossed by his girl while on vacation....they almost kill him but after a bloody shoot out and a fairly lame car chase, he gets away....only to be offered a job to kill someone....he turns it down and ends up killing the guy who tried to kill him instead...he then proceeds to be hunted by the guys who tried to hire him, this group of men happens to be lead by none other than telly savalis....!....plot twists and a surprise ending make this one of the more interesting bronson films....with the film not being made in the usa you get a different sense of charlie....check out the jail scene and see if you catch the fact that he has a lisp....that explains all the long shots....oh yeah, jill ireland plays his girl....big surprise. don't get me wrong i love charles bronosn....but her, not so much. the end.