Banana Joe (1982)

Director:

Steno

Writers:

Mario Amendola
Bruno Corbucci
(more)

Release Date:

25 March 1982 (West Germany)

Genre:

Comedy

Tagline:

He's big, he's funny, he's... Banana Joe. You'll love him!

Plot:

A man is living happily on an island with his family, growing bananas. When a local mobster with an eye on man's property tries to take it from him, he must go to the town for the first time to get some help. |

Plot Keywords:

Hit In The Face | Simple Man | Slapstick | Brawl | Blonde

Cast

Bud Spencer	...	Banana Joe
Marina Langner	...	Dorianne
Mario Scarpetta	...	Manuel
Gianfranco Barra	...	Torsillo
Enzo Garinei	...	Ingegner Moreno
Gunther Philipp	...	Sarto (as Gunter Philipp)
Giorgio Bracardi	...	Sergente Martino
Gisela Hahn		(as Gisela Hann)
Nello Pazzafini	...	Torsillo's Truck Driver
Carlo Reali	...	Police Captain
Salvatore Basile	...	Police Officer (as Salvo Basile)
Edy Biagetti
Giovanni Cianfriglia	...	Torsillo's Thug
Benito Pacifico
Sergio Smacchi	...	Torsillo's Thug
Marcello Verziera	...	Torcillo's Thug
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Gabriel Aljure	...	(uncredited)
Eolo Capritti	...	General (uncredited)
Nicola Di Gioia	...	Prison Guard (uncredited)
James Ordonez	...	Sergio (uncredited)

Directed by
Steno

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Mario Amendola		(as Amendola)
Bruno Corbucci		(as Corbucci)
Bud Spencer		(as Carlo Pedersoli)
Steno

Produced by
Josi W. Konski	....	producer

Original Music by
Guido De Angelis
Maurizio De Angelis

Cinematography by
Luigi Kuveiller

Film Editing by
Raimondo Crociani

Production Design by
Francesco Bronzi

Costume Design by
Luciano Sagoni

Production Management
Vittorio Galiano	....	production manager
Maurizio Pastrovich	....	production manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Massimo Carocci	....	assistant director
Enrico Mastracchi Manes	....	trainee assistant director

Special Effects by
Dino Galiano	....	special effects supervisor

Stunts
Ottaviano Dell'Acqua	....	stunts
Claudio Pacifico	....	stunts
Giorgio Ubaldi	....	stunt coordinator
Massimiliano Ubaldi	....	stunts

Production Companies

• Derby Cinematografica
• Lisa-Film

Distributors

• Dutch FilmWorks (DFW) (2007) (Netherlands) (DVD)
• Future Film (2006) (Finland) (DVD)
• MV_Movies (200?) (Netherlands) (DVD)
• Millennium Storm (2004) (Italy) (VHS)
• Paris Filmes (2006) (Brazil) (DVD)
• RTL Entertainment (2008) (Netherlands) (TV) (RTL7)
• Tien (2007) (Netherlands) (TV)

Also Known As:

Runtime:

96 min

Country:

Italy | West Germany

Language:

Italian

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Spain:T | Australia:PG | Brazil:Livre | Finland:K-12 | Norway:12 | West Germany:6 (nf) | Argentina:13

Filming Locations:

Cartagena, Bolívar, Colombia

Company:

Derby Cinematografica

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: During the truck racing scene, obvious miniatures are used for the off-road crash shots.

Movie Connections:

References "Candid Camera" (1960/II)

Bemusing comedy set on far country for Bud Spencer enthusiastic, repeating his usual role

Banana Joe(Bud Spencer) is a corpulent and kind illiterate living on a tropical island in the Caribe. He trades bananas when a mobster named Torsillo wishes to take his commerce. Then , for first time in his existence, he goes to big city for getting an identity certificate . There he knows a beautiful singer named Dorianne(Marina), facing off dangers, truck racers(with usual Peplum, Nello Pazzafini as a Torsillo's truck driver) and several adventures.

This is a good amusing juvenile for Bud Spencer fans, but he's delight; it packs action, fist-play, slapdash, humor with tongue and check and is quite entertaining. This release has some cool and even hilarious moments, though the Terence Hill-Bud Spencer duo films are better. The film isn't always good , sometimes is fresh and diverting and on a couple of memorable occasions ,it's frankly delicious. The movie displays innumerable laughters and slapstick, including a sour satyr about bureaucracy and the army when Banana Joe is forced to enlist for obtaining a identity document. Sympathetic screenplay by the usual, Mario Amendola, Bruno Corbucci and Carlo Perdesoli(alias Bud Spencer). Catching musical score with noisy songs by Guido and Mauricio De Angelis(Spaghetti Western habitual). The motion picture is professionally directed by Steno, Stefano Vanzina(father of Carlo Vanzina). He wrote and directed in the 60s Toto vehicles(Toto vs the four, Two colonels); Walter Chiari and Raimondo Vianello shows(Heroes of the West, Twins from Texas). In the 70s and 80s directed Bud Spencer movies about Flatfoot or Rizzo, also called Piedone, such as, Flatfoot in Hong Kong, Piedone in Africa, Flatfoot in Egypt. And in the 80s directed TV series , the Professore Jack Clementi, again with Bud Spencer.