Gardenia (1979)
"Gardenia, il giustiziere della mala" (original title)

Gardenia possiede un ristorante, ha una donna, Regina, e segue le vecchie regole della malavita romana. Questo finchè non arriva Salluzzo che pretende di smerciare la droga anche nel ... See full summary »

Director:

Domenico Paolella

Writers:

Teodoro Corrà (story), Gino Capone (story),

Stars:

Franco Califano, Martin Balsam, Robert Webber

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Franco Califano	...	Gardenia
Martin Balsam	...	Salluzzo
Robert Webber	...	Tony Caruso
Eleonora Vallone	...	Regina
Licinia Lentini	...	Miriam Bella
Franco Diogene	...	Friend of Gardenia
María Baxa	...	Gardenia Girl
Venantino Venantini	...	Nocita
Gualtiero Rispoli	...	Avvocato
Lory Del Santo	...	Laura
Lorraine De Selle	...	Consuelo
Renato Bassobondini	...	(as Renato Basso Bondini)
Roberto Della Casa	...	Colombiano
Fabrizio Jovine	...	Salluzzo Partner
Melissa Chimenti	...	(as Melissa)

Storyline

Gardenia possiede un ristorante, ha una donna, Regina, e segue le vecchie regole della malavita romana. Questo finchè non arriva Salluzzo che pretende di smerciare la droga anche nel ristorante di Gardenia. Ma gardenia rifiuta perchè la droga non è una buona cosa ed ha così inizio una guerra tra i due. Guerra senza morti all'inizio, ma che, dopo la morte di un amico di gardenia, diventerà sempre più sanguinosa e Gardenia finirà per ritrovarsi solo.

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Plot Keywords:

blackmail | revenge | poliziottesco | rome italy | friendship | 

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Taglines:

It's kill or be killed in the mafia, They said it with bullets... He said it with flowers.

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Genres:

Crime

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Details

Country:

Italy

Language:

Italian

Release Date:

5 May 1979 (Italy)

Also Known As:

Gardenia

Filming Locations:

Rome, Lazio, Italy

Company Credits

Production Co:

Pac Orsa Maggiore

Technical Specs

Runtime:

100 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Connections

References My Name Is Nobody (1973)

User Reviews

Women want Gardenia, men want to be Gardenia

Controversial singer-songwriter Franco Califano takes his tough, no nonsense persona to the big screen in one of his few starring roles as the man with the Gardenia, a restaurant owner who is not afraid to stand up to the mob. It's little wonder that every woman in the film swoons and sighs at the sight of him and all men, even the baddies, are awestruck at his appearance. Not that they show him constant respecto, if that were the case we wouldn't have much of a picture.

Although Califano does not get to sing any of his songs all the way through during the picture, he did provide the musical score which borrows equally from Shaft and Spagetti westerns. He probably also had a hand in writing the tunes the blues lady croons at his Mayfair restaurant. Two American gangster types, Martin Balsam and Robert Webber (here named Salluzzo and Caruso) team up to force Gardenia to pay them a share of his income, but the mighty G refuses.

Along with a circle of friends (including big boned Fraco Diogene) the man with the gardenia in his lapel takes revenge when they blow up his kitchen (and his favorite cook). He overhears Salluzzo's plans to rob a bank and goes there first. He wins the right to remain in town by beating Salluzzo at a high stake game of pool and even though Salluzzo's mistress Miriam (the impressive Licinia Lentini) throws herself in with the bargain, Gardenia refuses. And all that after his live in lover Regina (hot tamale Eleonora Vallone) leaves him.

But really, Salluzzo never had a chance against Gardenia, not even on his own turf, for the G-man never misses a single hole (he really should have had his own theme tune that summed up all his best traits). There are some violent scenes in the picture, but whenever there is blood on anyone's faces, it is of the bright red Hammer horror/Spagetti western type and there is usually a joke or a James Bond quip to lighten the situation immediately afterward. Gardenia himself likes to rattle of Chinese proverbs all over the place and his closest confident is a white pussycat. For even the animals adore that man. After all, he is Gardenia.

8 out of 10