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Intro into Poliziotteschi
14 titles |
Public
Do you love Quentin Tarantino’s early crime-films output? Or the subsequent wave of copycat crime films that were inspired by him? Why not check out at what director Tarantino himself is copying from? Look no further than the 1970’s Italian crime-genre: Poliziotteschi or Euro-crime.
Poliziotteschi films portrayed crime in Italy, following both detectives and criminals. They’re notable for their gritty feel, bizarre and dangerous action scenes, violence and a tough-on-crime stance. They feature a lot of beatings, car stunts, shoot-outs, tough ‘loose cannon’ cops, inept and/or corrupt politicians and police commissars, prostitutes, sadistic gangsters, nudity, slick lawyers, journalists and the occasional love interest. Poliziotteschi pictures are extremely dynamic because of the on-the-fly way of shotting movies in Italy, and the lack of regulations for stunts and filming in general.
As you can tell Poliziotteschi is a very macho genre. We are talking about films like ‘Calibre 9’ which follows a recently released gangster being hunted by other gangsters about the disappearance of a large sum of money. Or ‘Street Law’ which follows a roughed up civilian trying to get vigilante justice but encountering only more violence. Or the exploitative ‘Almost Human’ where a sadistic criminal murders his way through Milano while being followed by an extremely determined detective. The film ‘The Italian Connection’ features two American gangsters who would become the inspiration for Jules and Vincent in ‘Pulp Fiction’.
The background of the genre is quite interesting as well. Italy was going through a period of great societal upheaval, the years of lead or ‘anni di piombo’. This was a period of assassinations, terrorist attacks, left-wing and right-wing brigades and kidnappings and a rise in petty crimes. Poliziotteschi is in a sense a cathartic genre. It features paralyzed institutions, but endorses vigilantism and rogue cop behaviour as an antidote to the chaos. It shows criminals getting a rough ending, but also shows criminals with codes of honour which didn’t really exist anymore, if it ever really did. Because of this the films tend to be characterised as right-wing, though the reality of that is more nebulous. There are Poliziotteschi made from all political angles and by far the most of them care more about entertaining the viewer than bringing across political ideas.
Many Poliziotteschi movies borrowed from American films like ‘The French Connection’, ‘Bullitt’, ‘Dirty Harry’ or ‘The Godfather’. Sometimes straight up lifting dialogues and characters, but often just taking cues and themes from the US. Many car chases in Poliziotteschi can stand up to their Hollywood counterparts with ease (Live Like a Cop, Die Like a Cop’ features an amazing opening chase, and even the cheaply made ‘Roma Violenta’ has an eclectic chase scene), often because of the mentioned lack of regulations in Italy and the filmmakers subsequent freedom.
That the films were often made with little money and resources only added to their dynamic character. Filmmakers had to get creative to make films as thrilling as their US counterparts. Further, actors were often ready to do crazy stunts themselves which was seen as something manly in Italy at the time. Filmmakers often improvised with random circumstances, and there are instances of criminals themselves being involved in the films as extras or even in the funding (‘Contraband’).
I dive deeper into Poliziotteschi in my blog about the production, background, major directors (Umberto Lenzi, Fernando di Leo, Enzo G. Castellari), politics, and discuss a number of Poliziotteschi films (and make some recommendations) on my blog here:
https://www.inthelimelight.tv/blog/intro-into-poliziotteschi https://www.inthelimelight.tv/blog/intro-into-poliziotteschi-part-ii
Personally, after seeing many many films in my life, movies that do something different and unique are most interesting to me. Polizitteschi with it’s bizarre choices and dynamism in filming can offer that uniqueness of a new film experience. It’s influences are still felt in cinema today. All in all Poliziotteschi was a strange time in Italian genre-cinema but one that shouldn’t be forgotten.
Poliziotteschi films portrayed crime in Italy, following both detectives and criminals. They’re notable for their gritty feel, bizarre and dangerous action scenes, violence and a tough-on-crime stance. They feature a lot of beatings, car stunts, shoot-outs, tough ‘loose cannon’ cops, inept and/or corrupt politicians and police commissars, prostitutes, sadistic gangsters, nudity, slick lawyers, journalists and the occasional love interest. Poliziotteschi pictures are extremely dynamic because of the on-the-fly way of shotting movies in Italy, and the lack of regulations for stunts and filming in general.
As you can tell Poliziotteschi is a very macho genre. We are talking about films like ‘Calibre 9’ which follows a recently released gangster being hunted by other gangsters about the disappearance of a large sum of money. Or ‘Street Law’ which follows a roughed up civilian trying to get vigilante justice but encountering only more violence. Or the exploitative ‘Almost Human’ where a sadistic criminal murders his way through Milano while being followed by an extremely determined detective. The film ‘The Italian Connection’ features two American gangsters who would become the inspiration for Jules and Vincent in ‘Pulp Fiction’.
The background of the genre is quite interesting as well. Italy was going through a period of great societal upheaval, the years of lead or ‘anni di piombo’. This was a period of assassinations, terrorist attacks, left-wing and right-wing brigades and kidnappings and a rise in petty crimes. Poliziotteschi is in a sense a cathartic genre. It features paralyzed institutions, but endorses vigilantism and rogue cop behaviour as an antidote to the chaos. It shows criminals getting a rough ending, but also shows criminals with codes of honour which didn’t really exist anymore, if it ever really did. Because of this the films tend to be characterised as right-wing, though the reality of that is more nebulous. There are Poliziotteschi made from all political angles and by far the most of them care more about entertaining the viewer than bringing across political ideas.
Many Poliziotteschi movies borrowed from American films like ‘The French Connection’, ‘Bullitt’, ‘Dirty Harry’ or ‘The Godfather’. Sometimes straight up lifting dialogues and characters, but often just taking cues and themes from the US. Many car chases in Poliziotteschi can stand up to their Hollywood counterparts with ease (Live Like a Cop, Die Like a Cop’ features an amazing opening chase, and even the cheaply made ‘Roma Violenta’ has an eclectic chase scene), often because of the mentioned lack of regulations in Italy and the filmmakers subsequent freedom.
That the films were often made with little money and resources only added to their dynamic character. Filmmakers had to get creative to make films as thrilling as their US counterparts. Further, actors were often ready to do crazy stunts themselves which was seen as something manly in Italy at the time. Filmmakers often improvised with random circumstances, and there are instances of criminals themselves being involved in the films as extras or even in the funding (‘Contraband’).
I dive deeper into Poliziotteschi in my blog about the production, background, major directors (Umberto Lenzi, Fernando di Leo, Enzo G. Castellari), politics, and discuss a number of Poliziotteschi films (and make some recommendations) on my blog here:
https://www.inthelimelight.tv/blog/intro-into-poliziotteschi https://www.inthelimelight.tv/blog/intro-into-poliziotteschi-part-ii
Personally, after seeing many many films in my life, movies that do something different and unique are most interesting to me. Polizitteschi with it’s bizarre choices and dynamism in filming can offer that uniqueness of a new film experience. It’s influences are still felt in cinema today. All in all Poliziotteschi was a strange time in Italian genre-cinema but one that shouldn’t be forgotten.
Italian Cannibal Exploitation: Cinema's Dirty Little Secret
11 titles |
Public
Some people, especially those interested in extreme cinema or gorehounds, might be familiar with the cult classic ‘Cannibal Holocaust’ by Ruggero Deodato. When stumbling upon this film during my quest for the darker side of film, I was deeply impressed by its cynical and aggressive nature. What was unknown to me at the time is that it was part of a short-lived exploitation subgenre focussed around stone-age native cannibals and Western people that meet them also known as the ‘Cannibal Boom’ or ‘Cannibal Exploitation’.
About two dozen titles where made in the subgenre starting with ‘Man from the Deep River’ and ‘Lost Cannibal World’ which laid the blueprints for the genre. Other notable titles include ‘Eaten Alive!’, ‘Cannibal Ferox’ or ‘Zombie Holocaust’ and of course ‘Cannibal Holocaust’. Director Eli Roth made a 21st century tribute to the genre with ‘The Green Inferno’. Unfortunately I have not been able to track all of them down.
Major themes include the relation between Western and native peoples, thrills like violence and sex, and an obsession with ‘savagery’ and foreign rituals. Many of these come from the ‘Mondo Film’ genre, which mostly consisted of documentaries depicting the exotic and savage but were often staged. ‘Cannibal Holocaust’ is a clear riff on the Mondo filmmakers and their lack of ethics.
The subgenre Cannibal Exploitation itself is most notable today for its seeming lack of ethics: regularly the films portray extreme violence, often sexual like rape and castration, is racist in its portrayal of native peoples and many of the films contain real animal killings. It also doesn’t help that most of the films are not exactly well-made, terribly acted and often badly overdubbed.
However, there are a few titles that have a misanthropic and nihilistic staying power, namely the above ‘Cannibal Holocaust’ and ‘Cannibal Ferox’ to a degree. But for the most part the only value is that films made in the genre can be just plain fun. Many of the choices made are bizarre (mixing of genres that should never be mixed), acting and dialogue can be hilarious, and it is clear that the filmmakers often had a lot of freedom. Therefore the Cannibal Exploitation tends to have a surprising entertainment value, and also a lot of both male and female nudity if that’s your thing.
I dive deeper into the subgenre, including the background, its major themes and film by film reviews in my blogposts here:
https://www.inthelimelight.tv/blog/cinemas-dirty-little-secret https://www.inthelimelight.tv/blog/cinemas-dirty-little-secret-part-2 https://www.inthelimelight.tv/blog/cinemas-dirty-little-secret-part-3
Films below are sorted by how much (or little) they are recommended.
About two dozen titles where made in the subgenre starting with ‘Man from the Deep River’ and ‘Lost Cannibal World’ which laid the blueprints for the genre. Other notable titles include ‘Eaten Alive!’, ‘Cannibal Ferox’ or ‘Zombie Holocaust’ and of course ‘Cannibal Holocaust’. Director Eli Roth made a 21st century tribute to the genre with ‘The Green Inferno’. Unfortunately I have not been able to track all of them down.
Major themes include the relation between Western and native peoples, thrills like violence and sex, and an obsession with ‘savagery’ and foreign rituals. Many of these come from the ‘Mondo Film’ genre, which mostly consisted of documentaries depicting the exotic and savage but were often staged. ‘Cannibal Holocaust’ is a clear riff on the Mondo filmmakers and their lack of ethics.
The subgenre Cannibal Exploitation itself is most notable today for its seeming lack of ethics: regularly the films portray extreme violence, often sexual like rape and castration, is racist in its portrayal of native peoples and many of the films contain real animal killings. It also doesn’t help that most of the films are not exactly well-made, terribly acted and often badly overdubbed.
However, there are a few titles that have a misanthropic and nihilistic staying power, namely the above ‘Cannibal Holocaust’ and ‘Cannibal Ferox’ to a degree. But for the most part the only value is that films made in the genre can be just plain fun. Many of the choices made are bizarre (mixing of genres that should never be mixed), acting and dialogue can be hilarious, and it is clear that the filmmakers often had a lot of freedom. Therefore the Cannibal Exploitation tends to have a surprising entertainment value, and also a lot of both male and female nudity if that’s your thing.
I dive deeper into the subgenre, including the background, its major themes and film by film reviews in my blogposts here:
https://www.inthelimelight.tv/blog/cinemas-dirty-little-secret https://www.inthelimelight.tv/blog/cinemas-dirty-little-secret-part-2 https://www.inthelimelight.tv/blog/cinemas-dirty-little-secret-part-3
Films below are sorted by how much (or little) they are recommended.
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Reviews
Sava (2021)
Charming Documentary
24 August 2021 - 2 out of 2 users found this review helpful.
Beautiful rivertrip following former Yugoslavia's longest river that broadcasts a microcosm of Balkan people, their ideas, opinions, way of life and look towards the future past and each other. All the stories are connected in some way to the river, which is used for livelihood, food, sport, recreation, inspiration but at the same time polluted and abused. Sava gives a very human view of an often stereotyped region, and at the same time its charming, fun to watch and occasionally sad.
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