Diamond Pedlars (1976) User Reviews

Some funny action in the second half lifts this routine Hill/Spencer clone

[Leofwine_draca · 4/10 · 8 February 2017]

THE DIAMOND PEDDLERS is a straight copy of the action comedy formula that worked so successfully in the 1970s for Terence Hill and Bud Spencer; in this one they've even picked two lookalike actors to pretend to be our stars. I did like Paul L. Smith here (the actor is, of course, remembered today for his role as Bluto against Robin Williams in POPEYE) although I didn't think much of Antonio Cantafora's tiresome mugging in the Hill role.

As is the norm for these productions, the plot isn't very strong and merely a backbone on which to hang the big set-pieces. Smith and Cantafora are small-time crooks who pose as priests and fall foul of the usual gangster and police types who want nothing more than to see them dead. The action begins in Africa but later moves to Holland, and the humour is pretty lowbrow throughout. However, the good news is that the film improves significantly as the time progresses. The action starts off quite slow but in the second half there's plenty of fun involving the rival mobsters and extended chase scenes which are worth a laugh or two for undemanding viewers.

Butch and Toby return for more enjoyably silly fun

[Woodyanders · 8/10 · 12 February 2009]

Likable clod Toby (the engaging Antonio Cantafora) and his ill-tempered partner Butch (bulky behemoth Paul Smith) pose as a couple of priests in order to elude being arrested by the authorities in Africa. Toby and Butch deliver a statue of the Virgin Mary from Africa to Amsterdam. Unbenownst to the clueless duo, they're really smuggling diamonds. A bunch of equally inept mobsters give chase. Director/co-writer Giuliano Carnimeo and co-writer Pierre-Louis Alberti concoct a disarmingly inane, good-natured and inoffensive comedic romp that goes heavy on the always raucous and often uproarious broad humor, with off-the-wall slapstick chases and no-holds-barred wacky fights being the order of the day (a lengthy riverboat chase in a canal and a hysterical bash'em up restaurant kitchen fight set piece rate as the definite sidesplitting highlights). The winningly breezy, natural and relaxed chemistry between Smith and Cantafora adds immensely to the picture's infectiously goofy charm; they receive fine support from Jacques Herlin as the shrewd Inspector Nelson and Franco Pesce as the jolly Father Remos. The jaunty score by Juniper and the incredibly catchy theme song further energize the lively proceedings. A pleasingly dippy hoot.

SPENCER / HILL imitators at work: Matteo and Simone

[ZeddaZogenau · 8/10 · 19 October 2023]

News from Matteo & Simone

This Italian beating outfit, directed by Giuliano Carnimeo in 1976, is the direct sequel to "Zwei irre Typen mit ihrem tollen Brummi". The brothers Guido and Maurizio De Angelis are responsible for the moody music.

Matteo (Antonio Cantafora) and Simone (Paul L. Smith), who are called Toby and Butch in the German dub, ended up somewhere in Africa after the events of the previous film and, after some confusion, mistakenly pretend to be priests. As luck would have it, the two "priests" get involved in a robbery at a pawnbroker, during which they of course can't keep their hammer-hard fists under control, so the bad guys are given a lot of tinker. Among the bad guys is the frequently used Italian stuntman Claudio Ruffini, who a year later had a memorable appearance as a "Fettbacke / fat guy" in the film "Charleston" (1977) in the hands of Bud Spencer. The performance of Italian stuntmen like Claudio Ruffini cannot be appreciated enough and still accounts for the charm of these beating scenes in Italian genre films today.

Matteo and Simone are sent by their order to Amsterdam to deliver a statue of the Madonna, which various gangsters are also after. There is a reunion with Dominic Barto and his troupe, who were also seen in the previous film - albeit in completely different roles. There are some complications, but they are a bit lengthy. Some fights are not seen directly, but only from off-screen. Things only get really serious during the final fight in the kitchen of a restaurant, where Matteo and Simone can give their opponents a good thrashing.

Matteo and Simone do not achieve the quality of their avowed role models Terence Hill and Bud Spencer in any of their films. The fights between the two are definitely worth seeing. You don't need to pay so much attention to the story that is being told. But that's also the case with Spencer/Hill.

The film is also known by the following titles: Zwei Fäuste räumen auf Il Vangelo Secondo Simone e Matteo The Diamond Paddlers.