The Sicilian (1987)

Egocentric bandit Salvatore Giuliano fights the Church, the Mafia, and the landed gentry while leading a populist movement for Sicilian independence.

Director:

Michael Cimino

Writers:

Mario Puzo (novel), Steve Shagan (screenplay)

Stars:

Christopher Lambert, Terence Stamp, Joss Ackland

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Christopher Lambert	...	Salvatore Giuliano
Terence Stamp	...	Prince Borsa
Joss Ackland	...	Don Masino Croce
John Turturro	...	Pisciotta
Richard Bauer	...	Hector Adonis
Barbara Sukowa	...	Camilla, Duchess of Crotone
Giulia Boschi	...	Giovanna Ferra
Ray McAnally	...	Trezza
Barry Miller	...	Dr. Nattore
Andreas Katsulas	...	Passatempa
Michael Wincott	...	Cpl. Silvestro Canio
Derrick Branche	...	Terranova
Richard Venture	...	Cardinal of Palermo
Ramon Bieri	...	Quintana
Stanko Molnar	...	Silvio Ferra

Storyline

Giuliano robs from the rich conservative landowners to give to the poor, serf-like peasants, who in turn hail him as their savior. As his popularity grows, so does his ego, and he eventually thinks he is above the power of his backer, Mafia Don Masino Croce. The Don, in turn, sets out to kill the upstart by convincing his cousin and closest advisor Pissciota to assassinate him

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Plot Keywords:

italy | mafia | sicilian | mafia don | landed gentry | 

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Taglines:

Only one man ever dared to stand alone.

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Genres:

Action | Crime | Drama

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

23 October 1987 (USA)

Also Known As:

Der Sizilianer

Filming Locations:

Cinecittà Studios, Cinecittà, Rome, Lazio, Italy

Box Office

Budget:

$9,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$1,720,351, 25 October 1987, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$5,406,879

Company Credits

Production Co:

Gladden Entertainment

Technical Specs

Runtime:

115 min 146 min (Director's Cut)

Sound Mix:

Dolby (35 mm prints) 70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

David Begelman and Bruce McNall discovered that the film was over budget and behind schedule. The problems involved mostly hang-ups with personnel and equipment, nothing on the scale of Michael Cimino's Heaven's Gate (1980). One exception was some low-level Mafia men who controlled certain locations and union workers. Cimino suggested that Begelman and McNall meet with Mafia men to overcome the impasse. Upon meeting them in a restaurant off the main piazza, the producers discovered that the Mafia men wanted to appear in the film. "Once we all understood," wrote McNall, "the fix was easy. There were plenty of little roles for walk-ons and extras. And if a real role didn't exist, we could pretend to involve some of the guys and throw them a day's pay." Once the problem was solved, Cimino had access to the countryside and the local labor pool.

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Goofs

The film shows Guiliano trying to stop the massacre at Portella della Ginestre (blamed in the film on Terranova, who was one of the few of Giuliano's band who it's definitely known did NOT fire a single shot on that day). In reality Guiliano always accepted full responsibility for the massacre and expressed no sorrow for the victims.

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Quotes

Salvatore Giuliano: You're an American, aren't you?
Camilla, Duchess of Crotone: Yes, and like every other Sicilian you want to go to America and start a pizzaria in Jersey.

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Alternate Versions

Originally released at 115 minutes in the USA. A 146-minutes director's cut is available on video and at least in Europe as a region 2 DVD.

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Connections

Version of Salvatore Giuliano (1962)

User Reviews

The complete European-release version is extraordinary

The European-release version of "The Sicilian" is 31 minutes longer than the US version. Supposedly, the director was ordered to deliver a version under 2 hours, so he recut the film to render it incoherent with the expectation that Fox would have to release the complete film. Only, they went ahead and released the deliberately botched shorter cut. This may be apocryphal, but it would help explain the critical drubbing it got in this country. I was lucky enough to see the complete film in Paris and was mesmerized. Gore Vidal was denied credit for the screenplay, but the film has a literacy, intellectual depth and acidity that is pure Vidal; the character played by Terrance Stamp is essentially Vidal's stand-in. The only comparable film might be "The Godfather," but with an even stronger historic/political context. It is certainly the highpoint of Michael Cimino's career to date, and I'm one of those odd ducks that fervently admires "Heaven's Gate". If you can see this in Europe, or if it comes out over there on DVD and you have a region-appropriate DVD player, grab the opportunity to see it.