The Italian Connection

The Italian Connection 

Genre: Poliziottesco, Crime

Original title: La mala ordina

AKA: Hired to Kill / Manhunt / Black Kingpin

Director: Fernando Di Leo

Year: 1972

When a shipment of heroin disappears between Italy and New York, a small-time pimp in Milan is framed for the theft. Two professional hitmen are dispatched from New York to find him, but the real thieves want to get rid of him before the New York killers get to him to eliminate any chance of them finding out he's the wrong man.

The Italian Connection is the second part of Fernando Di Leo's "Milieu Trilogy", it's another fantastic crime thriller that is fast paced with violence that is harsh, bordering on brutal & there's plenty of unforgettable moments throughout.

The cast reads like a who's who of Italian cinema. You have the films star, Mario Adorf who plays the pimp framed for the theft of a shipment of heroin. He's hunted down by two professional hit-men played by none other than Woody Strode & the legendary Henry Silva, a pairing which Tarantino without a doubt took inspiration from for the characters of Jules & Vincent in Pulp Fiction. The supporting cast is also incredibly strong with Adolfo Celi, Luciana Paluzzi, Peter Berling, Femi Benussi & Giuseppe Castellano to name just a few!

Despite being a loose trilogy where neither film continues on or shares the same characters it was still surprising to see Adorf play our protagonist after playing such a bastard in Milano calibro 9, though of course he is still no saint! I was expecting the American duo of Silva & Strode to be the "heroes" of the picture so it refreshing to see the film not make obvious choices with its cast. The films sense of moral ambiguity really is one of its great strong points. 

There films highlight without a shadow of a doubt happens when key characters are murdered (no spoilers on Cult Italia!) & Adorf gets involved in a chase with the murderer in an absolutely outrageous chase/action sequence which goes on for what must be near ten minutes! Now first of all, Mario Adorf is a pretty hefty guy that definitely packs a couple of extra pounds. So to see him chase this guy by foot, by car, through a theme park & then into a brutal fight to the death must of taken a lot out of the guy. To any fans of Family Guy I'd compare it to when Peter fights the chicken & it goes on & on & on, getting more violent and more outlandish as it progresses. Well imagine that but with real actors! Some of the stunts are insane with Adorf hanging onto a van for dear life and head-butting his way through the window-screen. His anger in this film is like nothing I've ever seen before & is fightingly realistic. There was no CGI in those days, I don't know if a professional stunt-man was used in any of those scenes but either way some crazy son of a bitch really did put his body on the line for this picture & god bless him for doing so.

Henry Silva is always such a joy to watch, each time he appears the film springs to life that little bit more. In some ways it is a shame that the film wasn't more about he and Strode's characters as I'd liked them to both receive more screen-time. Having said that, one of the films real strengths is how it balances the plot & characters keeping everything so tight, a lot goes down in its 90'odd minute running time but it always remains easy to follow & each characters actions are clear to the viewer. 

The Italian Connection remains one of the absolute essential releases not only of the Poliziottesco genre, but of cult Italian cinema in general. It is a film where pretty much everything is in place from the great direction of  Fernando Di Leo, to the superb cast to the funky soundtrack from Armando Trovajoli. Its grittiness, shocks & thrills entertains throughout delivering an unforgettable piece of cult cinema. Simply put, one of the greats.

Rating: ★★★★½

Henry Silva & his wonderful dressing gown.