Runtime: 101 minutes
Directed by: Stelvio Massi
Starring: Maurizio Merli, Giancarlo Sbragia, Angelo Infanti, Glauco Onorato, Lilli Carati
From: Cleminternazionale Cinematografica
Well, at least this put over the Citroen DS rather strong... that is a very distinctive car made from '55 to '75 which was decades ahead of its time. That was used by the villain of this piece. Oh, and most importantly I haven't seen too much from the poliziotteschi genre in the past two years and to note that Arrow's streaming service put up a new collection featuring just those movies. More than a few I've seen in the past and this in particular has been available independently for awhile but I went with the title newest to me that I knew something of beforehand.
Unfortunately for me, I thought the lead character was a real putz, not to mention an A-hole. He's a loose cannon cop who proclaims himself great behind the wheel, but instead he's a dick who doesn't listen to his superiors, antagonizes his poor partner, and even is rude to his girlfriend. Personally, if I had a girl like Lilli Carati who worked at a Lancia car dealership... his boss is also on the prickly side although amusingly so. Besides understandably being miffed at an officer who wrecks multiple cars as he actually doesn't have that much in the way of driving skills, the boss himself actually DOES have race car driver skills. Plus, he wears some sweet grandpa sweaters.
The second half is better as believe it or not it becomes a proto Point Break in a way-yet I never warmed up to our protagonist. I usually like the parts that Maurizio Merli plays-perhaps it was because here he did not have his trademark mustache. While I don't love the movie like some do, at least it had some of the sleaze I expect from a poliziotteschi and as you'd hope for a movie known in English as Highway Racer, all the automobile action was awesome. Chases, crashes, spinouts, stunts... that provided plenty of thrills. Those were coordinated by Remy Julienne, who did the same for some Bond films. Meanwhile, an aural treat was the funky score from Stelvio Cipriani.
Those that have the service & want to see some poliziotteschi, whether it be for the first time or you want to see more. Caliber 9 and The Italian Connection are musts. After that, if you want something not made by Fernando Di Leo, Colt 38 Special Squad is one I remember digging a lot back in 2014. Of course, a full list of what I've seen through the years can be located here.
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