The Boss (1973)

[GlacierTuba]

Oh dear God this was excellent. I went full polizio by eating spaghetti just before sitting down to watch this one - with the end of the tablecloth tucked in to my collar, naturally,

This film is just class. The direction, the framing, the acting, and Christ on a bike the soundtrack - particularly during a stealth sequence - is just to die for. Mixes of style from almost punk/prog rock to noir jazz and James Brown/Roy Ayres grooves. Pure genius.

The disc has both the English export version plus the full fat, untouched and longer Italian theatrical cut. I watched The Boss as God intended. Full fat, full beans, giving it the slipper all the way.

Couple of points though on the theatrical cut. You can see where Raro have clearly had to use different elements in order to build the full fat version, particularly at the start credits and the climax sequence. Also, there is a scene in the Comissioner's office which has a moment of very noticeable wobble. It's not the worst thing on Earth but I imagine there was nothing Raro could do, maybe it was just too far gone to save it? It's only for a split second though and not an important scene.

This film has more twists than Chubby Checker and more belts of scotch than Lionel Hutz at 9:30 in the morning, and by God is it effective!

Is it as good as The Italian Connection? Well, that one is certainly a magnificent octopus, and it's not really the same bag of grapefruits, it's a totally different feeling compared to The Boss when you compare the two. If you put a gun to my head I'd pick The Italian Connection, but not by much.

You really need to see this film. It's whopper. I need more Raro in my life!

[GlacierTuba]

So I done a bit of reading and discovered while reading the booklet that comes with The Boss, explains the reason for (DO NOT READ THE FOLLOWING IF YOU HAVE NOT SEEN THE FILM)

[Show spoiler]the To Be Continued message

at the film's climax.

The first essay by Dr Giulio Olsen states, and I quote,

[Show spoiler]"As Di Leo declared, the film attempts to portray the hopelessness of criminal violence in Italy as realistically as possible, and its cynicism is symbolised by the words 'to be continued' before the closing titles.

The case is closed, forget about it!

[hdbsaichxknwelqa]

Thanks for this. Picked up The Boss and The Italian Connection.

[GlacierTuba]

Originally Posted by hdbsaichxknwelqa

Thanks for this. Picked up The Boss and The Italian Connection.

Enjoy! If you want to watch the Noir Trilogy in order:

1. Milano Calibro 9
2. The Italian Connection
3. The Boss

I've not seen the first one in ages so need to buy it and have a rewatch. It'll be tough to top The Italian Connection I'd imagine. The Boss is super good, but a very different vibe altogether.

Rulers Of The City was in the original Raro USA box set but, as far as I remember, has nothing to do with the Noir Trilogy.

[ShawDonkey]

Hopefully Killer vs Killers makes it to BR eventually. While not exactly action comedy it has several bonkers scenes like

[Show spoiler]semi-nude woman distracts guard by bouncing on trampoline and target practice using sleeping darts on citizens

.