6/10
First entry about 'Flatfoot' Rizzo-Bud Spencer as tough and grumpy Inspector from Naples
22 January 2012
Original outing about Commissario Rizzo or Piedone series formed by four parts . First installment with Bud Spencer as commissary Rizzo or Flatfoot executing his missions in city of Naples . Amusing comedy set in Naples for Bud Spencer enthusiasts , repeating his usual role as Commissario , this time dealing with mobsters and drugs trafficking . Rizzo ( Bud Spencer or Carlo Perdesoli ) is a corpulent and bouncing cop from Naples where meets enemies , facing off dangers, and several adventures against rapists , night attackers and other delinquents . He join forces with an American Inspector named Sam ( the notorious US secondary Robert Loggia ) and his underling named Caputo ( Enzo Cannavale ) to stop a drug smuggling , but the violent methods used by Rizzo cause his suspension by the Inspector chief ( Renato Scarpa) . A mobster named Pastrone is killed and Piedone or Bigfoot or Rizzo is accused . In order to clear his name he has to resolve who is the spy allegedly bought by Pastrone , from a Mafia ring , who has infiltrated his police department . Flatfoot suspects on Barella ( Al Lettieri who acted in ¨The Godfather¨ though very secondary ) as dope kingpin and he pursues him . Flatfoot goes to Bangkok where is shown the ordinary touristic spectacles as Thai dancers , Kickboxing and habitual monuments . Later on , Flatfoot arrives in Hong Kong where take place new adventures . There , in a ship as game-house called Golden Moon attempts to contact a clue but disappears , after that , he enters in Green Dragon club where meets the mobster named Barella .

This entertaining , engaging movie is crammed of fist-play , punches , kicks , knocks , moving stunt-work and colorful outdoors from Naples , Bangkok and Hong Kong . It's an amusing romp with action , intrigue ,thrills , brawls and some funny struggles involving masked dancers , including bounds and leaps . This is a nice entertaining juvenile for Bud Spencer fans , as he's delightful . It packs action , fist-play, slapdash , humor with tongue-in-cheek and is quite bemusing . This release has some cool and hilarious moments here and there ; however the Terence Hill-Bud Spencer duo films are better . The film isn't always good , sometimes is fresh and diverting and on a couple of memorable occasions ,it's frankly delicious . The movie displays innumerable laughters , jokes and slapstick . In the 70s and 80s Bud Spencer starred various movies without Terence Hill , as he made three kinds of films : 1ª he performed pictures with a little boy as partner as ¨Banana Joe ¨ , ¨Aladino ¨and ¨The Supersheriff¨ ; 2ª about cop named Flatfoot or Rizzo, also called Piedone, such as, ¨Flatfoot in Hong Kong, Flatfoot in Cairo , Flatfoot in Egypt , Flatfoot in Africa¨, furthermore the ¨Extralargo¨ series ; 3ª about diverse characters as a medieval knight as ¨Soldier of fortune¨ , a swindler as ¨Mr Charleston¨ or a fisherman , ex-player as ¨Bulldozer¨ and marshal as ¨The sheriff and the little extraterrestrial ¨ . In the picture appears usual secondaries from B Italian series seen in several genres as Spaghetti Western and Peplum as Pietro Torrisi, Giovanni Cianfriglia , Dominic Barto , Octaviano Dell'Acqua and Riccardo Pizzuti ; all of them acting habitually as thugs in minor interventions . Catching and commercial musical score by the series usual , Guido and Mauricio De Angelis (Spaghetti Western's ordinary) and composed by synthesizer . Passable cinematography by Giuseppe Ruzzolini , Pasolini's ordinary cameraman , though is necessary an urgent remastering because the copy is washed-out . The motion picture is professionally directed by Steno , Stefano Vanzina (father of Carlo Vanzina ). He wrote and directed in the 60s Toto vehicles (Toto vs the four, Two colonels) ; Walter Chiari and Raimondo Vianello shows (Heroes of the West, Twins from Texas). In the 70s and 80s directed Bud Spencer movies about Flatfoot or Rizzo, also called Piedone, such as, Flatfoot in Hong Kong, Flatfoot in Egypt and Banana Joe , among others. And in the 80s directed TV series , the Professore Jack Clementi, again with Bud Spencer. Rating : Acceptable and passable , though only for Bud Spencer fans .

It's followed by various sequels as : "Piedone d'Egitto" original title) or "Flatfoot on the Nile" (1978) ; "Piedone l'Africano" (original title) or "Flatfoot in Africa" aka "Knock-Out Cop" and Pies Grandes (1975) or "Piedone a Hong Kong" or "Flatfoot in Hong Kong . All followings are lively performed by Bud Spencer and usual secondary appearance of Enzo Cannavale as Deputy Inspector Caputo .
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