User Reviews

Antonio Mancuso (Antonio Sabato) is a small time hood with dreams of moving up in the family. His ambitions lead him to do a job for one of the big bosses in Italy, Don Vincenzo (Telly Savalas). The two strike up a friendship that quickly turns into something of a father/son relationship. They love each other like a father and son would. But when Don Vincenzo begins to show a weakness, Mancuso gathers those loyal to him for a bloody showdown with Don Vincenzo.

While not the action overload that many of the Italian cop/crime films tend to be, there was enough going on to keep me interested throughout most of the movie. And while the violence isn't as over-the-top and bloody as some other Polizia I've seen, there are several set-pieces in Crime Boss that feature some well choreographed shoot outs. The final showdown between Mancuso and Don Vincenzo is exciting and heartbreaking at the same time. Finally, a big plus for Crime Boss is Telly Savalas. The guy was just so cool that it's impossible for me not to enjoy his performance here.

The biggest problem I have with Crime Boss is with the lead, Antonio Sabato. He's okay, but it's really hard to get excited about the man and care for his character the way you should. He lacks the charisma or the presence or that certain something that the really good Italian action/crime stars had. I'll quite beating around the bush and just say it – he's dull. Sabato can't hold a candle to the likes of Fabio Testi, Tomas Milian, or Franco Nero.

***SPOILERS*** Worth watching for the grimy & gritty 1970's style photography the film "Crime Boss" has to do with the usual ingredients you see in modern organized crime movies: Murder revenge and double-crossing of fellow mobsters who in fact plan to double cross the guy who ends up double crossing them. There's young and ambitious Tony Mancuso, Antonio Sabato, who we see at the beginning of the film getting to do a hit-job from Sicilian mob boss Don Peppino Lo Sordo, Giudo Lollobrigida, to knock off mob turncoat Loreto Abbondanza, Annibale Papetti. We soon find out that the reason Tony took the job was that it was Loreto who was responsible for knocking off his father Vito Mancuso years ago for just the same reason: Ratting out his fellow mobsters to the police and local D.A.

Later both Tony and his brother Nicky, Giuliano Persico, stiff their boss Don Peppino by heisting a heroin shipment he was expecting from overseas! What Tony & Bro. really want is to get in touch with and work for the "Big Man" in the Sicilian Mafia Don Vincenzo,Telly Savalas. It's also Don Vincenzo's hot to trot niece Monica, Paula Tedeico, who the hot blooded Tony has his eye on as well. Still or officially working for Don Peppino, Don Vincenzo's top rival in the Sicilian mob, Tony has to play it cool in not letting both mob bosses know that he's in fact working against each other and only really working for himself.

It's soon fond by Tony from Monica that Don Vincenzo has a really bad ticker, heart, and won't be long for this world. This has both Tony and Nicky work extra hard to make Don Vincenzo's time on earth as short as possible! But first they have to finish off Don Peppino before he wises up to their plans in having him on their hit-list as well.

***SPOILERS*** Wild shootout at a local Hamberg Germany hospital were Don Vinenczo is being treated for his heart condition. It was too bad that Don Vincenzo didn't follow his first instincts about Tony in what a rat he is just like his turncoat dad Vito. He somehow took a liking to the guy and that turned out to be his Achilles heel. Nicky who was caught in the cross hairs of one of Don Vincenzo's hoods wasn't so lucky dying before the two brothers reached Hamberg harbor for an awaiting ship to take them back to Sicily. With Tony now home free,in the Vincinzo mob not knowing that he in fact doubled crossed it, he can now marry Monica and take control of the family, the Vincenzo Mob, business. That's until another young hot shot mobster,like Tony himself, decides to screw up his plans as well as Tony himself!

CRIME BOSS is directed by Alberto De Martino; an Italian crime drama partially filmed in Hamburg, Germany. An easily forgotten movie. Even in spite of a good car chase sequence, this flick seems to lumber on almost aimlessly. A new Don takes over a powerful Mafia family and finds himself fighting for his own life. Unwritten laws and ethics of the Mafia code make it hard to trust in anyone especially when millions of dollars are at stake. Brutality and violence breed the same in return. This can not be put on a shelf with the real gangster epics. Just the look of the film brings back memories of American drive-in fare. Even the popular American actor Telly Savalas can't boost the calibre of this crime drama. Antonio Sabato also stars with:Paola Tedesco, Guido Lollobrigida, Serio Tramonti and Piero Morgia.

Telly Savalas finds himself on the opposite side of the law, this time portraying Mafia boss Don Vincenzo and I can see how it could work but there wasn't much here to keep me interested. Savalas is top billed but he doesn't appear until about thirty six minutes into the story, and it's really Antonio Sabato who has most of the screen time as would be crime kingpin Antonio Mancuso. Mancuso's first hit in the early going had none of the unbridled malice of a Michael Corleone taking out Solozzo and Captain McCluskey, and watching him just stand there with that goofy smile for what seemed like forever just ruined all the tension. There are some well played double crosses in the mix but overall I wasn't too impressed. If you're after some real Godfather type action, just stick with the original. Considering both pictures came out the same year, you might wonder why the folks connected with "Crime Boss" even bothered.

Guy from the country is sent to the big city for a big job by the local crime lord. The idea is that the job will look like personal vendetta (the target killed his father) and if he gets caught fine, and if he gets killed better. The trouble is that things don't go as planned and while the hit goes down the "hick" is found to be much smarter than was thought. So begins his climb up the ladder of the crime organization.

Surprisingly good little crime story that scores points for not following a well worn path. The film has a nice balance of darkness and humor and the action sequences are very well done. I liked it enough to plan to watch it again sooner rather than later.

Practically every character in this Italian mafia movie seems cut from the same cloth, creating many cliches and very little difference between many of the major characters. Telly Savalas and Antonio Sabato Sr. Lead the cast as a mob boss and his ambitious newly-found right hand man who goes out of his way after establishing himself she basically take over and oust him with the help of other key members of the organized crime ring.

Often slow-moving, even when interrupted by violent action scenes, this is one of the weaker mob movies that came out during a time when there were a lot of them. It is obviously cheaply made even though the location footage is often beautiful. Savalas and Sabato barely deliver any energy, obviously I'm glad going through the motions to get to the film so they can enjoy a paid vacation in the exotic European locations. All the mafia archetypes are there, and after a while, it just lays there as a cumbersome and lethargic trashy Euro crime saga.

Brash and ambitious freelance hit-man Antonio Mancuso (a solid and likable performance by Antonio Sabato) goes to Italy to further his career. Antonio meets and befriends shrewd and redoubtable mob kingpin Don Vincenzo (the always great Telly Savalas in fine robust form), who takes Antonio under his wing. Naturally, Antonio eventually decides he wants to climb up the ladder and take over Vincenzo's position as leader of the syndicate. Director/co-writer Albert De Martino relates the story at a nonstop speedy pace and stages the plentiful action with real aplomb (said action includes a few rousing car chases, some rough'n'ready fisticuffs, and the expected bloody shoot-outs). The sound acting from the capable cast rates as another plus: Sabato and Savalas are excellent in the leads (Savalas in particular brings tremendous wit and verve to his role), with nice support from Paola Tedesca as Vincenzo's sassy niece Monica, Giuliano Persico as Antonio's loyal brother Nicola, and Giudo Lollobrigida as cocky rival capo Peppino Lo Surdo. Joe D'Amato's polished cinematography does the trick. Francesco De Masi's spirited, jazzy, funky score hits the get-down groovy spot. The ending might be predictable, but it's still effective just the same with a cool central message about the severe cost of success. A fun flick.