Syndicate Sadists is yet another film based on Dashiel Hammett's novel Red Harvest which was adapted more famously by Akira Kurosawa in Yojimbo and Sergio Leone in A Fistful of Dollars, amongst many others, but it also has some other intriguing origins. Its star Tomas Milian while filming in the US, picked up a cheap novel at the airport by David Morrell entitled First Blood a tale of a special forces soldier by the name of John Rambo, Milian was intrigued by the character but wanted to stay away from violent sadistic roles he had become famous for in films like Milano odia: la polizia non può sparare (1974). So together with Lenzi and Luciano Martino they agreed to blend both stories together in a modern crime drama. While the film has some resemblances to both films its different enough to stand alone as an interesting film. Milian is excellent as the odd, scruffy biker with a heart, that turns to violence to avenge the murder of his brother by one of a group of rival crime gangs, he was investigating. Milian decides to play both sides against each other, his unkempt image, floppy red hat and large goggles, perhaps luring the criminals into a false sense of security that costs them dearly in some increasingly violent confrontations. Not Milian or Lenzi's best but still very watchable. Joseph Cotten also puts in a turn as one of the crime bosses, in what surely must be THE most wooden performance by the man ever, at one point he actually looked like a Gerry Anderson puppet
no really! For once the Italian didn't steal an idea, they had Rambo first. Oh and watch out for an homage to Steve McQueen.[
14 Reviews
Tomas Milian Is Rambo!
Witchfinder-General-6662 April 2009
With films such as "Almost Human" (1974) and "Rome Armed to the Teeth" (1976) there is no doubt that Umberto Lenzi is (along with Fernando Di Leo) the absolute master of Italian crime cinema. And Tomas Milian, one of my personal favorite actors, is doubtlessly one of the greatest actors in Italian Cult-cinema in general. While "Il Giustiziere Sfida La Città" aka. "Syndicate Sadists" of 1975 is not nearly as memorable as their earlier collaboration, the nasty, brutal and downright brilliant "Milano Odia: La Polizia Non Può Sparare" aka. "Almost Human" of 1974, this is yet another bad-ass, action packed and incredibly entertaining Poliziottesco from the director/star team Lenzi/Milian.
Funnily enough Milian plays a supremely bad-ass biker named 'Rambo', seven years before Vietnam vet Sylvester Stallone drew first blood in 1982. This Rambo is a super-cool full-bearded drifter with remarkable shooting- and fighting-skills, who comes back to his hometown Milan where a buddy wants to talk him into joining a security firm. When his buddy gets killed by gangsters, things get personal...
Before becoming a major Poliziotteschi-star, Tomas Milian was already a star of Italian Westerns. The storyline of this film, in which the (anti-)hero plays two criminal gangs against each other, is derived from that of Sergio Leone's milestone "Per Un Pugno Di Dollari" ("A Fistful of Dollars", 1964), which itself was inspired by Akiro Kurosawa's masterpiece "Yojimbo" (1961). A similar storyline was used in several other Spaghetti Westerns, most notably Sergio Corbucci's "Django" (1966); With this film, Umberto Lenzi takes it to modern-day Milan. Even the film's score occasionally reminded me of (a funky 70s version of) Morricone's score to Leone's "Once Upon A Time In The West". "Il Giustiziere Sfida La Città" is neither quite as ultra-brutal and uncompromising, nor as essential a genre-entry as some of Lenzi's most memorable Poliziotteschi, "Almost Human", "Rome Armed to the Teeth" and also "Violent Naples", but it is definitely a highly entertaining film that lovers of Itlian Cult-cinema should not miss out on. The film is very well-shot, and full of violent shootouts, car chases, fights and the usual dose of enjoyable bad-assery. Tomas Milian is beyond cool, and the 70-year-old Joseph Cotten makes an excellent elderly crime boss. The rest of the cast includes many regulars, such as Luciano Catenacci, Guido Alberti, Luciano Pigozzi and Giuseppe Castellano. Rambo's girlfriend is played by sexy Femi Benussi, who sadly keeps her clothes on in this one. Overall, "Il Giustiziere Sfida La Città" is not one of Lenzi's masterpieces, but it is definitely a highly entertaining Poliziottesco that is especially recommendable for a supremely bad-ass Tomas Milian, and that shouldn't be missed by genre-fans.
Funnily enough Milian plays a supremely bad-ass biker named 'Rambo', seven years before Vietnam vet Sylvester Stallone drew first blood in 1982. This Rambo is a super-cool full-bearded drifter with remarkable shooting- and fighting-skills, who comes back to his hometown Milan where a buddy wants to talk him into joining a security firm. When his buddy gets killed by gangsters, things get personal...
Before becoming a major Poliziotteschi-star, Tomas Milian was already a star of Italian Westerns. The storyline of this film, in which the (anti-)hero plays two criminal gangs against each other, is derived from that of Sergio Leone's milestone "Per Un Pugno Di Dollari" ("A Fistful of Dollars", 1964), which itself was inspired by Akiro Kurosawa's masterpiece "Yojimbo" (1961). A similar storyline was used in several other Spaghetti Westerns, most notably Sergio Corbucci's "Django" (1966); With this film, Umberto Lenzi takes it to modern-day Milan. Even the film's score occasionally reminded me of (a funky 70s version of) Morricone's score to Leone's "Once Upon A Time In The West". "Il Giustiziere Sfida La Città" is neither quite as ultra-brutal and uncompromising, nor as essential a genre-entry as some of Lenzi's most memorable Poliziotteschi, "Almost Human", "Rome Armed to the Teeth" and also "Violent Naples", but it is definitely a highly entertaining film that lovers of Itlian Cult-cinema should not miss out on. The film is very well-shot, and full of violent shootouts, car chases, fights and the usual dose of enjoyable bad-assery. Tomas Milian is beyond cool, and the 70-year-old Joseph Cotten makes an excellent elderly crime boss. The rest of the cast includes many regulars, such as Luciano Catenacci, Guido Alberti, Luciano Pigozzi and Giuseppe Castellano. Rambo's girlfriend is played by sexy Femi Benussi, who sadly keeps her clothes on in this one. Overall, "Il Giustiziere Sfida La Città" is not one of Lenzi's masterpieces, but it is definitely a highly entertaining Poliziottesco that is especially recommendable for a supremely bad-ass Tomas Milian, and that shouldn't be missed by genre-fans.
Italian crime flick!
brinner18 July 2002
Milian plays a leatherjacket wearing(nice "cuckoos nest" woolen cap too) ex-cop and biker named Rambo(!!!). Rambo returns to Milan? to visit an old cop-friend. The friend is now working at a security company who protects companies from mafia- villains. Rambo gets employed by the company and therefore gets involved over his head in the struggle against the organized crime. An old mafia-family lead by ancient and blind Paterno (played exellent by legend Joseph Cotten) have teamed up with other gangsters lead by less cool but more sleazy Conti(a great Catenacci). The gangsters devote there freetime too car-jacking, kidnapping, dope-dealing and blackmail. Finally some of the gangsters kill Rambos copfriend and you know what that means reveeeenge!... I really like this movie! good characters (especially the crooks), good and realistic plot, great action, good motorcycle and car chases, and the music it´s mindblowing. We also gets an unforgettable fight inside a pool-hall(maybe a bit inspired by Coogans bluff). I want to have this movie-soundtrack now. Got this movie from my father back in 80´s and I recommend for anyone who likes 70´s crime movies...
Not very inspiring, but a fantastic soundtrack
tony_le_stephanois15 June 2015
Il giustiziere sfida la città seems a bit uninspired compared with the other poliziotteschi, for example: Milano Calibre 9, Roma Violenta, Napoli Violenta, Almost human. Though this one is made by poliziotto master Umberto Lenzi (who made around three films a year in that period), it is certainly not one of them.
The story about one very cool cop who wants revenge on two criminal families, lacks the real energy and the dramatic intensity of the others. Thomas Milan is too cool as a cop, when you compare him with Maurizio Merli (serious mustache), or Franco Nero (intense eyes). We don't really believe that he is pain because he lost his best friend.
It's not a Thomas Milan one-man-show like in other films, in which he went all out with his acting abilities (like Milano odia ). He plays his larger than life hero straight in this film. But I think it is ALWAYS a show when he plays a role, last and not least for his sense of what is cool. No actor I know of smokes a cigarette as aesthetically as Milan, and this biker outfit looks terrible on most men, but he could wear it to a fashion show without a problem. Also fashionable are the FABULOUS sunglasses worn by Joseph Cotton, but that was also the most interesting bit about his role, which is as uninspiring as uninspiring can get. Citizen Kane was far, far away.
But then there is the music. You'll have to play this film loud, to fully enjoy the marvelous tunes from Franco Micalizzi, who had a lot of work to do in the 70's.
A seemingly real life poliziotto story is hidden in the story of actor Duilio Cruciani, who plays the part of Luigino, the son of Milan's brother. He died from an overdose heroin in 1984 when he was only 26 years old. Newspapers from that day mentioned there were already six death of heroin overdose in Rome in that year already (it was only 17 January). Unfortunately there weren't any poliziotteschi anymore to make films about the subject.
The story about one very cool cop who wants revenge on two criminal families, lacks the real energy and the dramatic intensity of the others. Thomas Milan is too cool as a cop, when you compare him with Maurizio Merli (serious mustache), or Franco Nero (intense eyes). We don't really believe that he is pain because he lost his best friend.
It's not a Thomas Milan one-man-show like in other films, in which he went all out with his acting abilities (like Milano odia ). He plays his larger than life hero straight in this film. But I think it is ALWAYS a show when he plays a role, last and not least for his sense of what is cool. No actor I know of smokes a cigarette as aesthetically as Milan, and this biker outfit looks terrible on most men, but he could wear it to a fashion show without a problem. Also fashionable are the FABULOUS sunglasses worn by Joseph Cotton, but that was also the most interesting bit about his role, which is as uninspiring as uninspiring can get. Citizen Kane was far, far away.
But then there is the music. You'll have to play this film loud, to fully enjoy the marvelous tunes from Franco Micalizzi, who had a lot of work to do in the 70's.
A seemingly real life poliziotto story is hidden in the story of actor Duilio Cruciani, who plays the part of Luigino, the son of Milan's brother. He died from an overdose heroin in 1984 when he was only 26 years old. Newspapers from that day mentioned there were already six death of heroin overdose in Rome in that year already (it was only 17 January). Unfortunately there weren't any poliziotteschi anymore to make films about the subject.
a highly entertaining, exploitative riff on Dashiell Hammett's classic 'Red Harvest'
Weirdling_Wolf24 January 2014
Infamously tempestuous and fruitfully incestuous filmmaking bedfellows, the reigning cannibal king, Umberto Lenzi, and his audaciously wig-sporting partner in-Euro-crime, Tomas Milian team up again for the roustabout, boorishly boy's own, Cops an' Robbers actioner, 'Il Giustiziziere sfida La citta' aka ' Syndicate Sadists', and while this isn't on par with the luridly iconic, mercilessly machine-gunning home-invasion sleaze-fest, 'Almost Human', it still manages to dutifully deliver the requisite amount of breathless thrills an' bellicose blood-spills to effectively embellish the tired plot machinations; with red-beanie-wearing, gleefully anti-social anti-hero, Milian playing volatile ex-biker cop, Rambo!!!, whose singular penchant for righteous revenge is entirely apropos, and 'Rambo' is given ample opportunity for slow-motion, blood-squibbing, jaw-cracking, justice-seeking spectacle, once he disturbingly discovers to his escalating chagrin that his beloved brother has been slain by foes nefarious!
Rambo's relentless retribution is fuelled by the ecstatic crime funk of maestro, Franco Micalizzi, his deliciously infectious grooves galvanizing all the the numerous health and safety-taunting bike chases, nimble numb-skull battery, and ubiquitous ballistic overkill one expects from the murderously entertaining, delightfully dizzying milieu of 70s Euro-crime! Even with its discernible dearth of excruciatingly elaborate ultra-violence, 'Syndicate Sadists' makes for a highly entertaining, exploitative riff on Dashiell Hammett's classic 'Red Harvest', and ardent, Lenzi/Milian/poliziotteschi aficionados shouldn't be too disappointed, although, to be fair, it falls somewhat short of living up to its blood an' thunder moniker! So, perhaps, not ideal for Euro-crime newbie's, but if you keep your expectations low, 'Syndicate Sadists' is not without amiable grubby charm, and, I, for one, could happily watch, Milian merely open an envelope, caring not one measly jot if he refused to push it into pastures new!
Rambo's relentless retribution is fuelled by the ecstatic crime funk of maestro, Franco Micalizzi, his deliciously infectious grooves galvanizing all the the numerous health and safety-taunting bike chases, nimble numb-skull battery, and ubiquitous ballistic overkill one expects from the murderously entertaining, delightfully dizzying milieu of 70s Euro-crime! Even with its discernible dearth of excruciatingly elaborate ultra-violence, 'Syndicate Sadists' makes for a highly entertaining, exploitative riff on Dashiell Hammett's classic 'Red Harvest', and ardent, Lenzi/Milian/poliziotteschi aficionados shouldn't be too disappointed, although, to be fair, it falls somewhat short of living up to its blood an' thunder moniker! So, perhaps, not ideal for Euro-crime newbie's, but if you keep your expectations low, 'Syndicate Sadists' is not without amiable grubby charm, and, I, for one, could happily watch, Milian merely open an envelope, caring not one measly jot if he refused to push it into pastures new!
Another entertaining crime-fest from Umberto Lenzi!
The_Void14 March 2007
Umberto Lenzi is undoubtedly the king of Italian crime movies, but unfortunately; Syndicate Sadists is not the best examples of his work in this genre. Lenzi's crime flicks tend to be a cut above the rest because he makes films based on stories with a point, and they don't lack direction; but this film feels a bit too wayward to fully fit with the rest of his stuff. The film takes obvious influence from Sergio Leone's landmark western 'A Fistful of Dollars' (which in turn, took influence from Akira Kurosawa's landmark samurai flick Yojimbo), in that it features two warring families and a strong character at the centre. The crime that Lenzi focuses on is kidnapping, and we centre on a character called 'Rambo'. Rambo is dragged into the war between the two families after his brother is killed because of it. Rambo uses his brains and brawn to pit the two families against one another, in the hope of gaining revenge for his brother's death, rescuing a young boy that they've kidnapped, and ultimately letting the two sides destroy one another.
The film's biggest asset is undoubtedly Tomas Milian. Milian was put to great use by Lenzi in almost all of his crime thrillers. The range of characters he has played for Lenzi is immense, and this one is easily one of the coolest. The character is called Rambo, which immediately sprang to mind the popular Sylvester Stallone character - but for once, the Italians actually haven't stolen this name as Syndicate Sadists was released first! As usual, the film is wickedly entertaining, as we get to watch Milian get himself involved in the usual array of car chases, shootouts and brawls. Lenzi has got him riding a motorbike this time round, and every scene featuring it and Milian is a real standout! However, the film often feels like it doesn't really have anywhere to go, and this means that the running time is stretched out more than it should be. Compared to the crime films of other Italian directors, Syndicate Sadists is more than above average; but in relation to Lenzi crime flicks such as Almost Human and The Cynic, The Rat and The Fist - it doesn't stand tall as one of Lenzi's best. Still, if you're looking for ninety minutes of testosterone fuelled mayhem - Syndicate Sadists will suffice!
The film's biggest asset is undoubtedly Tomas Milian. Milian was put to great use by Lenzi in almost all of his crime thrillers. The range of characters he has played for Lenzi is immense, and this one is easily one of the coolest. The character is called Rambo, which immediately sprang to mind the popular Sylvester Stallone character - but for once, the Italians actually haven't stolen this name as Syndicate Sadists was released first! As usual, the film is wickedly entertaining, as we get to watch Milian get himself involved in the usual array of car chases, shootouts and brawls. Lenzi has got him riding a motorbike this time round, and every scene featuring it and Milian is a real standout! However, the film often feels like it doesn't really have anywhere to go, and this means that the running time is stretched out more than it should be. Compared to the crime films of other Italian directors, Syndicate Sadists is more than above average; but in relation to Lenzi crime flicks such as Almost Human and The Cynic, The Rat and The Fist - it doesn't stand tall as one of Lenzi's best. Still, if you're looking for ninety minutes of testosterone fuelled mayhem - Syndicate Sadists will suffice!
Lenzi and Milian do it again
Prof-Hieronymos-Grost18 April 2008
Syndicate Sadists is yet another film based on Dashiel Hammett's novel Red Harvest which was adapted more famously by Akira Kurosawa in
Yojimbo and Sergio Leone in A Fistful of Dollars, amongst many others, but it also has some other intriguing origins. Its star Tomas Milian while filming in the US, picked up a cheap novel at the airport by David Morrell entitled First Blood a tale of a special forces soldier by the name of John Rambo, Milian was intrigued by the character but wanted to stay away from violent sadistic roles he had become famous for in films like Milano odia: la polizia non può sparare (1974). So together with Lenzi and Luciano Martino they agreed to blend both stories together in a modern crime drama. While the film has some resemblances to both films its different enough to stand alone as an interesting film. Milian is excellent as the odd, scruffy biker with a heart, that turns to violence to avenge the murder of his brother by one of a group of rival crime gangs, he was investigating. Milian decides to play both sides against each other, his unkempt image, floppy red hat and large goggles, perhaps luring the criminals into a false sense of security that costs them dearly in some increasingly violent confrontations. Not Milian or Lenzi's best but still very watchable. Joseph Cotten also puts in a turn as one of the crime bosses, in what surely must be THE most wooden performance by the man ever, at one point he actually looked like a Gerry Anderson puppet no really! For once the Italian didn't steal an idea, they had Rambo first. Oh and watch out for an homage to Steve McQueen.[
Yojimbo and Sergio Leone in A Fistful of Dollars, amongst many others, but it also has some other intriguing origins. Its star Tomas Milian while filming in the US, picked up a cheap novel at the airport by David Morrell entitled First Blood a tale of a special forces soldier by the name of John Rambo, Milian was intrigued by the character but wanted to stay away from violent sadistic roles he had become famous for in films like Milano odia: la polizia non può sparare (1974). So together with Lenzi and Luciano Martino they agreed to blend both stories together in a modern crime drama. While the film has some resemblances to both films its different enough to stand alone as an interesting film. Milian is excellent as the odd, scruffy biker with a heart, that turns to violence to avenge the murder of his brother by one of a group of rival crime gangs, he was investigating. Milian decides to play both sides against each other, his unkempt image, floppy red hat and large goggles, perhaps luring the criminals into a false sense of security that costs them dearly in some increasingly violent confrontations. Not Milian or Lenzi's best but still very watchable. Joseph Cotten also puts in a turn as one of the crime bosses, in what surely must be THE most wooden performance by the man ever, at one point he actually looked like a Gerry Anderson puppet no really! For once the Italian didn't steal an idea, they had Rambo first. Oh and watch out for an homage to Steve McQueen.[
SYNDICATE SADISTS (Umberto Lenzi, 1975) **1/2
Bunuel197619 February 2010
One of the myriad "poliziotteschi" to emerge from Italy during the 1970s, to which both director Lenzi and star Tomas Milian contributed a good deal; in fact, their previous collaboration – ALMOST HUMAN (1974) – is considered among the genre high-points. This, however, is fairly indistinguishable – apart from the fact that the surname of Milian's character is Rambo!; it does include plenty of typical action, not to mention a funky score by Franco Micalizzi. Rambo is a reformed gangster who now supplies iconoclastic help to the Police; predictably, his best pal in the force (actually a special vigilante squad) ends up murdered before long – which sets Rambo on exacting private revenge. This sees him coming face to face once again with his former boss, a now-blind Joseph Cotten (who, like Milian, followed a certain code of ethics in spite of the nature of the work involved) whose 'empire' is being unscrupulously run by the old man's son, Alfredo Lastretti. A smaller rival band of criminals – among whose members is the ubiquitous Luciano Pigozzi – also gets into our disheveled hero's hair by kidnapping an eminent citizen (Silvano Tranquilli)'s son. Incidentally, this incongruous sentimental emphasis on kids – since Milian also dotes on his cop friend's idolizing offspring – does the film the biggest harm; at the same time, while keeping an affectionate (but platonic) eye on the latter boy's mum, he is romantically involved with a prostitute (Femi Benussi) – who, unsurprisingly, is eventually victimized by the baddies for it. Though consistently offering reasonable gratification of various sorts, most examples of the poliziottesco genre suffered from a shallowness that made them instantly forgettable – and this one, alas, proved no exception despite the involvement of two of its major exponents.
Milian is Awesome
bensonmum21 May 2005
Warning: Spoilers
- Tomas Milian is Rambo - a biker who arrives in Milan right in the middle of a war between two crime families. When his brother, a member of a kidnap investigation team, is killed, Rambo seeks revenge. He pits the two families against each other in hopes that they will destroy themselves so he can free the young boy being held for ransom.
- Syndicate Sadists was a blind purchase for me and I couldn't be more thrilled. This marks one of my first forays into the Italian sub-genre known as Polizia (or whatever the correct word is). And, I must say that I'm thrilled to have discovered these movies. If some of the others that I have on order (Contraband and Revolver) are half as good, I'll be delighted.
- I always have a good time watching Tomas Milian. He may come across as a conceited jerk in some of his interviews, but he has good reason. He never fails to entertain. His character, Rambo (please note that this movie was made long before First Blood), is one of my favorites. He's tough, compassionate, and mysterious.
- The action and gunplay are great. Between the gun fights and chase scenes, there is plenty of action to go around. One of my favorite scenes in the movie was the relatively calm showdown at the end between Rambo and the head of one of the families. Any movie that puts Milian and the scene-chewing Joseph Cotton together is a Euro-film lover's wet dream.
- If the brief description of the plot sounds familiar, don't be surprised. Once the movie got rolling, I said to myself on a number of occasions that it reminded me of A Fistful of Dollars. Imagine my surprise when my notion was confirmed while watching the interview with Lenzi on the DVD. He freely admitted that the story was inspired by Leone's film.
Milian goes to Millan
movieman_kev13 June 2005
Rambo (the great Thomas Milian) a leather-jacketed motorcycling tough guy, returns to his old haunts.When he visits his old friend who is now a security guard, the friend tries to talk him into joining him to find another guy's kidnapped son, he doesn't want a part of it, but when his friend is killed, it's personal. He plots to save the kid and get a little revenge. This film is just really fun with some laugh out loud corny dialog sprinkled here and there as well as pretty good action and chases throughout. As always Thomas Milian is great here. Not a perfect film by any means, but it always remains fun, energetic and highly watchable. Even though nothing like what's on the cover of the DVD case EVER happens.
My Grade: B
DVD Extras: Sub-titled Commentary by Umberto Lenzi; Sub-titled Interview with Umberto; Photo Gallery; and Trailers for "Man from Deep River", "All the Colors of the Dark", "Duck the carbine high massacre", & "Woman in a Lizard's Skin" Easter Eggs: Go to the Trailers section, and highlight the word 'Trailers' for a Theatrical trailer for this film; at the bottom of the same page is 3 hidden Fangoria International symbols "Choking Hazard", "Hiruko the Goblin" (un-subtitled), and "Rojo Sangre"
My Grade: B
DVD Extras: Sub-titled Commentary by Umberto Lenzi; Sub-titled Interview with Umberto; Photo Gallery; and Trailers for "Man from Deep River", "All the Colors of the Dark", "Duck the carbine high massacre", & "Woman in a Lizard's Skin" Easter Eggs: Go to the Trailers section, and highlight the word 'Trailers' for a Theatrical trailer for this film; at the bottom of the same page is 3 hidden Fangoria International symbols "Choking Hazard", "Hiruko the Goblin" (un-subtitled), and "Rojo Sangre"
More tough action from Umberto Lenzi; this time Tomas Milian's the hero
Leofwine_draca24 October 2016
Warning: Spoilers
Another feather in the cap for director Umberto Lenzi and star Tomas Milian, this ultra-slick crime flick is a fine example of the "polizia" genre at its paciest and most fun: what starts off looking like a silly comedy-action film like THE COP IN BLUE JEANS soon takes a darker turn and becomes more serious, ending up as a tough thriller with a high body count and lots of cheesy stunts. The hero role of Rambo is taken by Tomas Milian this time around (usually playing a crippled or sadistic villain in Lenzi films from the period) and it's a great part: Rambo (no relation to the Sly Stallone character - this one came first) is an unshaven, masked motorbike-riding outlaw who has a thing about justice prevailing and murdering bad guys. As he's not part of the law he instead works around it, taking on the criminal gangs himself and turning them against each other. What's funniest about this film is the almost total lack of police presence! Gangs tear up the city and kill each other and they're nowhere in sight. Rambo's motorbike is gazed at lovingly by Lenzi's camera and he takes every opportunity to show off the sleek chrome bodywork, especially in lots of cheesy bike-jumping stunts that punctuate the action.
Rambo also knows his own unique brand of karate, meaning we get lots of demonstrations as he effortlessly beats up thugs in a pool hall and takes on a room of practising karate students! The film begins as Rambo visits the home of an old pal, who has joined a police group and insists that Rambo does the same. Being a good-natured chap he helps to capture a few saboteurs and minor criminals. After the characters have been introduced, Rambo's buddy ends up getting violently murdered when he's close to cracking a kidnapping case - hardly surprising, seeing as he is set up for murder ever since his first appearance. Rambo decides to follow in his pal's footsteps and finds himself involved with two criminal gangs, led by ageing crime boss Paterno and slimy villain Conti. At first he successfully turns the two gangs against each other, causing much bloodshed, but then they wise up and turn against him. A tide of retribution and revenge follows with casualties on all sides.
Nearly every technical element of the film is perfect. Cinematography, stunts, pacing, action, chases and dialogue all slot in nicely to the story. The only thing lacking is the music, which is a little sub-par for a Lenzi flick and not snazzy enough. Once again Lenzi has assembled an accomplished team of actors (most of whom were working in films back-to-back for the director) for his cast. Supporting the ever-excellent Milian are the exquisitely slimy Luciano Catenacci as the villain Conti and good old Luciano Pigozzi as a thug. The experienced Ida Galli and Shirley Corrigan play minor female roles whilst the retired Mafia don Paterno is played by American import actor Joseph Cotten. All in all a nice mix who fit their roles perfectly.
As well as the many pacy car and bike chases that speed through the film, there are a couple of shoot-outs which deserve note. The first is the attack on Conti's warehouse operation by Paterno's guys dressed as police. Lots of bloody machine-gun shootings and spraying bullet action ensues. For the film's under siege set-piece finale, there's a shoot-out in the grounds of a deserted house played out in the middle of the night to the light of a flare - a clever and original touch. Although not as sadistic as previous or later Lenzi films the film does have a few gruesome asides, like an innocent woman being beaten to death and a guy (regular scumbag Bruno Corazzari) literally overdosing on cocaine! These factors and more combine to make RAMBO'S REVENGE yet another quality genre contribution from Lenzi and a film to track down.
Rambo also knows his own unique brand of karate, meaning we get lots of demonstrations as he effortlessly beats up thugs in a pool hall and takes on a room of practising karate students! The film begins as Rambo visits the home of an old pal, who has joined a police group and insists that Rambo does the same. Being a good-natured chap he helps to capture a few saboteurs and minor criminals. After the characters have been introduced, Rambo's buddy ends up getting violently murdered when he's close to cracking a kidnapping case - hardly surprising, seeing as he is set up for murder ever since his first appearance. Rambo decides to follow in his pal's footsteps and finds himself involved with two criminal gangs, led by ageing crime boss Paterno and slimy villain Conti. At first he successfully turns the two gangs against each other, causing much bloodshed, but then they wise up and turn against him. A tide of retribution and revenge follows with casualties on all sides.
Nearly every technical element of the film is perfect. Cinematography, stunts, pacing, action, chases and dialogue all slot in nicely to the story. The only thing lacking is the music, which is a little sub-par for a Lenzi flick and not snazzy enough. Once again Lenzi has assembled an accomplished team of actors (most of whom were working in films back-to-back for the director) for his cast. Supporting the ever-excellent Milian are the exquisitely slimy Luciano Catenacci as the villain Conti and good old Luciano Pigozzi as a thug. The experienced Ida Galli and Shirley Corrigan play minor female roles whilst the retired Mafia don Paterno is played by American import actor Joseph Cotten. All in all a nice mix who fit their roles perfectly.
As well as the many pacy car and bike chases that speed through the film, there are a couple of shoot-outs which deserve note. The first is the attack on Conti's warehouse operation by Paterno's guys dressed as police. Lots of bloody machine-gun shootings and spraying bullet action ensues. For the film's under siege set-piece finale, there's a shoot-out in the grounds of a deserted house played out in the middle of the night to the light of a flare - a clever and original touch. Although not as sadistic as previous or later Lenzi films the film does have a few gruesome asides, like an innocent woman being beaten to death and a guy (regular scumbag Bruno Corazzari) literally overdosing on cocaine! These factors and more combine to make RAMBO'S REVENGE yet another quality genre contribution from Lenzi and a film to track down.
The Euro-Henchman Collective vs. Tomas Milian as a grubby Serpico-style system-fighting motorcycle hero
Aylmer14 July 2017
A decidedly lighter tone lingers in Tomas Milian and Umberto Lenzi's next pairing after the dark and demented MILANO ODIA. This time around, Milian plays Rambo, a drifter who rides on a motorcycle from town to town teaching things to kids and reluctantly getting involved in anti-gang activities. Once his goofball security guard friend gets killed after snooping around a little too close to a kidnapping scheme, Rambo decides to hatch his own Yojibo-like plan to get all the local gangs to kill each other. However, they unexpectedly prove slightly smarter than you'd expect and end up teaming up to fight together against our hero, albeit with no better results than they'd have otherwise.
Right from the get-go, I knew it was going to be good just judging by the opening credits and how many of the usual "Euro-Henchmen" receive top billing. Riccardo Petrazzi, Adolfo Lastretti, Bruno Di Luia, Mario Novelli, Benito Pacifico, Claudio Ruffini, Giuseppe Castellano, and Luciano Pigozzi would go on to make type-cast careers as henchmen and goons throughout the rest of the 70's owing largely to how well this movie worked out. Even Antonio Casale, the "Brion James" of Italian 70's crime movies, pops by to lend us another sweaty, ugly face for our hero to beat to a pulp and put a bullet in. Sadly we're missing only Nello Pazzafini, Biagio Pelligra, Bruno Corazzari, any Dell'Acqua's, Peverello's, or Sal's Borghese and Billa. Toss in a Sergio Smacchi and our henchman reunion would be complete.
With all the potential and solid cast of villains for Rambo to beat up and shoot, the film doesn't quite hit the high notes that later films like VIOLENT NAPLES or ROME ARMED TO THE TEETH would the next year. There's a distractingly silly Micalizzi score and the plot contains enough holes and slow spots to take this down a notch. Best for genre completists or those interested in seeing the true genesis of Milian's later "Nico Giraldi" character. Notable mostly for a demented scene in which a female character gets unintentionally beaten to death by a gang of clueless hit-men.
Right from the get-go, I knew it was going to be good just judging by the opening credits and how many of the usual "Euro-Henchmen" receive top billing. Riccardo Petrazzi, Adolfo Lastretti, Bruno Di Luia, Mario Novelli, Benito Pacifico, Claudio Ruffini, Giuseppe Castellano, and Luciano Pigozzi would go on to make type-cast careers as henchmen and goons throughout the rest of the 70's owing largely to how well this movie worked out. Even Antonio Casale, the "Brion James" of Italian 70's crime movies, pops by to lend us another sweaty, ugly face for our hero to beat to a pulp and put a bullet in. Sadly we're missing only Nello Pazzafini, Biagio Pelligra, Bruno Corazzari, any Dell'Acqua's, Peverello's, or Sal's Borghese and Billa. Toss in a Sergio Smacchi and our henchman reunion would be complete.
With all the potential and solid cast of villains for Rambo to beat up and shoot, the film doesn't quite hit the high notes that later films like VIOLENT NAPLES or ROME ARMED TO THE TEETH would the next year. There's a distractingly silly Micalizzi score and the plot contains enough holes and slow spots to take this down a notch. Best for genre completists or those interested in seeing the true genesis of Milian's later "Nico Giraldi" character. Notable mostly for a demented scene in which a female character gets unintentionally beaten to death by a gang of clueless hit-men.
surprisingly lacking in over the top violence.
christopher-underwood9 November 2020
Fantastic picture on the recent Blu-ray release, certainly a great improvement of the old copy of a copy, I once had but a little surprisingly lacking in over the top violence. Moves along as one would expect a Lenzi film to and Tomas Milian holds the attention throughout, just a little short on that certain something. Violent enough here and there and Milian motorcycles around in a wooly hat always out to save the day with an eye for the ladies and a helping hand for their young sons. Joseph Cotten looks to be on his last legs but would in fact live another 20 years and make another 15 films plus TV, so maybe he was just drinking heavily - too much of the J&B maybe.
Routine Italian crime actioner
lor_24 January 2023
My review was written in March 1983 after a screening at Lyric theater on Manhattan's 42nd St.
Underneath its misleading U. S. release title, "Syndicate Sadists", is a 1975 Italian crime picture originally named (in translation) "Rambo Takes on the City". Film is typical of the scores of routine Italo actioners ground out in the 1970s, many of which grind away in domestic action houses and drive-ins with little fanfare, subbing for the nearly extinct U. S.-made B-level action film.
Tomas Milian toplines as an unkempt (clad throughout in black leather jacket and red and black outfit) sort of local hero named Rambo who returns to Milan to visit a buddy who works for the local Mondialpol (a private police force). When the pal is killed, Rambo goes seeking vengeance, foiling kidnappers and cleaning up rival gangs which are operating while (as they seem to say in every Italian action pic) the police stand by "powerless".
With his motorcycle goggles adding to his comic strip figure appearance, Milian is presented as a subject of hero worship for the kids in the film, though his amoral, undefined personality and appeal is likely to mystify U. S. audiences. As a blind gang leader specializing in gambling, Joseph Cotten has little to do here, though his self-dubbing in English is far superior to the low-quality voicing afforded the rest of the cast.
Prolific director Umberto Lenzi demonstrates his ability to stage a chase and keeps things moving, but the picture's minor-league story climaxes at about the halfway point when Rambo seemingly outwits the kidnappers, and in the barest of switches has to retreat in order for 40 minutes more padding to occur.
Underneath its misleading U. S. release title, "Syndicate Sadists", is a 1975 Italian crime picture originally named (in translation) "Rambo Takes on the City". Film is typical of the scores of routine Italo actioners ground out in the 1970s, many of which grind away in domestic action houses and drive-ins with little fanfare, subbing for the nearly extinct U. S.-made B-level action film.
Tomas Milian toplines as an unkempt (clad throughout in black leather jacket and red and black outfit) sort of local hero named Rambo who returns to Milan to visit a buddy who works for the local Mondialpol (a private police force). When the pal is killed, Rambo goes seeking vengeance, foiling kidnappers and cleaning up rival gangs which are operating while (as they seem to say in every Italian action pic) the police stand by "powerless".
With his motorcycle goggles adding to his comic strip figure appearance, Milian is presented as a subject of hero worship for the kids in the film, though his amoral, undefined personality and appeal is likely to mystify U. S. audiences. As a blind gang leader specializing in gambling, Joseph Cotten has little to do here, though his self-dubbing in English is far superior to the low-quality voicing afforded the rest of the cast.
Prolific director Umberto Lenzi demonstrates his ability to stage a chase and keeps things moving, but the picture's minor-league story climaxes at about the halfway point when Rambo seemingly outwits the kidnappers, and in the barest of switches has to retreat in order for 40 minutes more padding to occur.
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