Caliber 9
| Caliber 9 | |
|---|---|
 Italian theatrical release poster by Renato Casaro[2] | |
| Directed by | Fernando Di Leo |
| Screenplay by | Fernando Di Leo[3] |
| Produced by | Armando Novelli[3] |
| Starring | |
| Cinematography | Franco Villa[3] |
| Edited by | Amedeo Giomini[3] |
| Music by | Luis Enríquez Bacalov[3] |
| Distributed by | Lia Film |
Release date |
|
| Country | Italy[1] |
| Box office | ₤754 million |
Caliber 9 (Italian: Milano calibro 9) is a 1972 poliziottesco film written and directed by Fernando Di Leo and starring Gastone Moschin, Mario Adorf and Barbara Bouchet. The film is based on a book of the same name written by Giorgio Scerbanenco.[4]
The soundtrack for the film, Preludio Tema Variazioni e Canzona, is a collaboration album between Luis Enríquez Bacalov and the Italian progressive rock group Osanna.[5]
Milano calibro 9 is the first part in Di Leo's Milieu Trilogy. The film was followed by The Italian Connection in 1972 and Il Boss (The Boss) in 1973.[6]
Plot
Small-time gangster Ugo Piazza (Gastone Moschin) is released from prison. He tries to convince the police, the mafia, his psychotic ex-friend Rocco (Mario Adorf) and his girlfriend Nelly Bordon (Barbara Bouchet) that he wants to go straight, but everyone believes he has $300,000 of stolen money hidden somewhere.
Cast
- Gastone Moschin as Ugo Piazza
- Barbara Bouchet as Nelly Bordon
- Mario Adorf as Rocco Musco
- Frank Wolff as Police Commissioner
- Luigi Pistilli as Inspector Mercuri (Fonzino in the English dub)
- Ivo Garrani as Don Vincenzo
- Philippe Leroy as Chino
- Lionel Stander as The "American" (The Mikado in the English dub)
- Salvatore Aricò as Luca
- Ernesto Colli as Alfredo Bertolon
Release
Caliber 9 was released in Italy on February 15, 1972 where it was distributed by Lia Film.[1] It grossed a total of 754,443,000 Italian lire on its theatrical run in Italy.[1]
The film was released on Blu-ray by Raro Video on February 22, 2011.[7] It was released again on Blu-ray and DVD by Arrow Video on June 16, 2015.[8]
Reception
From contemporary reviews, a 98-minute English-dub titled The Contract was reviewed by John Raisbeck of the Monthly Film Bulletin.[9] Raisbeck stated that "after a briskly edited pre-credits sequence, [...] The Contract degenerates into a patchy gangster thriller".[9] The review noted that the film "announces a number of themes-the crime syndicate's big business connections, the Melvillian respect shared by the two professionals Ugo and Chino-without developing any of them satisfactorily."[9]
The review critiqued Mario Adorf's acting stating it "often verges on caricature".[9]
In popular culture
The film was referenced in Kobe Bryant's Nike Italia advertisement campaign short entitled "Milano Kalibro Kobe", and featured Italy international footballers Giampaolo Pazzini, Gennaro Gattuso, Alberto Aquilani, Claudio Marchisio and Marco Materazzi, Dutch international footballer Wesley Sneijder and Italian NBA star Marco Belinelli in parodies of the original characters.[10][11][12]
See also
Notes
- ^ a b c d Curti 2013, p. 52.
- ^ "Milano calibro 9 - art by Renato Casaro!". www.emovieposter.com. Retrieved May 23, 2016.
- ^ a b c d e Credits (booklet). Arrow Video. 2015. p. 3. FCD929.
- ^ Curti, Roberto (2015). Film Noir, Italian Style: Giorgio Scerbanenco, Fernando Di Leo and Milano Calibro 9 (booklet). Arrow Video. p. 10. FCD929.
- ^ "Osanna". ItalianProg. Retrieved 7 January 2007.
- ^ "Milano calibro 9 (Milan Calibre 9)". Tate Modern. Archived from the original on 24 December 2007. Retrieved 7 January 2007.
{{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|1=(help) - ^ "Caliber 9 Milano Calibro 9". Raro Video USA. Retrieved September 19, 2015.
- ^ "Milano Calibro 9". Arrow Films. Retrieved September 19, 2015.
- ^ a b c d Raisbeck, John (1974). "Contract, The "(Milano Calibro 9)"". Monthly Film Bulletin. 41 (480). London: 11. ISSN 0027-0407.
- ^ Youtube
- ^ "Milano Kalibro Kobe". kobebryant.com. 29 February 2012.
- ^ "Milano calibro Kobe. Bryant sbarca in tour in Italia". sport.sky.it. 23 September 2011.
References
- Curti, Roberto (2013). Italian Crime Filmography, 1968-1980. McFarland. ISBN 0786469765.
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