Netflix reviews: The Big Racket and The Heroin Busters

Pretty much everyone knows who Michael Bay is by now, right? If you don't, you should probably get out from that rock you are sleeping under. And to a lesser degree, people know or at least have heard of directors like Michael Mann and Sam Peckinpah? In a sort of odd hybrid mix of all three directors, Italian director Enzo Castellari has left his mark on the action genre whether you know it or not with a nice mix of story, character, style and crazy action.

Two of those movies, The Big Racket which is rated as his best at IMDB for whatever that's worth and The Heroin Busters, were the latest in my Netflix queue. I've seen a handful of Castellari's other movies and enjoyed them across the board. The stories tend to be pretty basic like something you'd see in an old B-movie or pulp fiction novels. Nothing groundbreaking but always entertaining. An anti-hero is typically thrust into a situation where he must save the day sometimes at a high cost as he rebels against his superiors and sometimes society in general. Of the two, I liked 'Racket' more so I'll cover that more in depth.

Both movies have Italian star Fabio Testi in the lead, both parts being in law enforcement in one way or another. I've always been aware of Testi and could have picked him out of a lineup if need be, but these were the first two movies I'd actually seen of him. He comes across well as the rebellious anti-hero. It can be hard judging performances that are dubbed into English, and often not very well, but Testi is a strong physical presence with roles that require that above all else. Acting be damned!

In 'Racket,' Testi plays Inspector Nico Palmieri, an Italian police officer trying to put away some underworld characters for intimidating and blackmailing business owners for 'protection.' If the owners don't comply, they're in for it as this little gang rapes, murders and loots their way into power. But for Palmieri, the work is frustrating because no one will testify against these hoods and therefore no charges can be presented. It's as the case continues that Nico deserves there's more to this enterprise than he thought as the different factions of the underworld plan to unite.

Could it be too late though? Nico may have pushed the limits of what he can do as a police officer and is thrown over the force. With nothing or no one holding him back, the former inspector puts together a team of vigilantes, all with their own personal reasons for revenge, to help him take out the leaders of the underworld, the 'big racket' of the title. Joining Nico are Pepe (Vincent Gardenia with an odd, unnecessary dubbing), a small-time crook with a history, Luigi (Renzo Palmer), a father who's daughter was raped by the hoods, Giani (Orso Maria Guerrini), a champion skeet shooter who helped Nico in the spur of the moment and paid for later, Mazzarelli (Glauco Onorato), a mafioso with a grudge, and Doringo (Romano Puppo), a hired killer.

The story unfolds slowly as we realize what the sadistic baddies are capable of. At first, it appears they're breaking and entering and using good old-fashioned intimidation, but they do much, much worse. By that point, you're fully on the vigilantes side and rooting for them to off everyone involved. Movies where citizens take the law into their own hands sure sounds appealing sometimes. Castellari lives up to his precedent with the finale, a shootout in an empty factory as Nico and Co. attempt to ambush the underworld heads. The director always seemed to find unique locations for his shootouts, adding an eerie spectacle to the gunfight.

And like most directors, Castellari leaves his personal stamp on these movies with some actors returning for many of the director's movies including head baddie Joshua Sinclair who was in 'Heroin' and 'Racket.' His shooting style is always consistent with some unique POV shots and quick-cutting to counter some of the slow motion in the shootouts. If Peckinpah opened the door on slow-motion violence, Castellari kicked it wide open. And if there was any doubt these were movies straight out of the 1970s, the scores are always a good clue with the De Angelis brothers in 'Racket' and alt rock band Goblin in 'Heroin.' Both scores have a synthesiser sound heavy on guitars that really gets your blood going.

As for Heroin Busters, I enjoyed it but just not as much. The story has Testi playing an undercover cop trying to bust a drug ring that seems to have connections at all the corners of the world. It takes a while to develop and is somewhat confusing until then, but all is forgiven with the last half hour, a running chase/shootout with motorcycles, a construction site and a vacant subway all ending up in some Italian ruins. David Hemmings stars as an Interpol agent working with Testi with much of the supporting cast from 'Racket' here too, including Sinclair and Puppo.

In reviewing these movies, I go back to my reliable line 'a movie doesn't have to deliver a message to be good.' Castellari revels in that, making high quality B-movies with great action scenes, anti-heroes you root for and villians you love to hate, and overall just a good time. I've been watching the Blue Underground DVDs and highly recommend them if you're looking to watch and catch up.

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The Big Racket (1976): *** 1/2 /****
The Heroin Busters (1977) ***/****

Any Gun Can Play

Most moviegoers will agree, Sergio Leone's The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly is the most well-known, and depending on how you ask, best spaghetti western around. With its huge success came a flurry of westerns with similar storylines, including one, 1967's Any Gun Can Play, that is almost an exact duplicate except played more for laughs. Lack of originality aside, director Enzo Castellari's action-heavy western is a good one.

A heavily guarded train carrying $300,000 is attacked by a group of bandits led by the infamous Monetero (Gilbert Roland). But in the aftermath of the robbery, one of Monetero's men doublecrosses him and makes off with all the money. He's tracked down, but before he is shot and killed, the bandit gives a clue to Monetero, a medallion with the location of the gold hidden somewhere in its meaning. Joining the hunt for the gold coins is Clayton (Edd Byrnes), a representative from the bank hoping to get his money back, and a mysterious bounty hunter, known simply as the Stranger (George Hilton). What follows is a series of uneasy alliances with more double-crosses than I could keep track of.

Director Castellari adds some nice touches to his take on GBU without any epic touches that Leone's classic had. For one, the opening is great, check it out here. Three gunslingers dressed as the Man With No Name, Django, and Col. Mortimer ride into a town, passing an undertaker moving three coffins with a lone man, the Stranger, walking behind. They stop to ask who died, the man answering by reading off 3 names, their names. He guns them down in a flash and collects the bounty. Call it a myth/legend, but Leone supposedly wanted to film the opening to Once Upon a Time in the West with Bronson gunning down Eastwood, Wallach, and Van Cleef, similar to the opening here. It's a nice touch by Castellari and sets the tone immediately for the rest of the movie.

Throughout his career, Castellari was the master of action, especially over-the-top action like in the original Inglorious Bastards or Franco Nero movies Street Law and Keoma. This movie never goes too long without a fistfight or a gun battle which keeps the pace going at a breakneck speed. This was also one of the first spaghettis to have acrobatic fights, like Sabata, with stunt men jumping from heights, hitting a trampoline and flipping across a street. Is it ridiculous and completely unnecessary to the movie? Of course, but it's fun to watch.

Three scenes jump out, one the finale in a rundown mission where our three anti-heroes have traced the gold to with the former members of Monetero's gang also showing up, and two and three, extended fistfights between Clayton, the Stranger, and a group of nameless henchmen there to get beaten up. Both fights almost outstay their welcome, but with the right mix of acrobatics, punches, and henchmen flying through the air, they hit the right note.

While the cast may not have the name recognition of GBU, the three leads are perfect for the jokey, over-the-top feel of the movie. With Byrnes as Clayton, you just know the character isn't exactly what he's letting on to be because, well, it's Edd Byrnes and every character he ever played seemed to have some ulterior motives. George Hilton adds a bit of a humorous edge to the Stranger, a mix of any number of Eastwood and Nero characters. When it comes down to it though, the Stranger can shoot with the best of them. And late in his career when he made a handful of spaghettis, 62-year old Gilbert Roland has the Tuco-role except with a little more extravagance. The three find a good mix and stick with it.

There's a fair share of recognizable faces in the supporting cast, including Ignazio Spalla as Pajondo, Monetero's double-crossing gangmember who was in all three Sabata movies, and Gerard Herter as Blackman, the insurance investigator trying to figure everything out as everyone tries to get their hands on $300,000 in gold. Not as polished as some of the better spaghettis, but definitely worth a watch for fans of the genre. If you're just getting into spaghetti westerns, I'd recommend starting with the Leone Dollars trilogy first.

The VCI Entertainment DVD has some issues, but nothing that should stop you from purchasing it if interested. The movie is shown in widescreen, but it seems at times to be a pan-n-scan version pushed down for the widescreen bars. It's also a grainy feature, but compared to a lot of the low-budget, cheapie DVDs released of spaghetti westerns, it's a godsend. The picture's good but not great, and the sound comes through clear at all times. Special features include a trailer, and a trailer for A Bullet for Sandoval, which I reviewed in April.

Any Gun Can Play (1967): ***/****