Intoccabili, Gli (1968)

Director:

Giuliano Montaldo

Writers:

Ovid Demaris (novel)
Giuliano Montaldo (writer)

Release Date:

29 October 1970 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Drama

Tagline:

Even the Mafia Calls Him Mister!

Plot:

Plot Keywords:

Machine Gun | Ex Convict | Las Vegas Nevada | On The Run | 1960s

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

John Cassavetes	...	Hank McCain
Britt Ekland	...	Irene Tucker
Peter Falk	...	Charlie Adamo
Gabriele Ferzetti	...	Don Francesco DeMarco
Luigi Pistilli	...	Duke Mazzanga
Margherita Guzzinati	...	Margaret DeMarco
Claudio Biava	...	Barclay
Steffen Zacharias	...	Abe Stilberman
James Morrison	...	Joby Cuda
Florinda Bolkan	...	Joni Adamo
Tony Kendall	...	Pete Zacari
Salvo Randone	...	Don Salvatore
Gena Rowlands	...	Rosemary Scott
Maria Mizar
Euplio Moscusu

Also Known As:

Machine Gun McCain (USA)

Runtime:

94 min

Country:

Italy

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Certification:

Norway:16 | Iceland:16 | Finland:K-16 | Spain:18 | Sweden:15 | USA:GP

Filming Locations:

Las Vegas, Nevada, USA

Company:

Euro International Film (EIA)

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Mystery Science Theater 3000: Gamera vs. Gaos (#1.6)" (1988)

MACHINE GUN McCAIN (Giuliano Montaldo, 1968) ***

This is a stylish, complex and exciting gangster melodrama (which Leonard Maltin in "Movies & Video Guide" calls "junk" and awards a mere **!) bolstered by an infectious Ennio Morricone score (especially the title ballad). Amazingly, it was shown on Italian TV at the time of the Cannes Film Festival as part of a series of past nominees; unfortunately, however, the print was of the choppy 94-minute U.S. version (bearing the Columbia logo upfront) and panned-and-scanned to boot (making the Techniscope compositions pretty claustrophobic)!! I've been unable to determine the film's original length, but I've seen running-times as long as 119 minutes!

The film is well-served by a great cast: an intense and fearless John Cassavetes as the title character, a delectable Britt Ekland as a girl he meets and marries on being sprung from jail (who becomes an accomplice in his criminal schemes without batting an eyelid, at least in this version!), Peter Falk as a bad-tempered small-time hood whose ambitions see him clash with his ruthless superiors, Florinda Bolkan as his even more avaricious wife, Gabriele Ferzetti as the crossed Don who goes to teach Falk a lesson (and who seems to be having an affair with Bolkan!), Luigi Pistilli (rather under-used as Falk's right-hand man), Salvo Randone (as the No. 1 Mafia Boss who keeps track of the situation from his New York office), Tony Kendall (as the hit-man dispatched to eliminate both Falk and Cassavetes) and "Special Guest Star" Gena Rowlands (as McCain's tough old flame - together they were a legendary criminal double-act, and the real-life couple demonstrate undeniable chemistry in their one scene together! - who, still having feelings for him, aids in his escape from the Mob and suffers the consequences for her actions). It's an interesting mix of 'styles': the Italians give it authenticity, the women a touch of class and the two male stars (who, regrettably, don't share any screen-time but were eventually re-teamed in a gangland milieu in MIKEY AND NICKY [1976] - which I recently watched - and where they were practically inseparable!) an aura of intelligence. Some sources credit The Doors' frontman Jim Morrison in the role of a lackey, but it certainly didn't seem like him to me!

The best sequence is the ingenious heist from a Las Vegas casino (indeed, the glitzy and often sleazy locations are a definite asset) and, in the cynical fashion of cinema in the late 60s, the films ends - rather abruptly - with a downbeat 'curtain'. Montaldo didn't make that many films but from the three I've watched - the others being the enjoyable light-hearted caper GRAND SLAM (1967) and the excellent IL GIOCATTOLO (1979), a Death Wish-type drama with a remarkable leading performance from Nino Manfredi - he certainly knew his business.