fredag 13. juni 2008

Euro actresses doing alcohol advertisements



Recently I've managed to come across several old alcohol advertisements featuring popular Euro actresses of the time. It's pretty nifty and fascinating stuff.

From 1972 to 1974, international star Sylva Koscina did a series of print ads for the popular Italian alcoholic beverage Grappa Julia. Grappa is a fragrant grape-based pomace brandy, and this uniquely Italian drink has been around since the Middle Ages.

Here are two Grappa Julia print ads featuring the lovely Sylva:





And we must not forget Solvi Stubing, the gorgeous German-born actress known from trashy films like Battle of the Amazons (1973), Strip Nude for Your Killer (1975), Deported Women of the SS Special Section (1976) and others. Solvi's big break in Italy was actually as the pretty, blonde girl in a long-running ad campaign for the popular Italian lager beer Birra Peroni.

Solvi started out doing a bunch of TV commercials for Birra Peroni in the 1960s. Some pictures from one of those commercials can be seen below:







Solvi continued to be the Birra Peroni girl for many years, and also did several print ads. Here are two such ads from 1971:





Another German actress who became popular through beer campaigns was the beautiful Margaret Rose Keil, who did a series of ads for Italian vermouth Punt e mes in the 1960s. These ads did Margaret a lot of good and she would go on to enjoy a successful career as a pinup girl and a popular actress in photo novels and films.

Here's a Punt e mes ad featuring Margaret from 1964:




And here is another Punt e Mes ad with Margaret - this one from 1966:




So, does anyone know about any other actresses who did advertisements for Italian alcohol brands?


onsdag 11. juni 2008

A Game of Crime/Crimine a due


Italy, 1964

Directed by Romano Ferrara

Cast:
John Drew Barrymore, Luisa Rivelli, Umberto D’Orsi, Lisa Gastoni, Jean Claudio, Peter Dane, Ombretta Colli, Piero Gerlini, Michel Francis, Elisa Mainardi, Aldo Bonamano, Peter Martell, Nini Rosso and his orchestra


Another one of the rare, early black and white gialli made before the genre had really established itself. A Game of Crime was released not long after the superlative Death on the Fourposter (1964) and even re-uses John Drew Barrymore and Luisa Rivelli, two of the stars from that film. But the similarities end there as A Game of Crime turns out to be a rather different sort of thriller altogether.

John Drew Barrymore stars in the role of Paul Morand, a somewhat shady character who’s gotten himself into trouble and gambling debts. As the film opens, Paul is being chased through the dark streets by two beefy thugs who eventually catch up with him and give him a good beating to warn him of what will happen if he doesn’t pay his debts.

Paul gets a warning


Paul ends up stealing the money he needs from his workplace. But it doesn’t take long before his boss, the rich and successful David Lugani (Jean Claudio), discovers what he has done and flies into a fit of rage. David has never liked Paul and only gave him a job due to the insistence of his wife Anna (Luisa Rivelli), who is an old friend of Paul (and apparently his former lover as well).

David and Anna, whose marriage is rather strained, live together in a huge villa along with David’s brother, who is paralyzed, blind, mute and horribly disfigured from a car accident. A beautiful nurse named Elisabeth (Lisa Gastoni) also lives with the Luganis in order to care for the poor brother, who Anna is terrified of and only refers to as “the monster”. But David is sick himself; suffering from a serious heart condition and, as such, is not allowed to get too worked up. But Paul’s stealing and Anna’s continued defense of him is the last straw for David, who furiously insists on calling the police to report Paul’s theft – in spite of Anna’s vehement objections. David picks up the phone and gets the commissioner on the line but falls together in chest pains before he is able to say much.

David is struck by a heart attack at a convenient moment


Anna and Elisabeth get David into bed and call for their physician Dr. Bowen (Peter Dane). Paul also shows up and is greatly worried when Anna takes him aside and tells him David will be going to the police as soon as he recovers. But, alas, fate has planned it differently…

Paul accompanies Anna up to the bedroom where David is being treated for his heart attack, and volunteers to measure up and prepare the medicine according to Dr. Bowen’s instructions. Somewhat skeptical, Anna gives David the medicine Paul has prepared…

A telling glance between Anna and Paul as Anna gives her husband the medicine


Not long after, David’s heart attack worsens and he dies. His estate and vast fortune is left to Anna but only on the condition that she continues to live in the house and takes care of David’s brother. If she doesn’t, everything will be turned over to the brother – under Elisabeth’s supervision. Paul quickly moves in with Anna in the mansion – allegedly to act as her administrator.

Soon afterwards, Commissioner Perrotti (Umberto D’Orsi) receives an anonymous letter which claims David’s death was murder and that his killers are currently enjoying the fruits of their crime. The commissioner is puzzled by the letter and starts to wonder what it was David wanted to talk to him about on the phone just before he died.

As the commissioner starts asking questions, Anna becomes nervous and her fears are intensified by the presence of David’s disfigured brother, whose muffled, agonizing cries are driving her crazy. She can’t stand the thought of having to stay in the house and grows more nervous and paranoid by the minute. Eventually, more deaths follow and the case turns out to be more complicated than it seems…


Unlike other early black and white gialli such as Libido (1965) and the aforementioned Death on the Fourposter, A Game of Crime is more traditional and straightforward in its approach – playing out like a thriller in the classic Hitchcock vein – but there’s enough atmosphere and good twists to make this an enjoyable experience. Certain parts play out like a psychological thriller, with Anna growing increasingly nervous and frightened by having to live in the house where her husband died. As such, the film anticipates the early gialli of Umberto Lenzi in some ways, but there are also touches that seem inspired by contemporary Italian horror films. For example, the large, old Lugani mansion makes a nice, gothic backdrop to the wicked shenanigans while an old, ramshackled wine cellar full of rats comes into play during the memorable climax.

The Lugani house


Some chills in the Lugani wine cellar


The disfigured brother – or “monster” as Anna calls him – also recalls similar, hidden-away characters from various gothic horror films. His presence is downright creepy as he just sits there – day and night – in his wheelchair; hiding his eyes behind sunglasses and letting out loud, tormented cries.

The "monster"


Another atmospheric, if odd, detail is the presence of famed Italian jazz trumpeter Nini Rosso and his orchestra, who perform the spellbinding song “Ho bisogno di te” in a nightclub Paul enters at the start of the film to hide from the thugs that are chasing him. While this musical act by the famous Rosso may have been included for the sole purpose of drawing attention to the film, it ends up doing much more than that. The song is a fantastic, haunting piece that sets a fantastic mood for the film. The rest of the film is scored by the talented Berto Pisani, who provides a splendid soundtrack that heightens the mood and suspense.

Nini Rosso performs "Ho bisogno di te"

A rare 45 single of the song


The director, Romano Ferrara, previously directed the early Italian science fiction film The Planets Are Against Us (1962), which was an interesting and good-looking but ultimately dire and unsuccessful film. As such, it is a pleasure to see that Ferrara’s directorial skills have improved but A Game of Crime still isn’t without its flaws. Its primary drawbacks are several long, trite scenes of Paul and Anna bickering, only to make up shortly afterwards. These scenes just don’t cut it – they are too long and repetitive, and should have been trimmed somewhat.

The sort of bicker and make up scenes we could have done without


After a memorable supporting role in Death on the Fourposter, John Drew Barrymore is upgraded to leading man this time around. He does pretty nicely with his suitably shady and suspicious character but the best performance doubtlessly comes from Luisa Rivelli. A beautiful and captivating screen presence, Rivelli was often used in decorative roles but was actually a versatile and capable actress if given the chance. In stark contrast to her role as the sinister, unglamorous housekeeper in Death on the Fourposter, Rivelli looks magnificent here and really delivers the goods as the increasingly terrified Anna. Her guilt-ridden character may have served as an influence for the paranoid upper-class heroines played by Carroll Baker in the Umberto Lenzi films Orgasmo (1968) and A Quiet Place to Kill (1970), although in the end Anna is shown to be a stronger woman than those played by Baker.

Rivelli is tormented by agonizing screams

Rivelli faces the "monster"


The supporting cast is top-notch too, and particular mention must go to the wonderful character actor Umberto D’Orsi as the surprisingly sharp police inspector who must investigate Rivelli, who he has an obvious crush on (a nice and welcome little detail). Another interesting face in the cast is Lisa Gastoni, who became an esteemed and serious actress after winning a Silver Ribbon award for her performance in Carlo Lizzani’s Too Soon to Die (1966). But before that she appeared in a number of less prestigious projects. She first had a successful acting career in England in the 1950s before returning to Italy where she was in a number of cult-ish titles such as Antonio Margheriti’s cheesy sci-fi adventure The Wild, Wild Planet (1965), Roberto Mauri’s ultra-obscure giallo Le notti della violenza (1965) and of course this film. Here, Gastoni is as beautiful as ever as the suspicious nurse who is always close by. French actor Jean Claudio also does a solid job as the fatally temperamental David, while Piero Gerlini is very amusing as the commissioner’s well-meaning but bumbling assistant.

Though extremely hard to come by these days, A Game of Crime is well worth the effort of hunting down. It isn’t perfect and the middle-section should have been snappier but it’s a well-made giallo overall. Unfortunately, the English-dubbed version is only available in skuzzy-looking versions. The English dubbing itself (directed by Dom Leone) is serviceable but not much more. Luisa Rivelli in particular suffers from being dubbed by a poor actress who sounds rather disinterested. Presumably, the film would play better in Italian.


© 2008 Johan Melle



The cast:


John Drew Barrymore as Paul Morand


Luisa Rivelli as Anna Lugani


Umberto D'Orsi as Commissioner Perrotti


Lisa Gastoni as Elisabeth Buckner


Jean Claudio as David Lugani


Peter Dane as Dr. Bowen


Ombretta Colli as Christine


Piero Gerlini as The Sergeant


Elisa Mainardi (right) as A friend of the Luganis


Aldo Bonamano and Peter Martell as The thugs


Nini Rosso and his orchestra

tirsdag 10. juni 2008

Lost film #2: Le leonesse


Italy, 1971

Director: Unknown

Cast:
Nadja Tiller, Carla Romanelli, Edda Di Bendetto, Lorenzo Piani


Another Italian film that seems to have vanished into thin air is the erotic drama Le leonesse (the lionesses) which was shot in early 1971.

Very little is known about this lost film. What little information I have been able to find came from the Italian magazine "Men", which printed an article about the film's leading lady, popular Austrian actress Nadja Tiller, in April 1971. Tiller was making several films in Italy around this time, including Emma Hamilton (1968), Death Knocks Twice (1968), The Silk Worm (1969) and The Etruscan Kills Again (1971), and in the "Men" article she talks about her latest film, Le leonesse.

Apparently, Tiller (who was 42 at the time) stars as a scandalous mother who fights her daughter (Carla Romanelli) and the daughter's friend (Edda Di Benedetto) for the love of the same man. All three women use their bodies and female charms to succeed. The question is who of the three is the biggest "lioness"...

Some pictures from the film - scanned from "Men":


A sex scene with Nadja Tiller and Lorenzo Piani


Another shot of Tiller and Piani


Unfortunately, no director is mentioned in the article and it remains unclear what happened to the film. It is not listed in any film databases so it was probably never released. The big question is whether or not production closed down before the film was finished, or if it was completed and lies unreleased in a vault somewhere. I guess the chances of Le leonesse ever being unearthed are slim but one can always hope. It sounds like a nice little film.

lørdag 7. juni 2008

Lost film #1: The Man from Corleone/L'uomo di Corleone


Italy, 1977

Directed by Duilio Colletti

Cast:
Marcel Bozzuffi, Irene Papas, Adolfo Celi, Andrea Ferreol, Gabriele Ferzetti, Laura Belli, Marino Masé, Vittorio Mezzogiorno, Leopoldo Trieste

Among the countless enjoyable Italian films from the 60s, 70s and 80s there are, unfortunately, a few titles have seem to have completely disappeared and not been seen by anyone. Some have disappeared after their theatrical run and never shown up again on VHS or DVD or in TV screenings. Others finished shooting but ran into various post-production problems which caused them to never be released at all.

One film that has mysteriously vanished is Duilio Coletti's The Man From Corleone, an ambitious crime film from 1977 full of well-regarded European actors. It seems to have been a big project and had a large cast, yet it doesn't appear to have been released theatrically in Italy. A few online film databases do have a listing for this film but no actual information about its plot or release.

A two-page ad for the film in the sales catalogue magazine Nuovo Cinema Europeo - announcing the film rights for sale in Cannes.

Exactly what happened to The Man From Corleone is not known. In recent years, several Italian TV channels have announced that they will air the film - only to replace it with something else at the last minute. This deepens the mystery but we can only keep our fingers crossed and hope that the film will be unearthed some time. It certainly looks interesting and has a top-notch cast!