Coventry On a day like today, "Beast with a Gun" was the best thing I possible could have stumbled on! Long and tiring day at work, depressing weather and no energy left at night to do anything else but watch a totally undemanding and adrenalin-rushing action thriller. Next time YOU feel this, watch this bonkers Italian 70's kick-ass movie! "Beast with a Gun" features non-stop raw and gritty violence, misogyny and gratuitous sleaze and an assemblage of the coolest villainous characters ever; led by the ultimate spaghetti bad-boy Helmut Berger. The plot is literally full of holes the size of shotgun bullets, but who cares when the film swiftly leaps from one spectacular action scene to the next? Helmut Berger plays the titular (ferocious) beast with a gun. Or the titular mad dog. He deserves all the bad-ass sounding a.k.a titles, because Berger truly is one of the meanest SOB to ever appear in a 70's exploitation flick. And, given the market supply, that must mean something, no? Nanni Vitali escapes from prison along with three other convicts. Well actually, the other three are too petrified to disobey Vitali's orders and help him eliminate the police informant who testified against him in court. He then literally commands a woman to sleep with him and help with a money heist. When that doesn't go according to plan, Vitali is so mad that he takes hostage police commissioner's Giulio Santini's sister and father. This is just a small listing of the main events in "Beast with a Gun", but there's a lot more going on. Every few moments or so, there's either a virulent beating or nasty gunfight going on, and Helmet Berger seems to get gradually more ill-tempered and rotten with every minute that passes. No wonder Quentin Tarantino referred to him and his character here in this film during "Jackie Brown". The dumbness of the script is quite often too bothering and, in all honesty, bring the overall quality of the movie down a little bit. How is it possible, for example, that an entire army of police officers cannot prevent that two people die during an anticipated heist and that all of the criminals get away with a van full of hostages? There are more senseless elements and defaults (like the fact that lead actress Marisa Mell entirely vanishes during the final act) but, to hell with it, I really don't feel like yammering about this 200% fun and exciting film. Oh and if you like Italian cult cinema, you WILL adore the terrific soundtrack by the relatively unknown (at least, in comparison to Ennio Morricone or Riz Ortolani) composer Umberto Smaila.

BaronBl00d I'm not sure which title I like more but this film does indeed have a certain special charm to it. No, it is not outstanding or anything superlative like that, but it is rather enjoyable to watch as a crook/killer gets out of prison to wreak havoc and revenge on those responsible for putting him there in the first place. Helmut Berger is the best thing about this film as he plays a violent, sadistic psychopath with the best of them. He has no heart whatsoever and is quite something to see. His scenes in the abandoned warehouse and with newly acquired "moll" the beautiful Marisa Mell particularly stand out. Muscle-bound Richard Harrison, who you might remember from some older sword and sandal movies, plays the cop out to protect himself and his family. Like another reviewer noted, the script and plot have some obvious problems, but the pace and delivery more than offset those inadequacies. If you want some good, old-fashioned Italiam crime atmosphere then Mad Dog or Beast with a Gun is for you.

The_Void You can't get much cooler than an Italian crime film, and Beast With a Gun is yet another excellent example of this cult sub-genre! The film is quite a lot nastier than the majority of Italian crime films that I've seen, and at times it feels like it owes a lot to the exploitation genre! Naturally, there's the usual array of fistfights, shootouts and car chases; but here we've also got rapes and scenes of torture - among other stuff. So Beast With a Gun might not be everyone's cup of tea - but I think most people would agree that the nasty edge certainly gives the film a bit more 'bite'! The film begins with the escape of three nasty convicts. Their leader is a man named Nanni Vitali, and their first port of call after escaping from jail is killing the dirty scumbag that turned them in. However, when they catch up with him; Nanni takes a shine to his girlfriend, and proceeds to brutally rape her before killing the snitch. He also wants the girl to help them pull off a robbery; and she agrees to help them, but not before telling the police all about it...The main strength that this film has is undoubtedly Helmut Berger. Berger is absolutely spot on with his role as the nasty criminal at the centre of the tale, and every moment he's on screen is completely gripping. He is joined by experienced Eurocult actress Marisa Mell, who provides the eye candy in style! Richard Harrison rounds off the central cast with the token 'cop' role and like his co-stars - plays it well. Beast With a Gun also features an excellent soundtrack, which goes well with the film and definitely adds to every scene it features in. Realism obviously wasn't big on director Sergio Grieco's priority list, however, as the film features numerous instances that don't make a lot of sense - the scene that springs to mind instantly is the one where a certain female cast member is shot in the leg...and then instantly diagnoses it as 'not serious' and barely bats an eyelid! I've got to say, if I got shot it would be VERY SERIOUS, no matter where it got me. However, this isn't important as Beast With a Gun does the important thing - that being entertain the audience - very well, and fans of Italian crime films won't want to miss it!

bensonmum2 Four escaped convicts, led by Nanni Vitali (Helmut Berger), go on a killing spree. Their main target is the man who turned them in. After he's murdered, Nanni kidnaps his girlfriend, Giuliana Caroli (Marisa Mell), and threatens to kill her unless she agrees to help him pull-off a payroll heist. She double-crosses Nanni and goes to the police. Now Giuliana's life is in real danger.What Works: The Vicious Nanni. Nanni Vitali is one of those vicious, brutal, sadistic type characters that are necessary for this kind of film to work. The things he is capable of doing can be at times shocking. The ferocious way he beats-up the gas attendant for no real purpose at all is the perfect example. He's the kind of character you wouldn't want to run into in real life.Marisa Mell. Marisa Mell is another of those European actresses who may not have been much of a thespian, but she has a certain screen presence that's undeniable. It's too bad the decision was made to ignore her character for the final third of the movie.The Score. Until seeing Beast with a Gun, I'm not sure I had seen a film scored by Umberto Smaila. His main theme is one of those pieces of music that gets stuck in your head and you can't get it out. The rest is above average and adds to the drama and tension on screen.What Doesn't Work: Unbelievable Plot Points. While I could write about several instances where the movie stretches credibility, I'll limit these comments to two. First, no real police would bungle a heist set-up as bad as the police in this film. They have inside information. They know where and when the robbery is to take place. They have their own people poising as factory workers. Yet two people are killed and the robbers make off with a van full of hostages. Second, while scouting the vast Italian countryside, the police just happen to select and climb the very electric pole that will give them a clear view of the killers' hideout. How lucky can you be! Originality. Beast with a Gun is a fairly standard Italian police thriller that offers very little in the way of innovation. It's all routine, run-of-the-mill, seen-it-before type stuff. A little more creativity would have gone a long way to making it a good film of its type.In the end, if you're a fan of this kind of film, you probably won't see anything you haven't seen before. But what is presented is generally well done with some very nice accompanying music. And, Marisa Mell makes the whole thing worthwhile for me.