Piedone d'Egitto

New entry with Bud Spencer as Police Comissioner Rizzo who this time travels to Egypt . Fun comedy set on Naples and a far country as Egypt for Bud Spencer enthusiasts , repeating his usual role as Commissario helped by his underling Caputo ( Enzo Cannavale) and dealing with kidnappings and oil smuggling . They resolve an abducting of the nephew (Cinzia Monreal) a powerful magnate (Robert Loggia) and carried out by some criminals . Rizzo (Bud Spencer or Carlo Perdesoli) is a corpulent and bouncing cop from Napoles who undertakes numerous dangers and adventures . Police Commissioner Rizzo, or Bigfoot (Piedone by nickname) and Marshal Caputo go to Egypt and look for Professor Cerullo (Leopoldo Trieste), who is missing . The scientific has discovered an insect that can smell where petrol is and lots of greed men are interested in it. Rizzo nicknamed Flatfoot travels to big city of El Cairo along with Bodo ( the likable Zulu little Bambino ) and his partner (Enzo Cannavale ) who poses as Arab . Later on , they go to Egyptian desert where meet Assan (Angelo Infanti) , facing off risks, and several adventures.

This is a good entertaining juvenile for Bud Spencer fans , as he's delightful . It packs action, fist-play, slapdash, humor with tongue and cheek and is quite amusing . This entertaining , engaging movie is crammed of fist-fights, punches , kicks, overwhelming stunt-work and lots of humor . Bud Spencer is top-notch as one army man taking on a group of bandits and as always he makes his own stunts with comic touches , as usual . This release has some cool and several hilarious moments, though the Terence Hill-Bud Spencer duo films are better . The film isn't always good , sometimes is fresh and diverting and on a couple of memorable occasions ,it's frankly delicious. The movie displays innumerable laughters , jokes and slapstick . The picture is well starred by Bud Spencer . Bud , the popular Latin movie actor who starred in innumerable spaghetti Westerns and action-packed potboilers during the 1960s and '70s, was born Carlo Pedersoli (1929) in Naples. He was the first Italian to swim the 100 meter freestyle and competed as a swimmer at the Olympic games . He appeared as a member of the Praetorian Guard in his first movie, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's epic "Quo Vadis" in 1951. He changed his screen name to "Bud Spencer" in 1967, as a homage to Spencer Tracy and to the American beer Budweiser. Spencer achieved his greatest hit in spaghetti Westerns lensed for a global audience. Teaming up with fellow Italian Terence Hill, the two made such international successes as I quattro dell'Ave Maria (1968) and "They Call Me Trinity" . Their dual outings made both stars famous, particularly in Europe. In all, Spencer made 18 movies with Hill . Later on , he became a jet airplane and helicopter pilot after appearing in ¨Crazy plane¨ (1972) and owned an air transport company, Mistral Air, which he founded in 1984. However, he terminated his business interest in Mistral and entered the children's clothing industry. After 1983, Spencer's movie career slowed down, though he did have a big success in the early 1990s with the TV action-drama "Extralarge". A man of many talents, Bud wrote texts and plots for some of his films . He also has registered several royalties.

The movie contains a catching musical score with noisy songs by Guido and Mauricio De Angelis(Spaghetti Western habitual) and composed by synthesizer, as always . Colorful cinematography who reflects splendidly the Egyptian outdoors , though is necessary a nice remastering . The motion picture is professionally directed by Steno, Stefano Vanzina(father of Carlo Vanzina). He wrote and directed in the 60s Toto vehicles (Toto vs the four, Two colonels) ; Walter Chiari and Raimondo Vianello shows (Heroes of the West, Twins from Texas). In the 70s and 80s directed Bud Spencer movies about Flatfoot or Rizzo, also called Piedone, such as, Flatfoot in Hong Kong, Flatfoot in Egypt and Banana Joe , among others. And in the 80s directed TV series , the Professore Jack Clementi, again with Bud Spencer. Rating : Acceptable and passable , though only for Bud Spencer fans

If somebody thinks that all the Bud Spencer films are the same, he or she may be right, due to the fact that almost all of them contain a lot of blows (with the hand and with the fist)...

But that´s not everything in a film starring Bud Spencer. There´s the plot (yes, there´s a plot indeed!!!), there are the other actors, and there´s the perhaps more important element in a movie, the Music.

In this concrete movie, the music is essential to make it amusing and I would dare to say unforgettable... One must watch this film to understand what I´m saying.

The main title track composed by Guido & Maurizio de Angelis, called "Sphinx" is just great!!.

Well, here´s another movie you should not miss.

Believe me...

As much as I like Bud Spencer, I can't really recommend this one. It feels as if the writers and the director thought that the "novelty" of seeing the Italian Inspector Rizzo in Egyptian surroundings would be so overwhelming that much more creativity would not really be required. And if you're looking for the trademark Bud Spencer slapstick fight scenes, you'll get them in very limited doses. Most of the time Bud, his boneheaded cop partner, and an African kid who's following them around are wandering from place to place. The climactic multi-person brawl inside the bad guy's palace comes close to redeeming the film, but doesn't quite make it. *1/2 out of 4.