Hail, Mafia

Interesting jazz-fuelled crime film telling the tale of two hitman on their way to kill a fella in France. The man has to die because he could testify against a Mafioso who has been indicted, but one of the hitmen has a personal reason for whacking the guy too.

This hitman is played by Quincy MD himself, Jack Klugman (I had to look that up),whose sister was knocked up and left alone by the victim, but the other hitman is played by Henry Silva, and his character is a no nonsense, pragmatic individual who likes to play everything 'clean'. Both men travel through France, discussing the business they find themselves in, discovering France, and complaining about the food.

There's two separate sub-plots going on too, as we learn about the victim and his women troubles, and then there's guy sent to stop the hit as the Mafioso is released from prison and doesn't want linked to the forthcoming murder. I can quite happily report here that although this film lacks the car chases, chin-socking and violence of later Euro-crime films, the pay off is brilliant and the ending a classic.

The strong actors help, as Klugman comes across as the more humane of the too, while the young Silva has eyes that would melt cement. Look out for future Italian exploitation star Donald O'brien as a rather violent mob bosses secretary

An interesting French Eurocrime movie following the fortunes of Henry Silva and Jack Klugman playing a pair of mafia hitmen hunting for their latest target; the problem is that he's an old buddy of Klugman's. This reminded me of PULP FICTION in the way it depicts the friendship between the assassins and charts their meals and misadventures along the way, although it looks a lot different, shot in the French 'New Wave' style. The ending's a memorable one.

Writer-director-producer Raoul Levy hit a home run with this moody, intelligent, very-well acted crime film. On the surface, the plot seems simple--mafia soldiers Henry Silva and Jack Klugman are on an assignment to kill a former mafia guy played by Eddie Constantine. But the story--and most of the film--is really about the relationship between Henry Silva's and Jack Klugman's characters, and both give brilliant performances. I would never have thought of this pair of actors together, but as well as I know each of their works, I saw only the two characters, real people, not the actors. Eddie Constantine is not in the film all that much--it's Klugman and Silva's movie. Raoul Levy is probably best known here in the US as the producer of five Bridget Bardot films and of the underrated THE DEFECTOR, the last movie of Montgomery Clift. The washed-out monochrome photography by Raoul Coutard, the brilliant jazz score by Hubert Rostaing, and Levy's intelligent, literate script all come together in a powerful film that will pack an unexpected wallop for those expecting just another euro-crime film. No wonder Henry Silva's european career took off right after this film. The existential plot could easily have been from a spaghetti western or a samurai film, and anyone who has ever considered those genres (and the euro-crime film) as metaphors for life and society should find a copy of this film as soon as possible. For me, one of the five best European-made crime films of the 1960's, and I've seen hundreds of them.

Carl Studer is facing a congressional investigation and the rest of his life in prison. He takes the Fifth before Congress, but if they can find someone who will testify where the bodies are buried, it works out the same as if he had confessed everything himself. Eddie Constantine knows where all the bodies are buried, because he buried them for Studer before he retired and disappeared to Europe. So Studer gets a couple of organization hit men to make sure he's in no condition to testify. One of them is Jack Klugman (sans toupee), who was a great friend of Constantine before Constantine raped his sister. The other is Henry Silva. So off they go to Europe, a couple of professionals.

They spend the body of the movie searching for Constantine. And talking. Mostly they talk about the philosophy of being a hit man, and how it's a clean and moral job because reasons. And it's nonsensical, really. Samuel Johnson once noted that only a blockhead writes for anything but money, and in my dealings with real hit men, they have not been inclined to speak about their jobs or philosophy. It's been about the pleasure they get from kiling someone, the money, and the things that money buys.

There are some beautiful compositions and images in this movie, and the soundtrack is great. There are some fine performers, including Micheline Presle, Elsa Martinelli, and Michael Lonsdale. The print I looked at was very poor.

Henry Silva and Jack Klugman are hit men sent to France to kill Eddie Constantine. The two spend time on the road getting to know each other and their very different styles of life. Silva is a meticulous person with very definite ideas about his approach to his profession while Klugman is more easy going and less philosophical. This small movie boasts not only the talents of the principal actors but also high-contrast black and white photography that gives it a very new wave film noir look as the boys in their black suits and skinny ties wander around in the Paris night. The French countryside is captured in washed out tones that emphasize how far out of the water these two fish are at the moment. The jazz score for the film is excellent small combo stuff that perfectly matches the stark images. There's also a couple of nice twists in the plot and a dandy downbeat ending. This is a genuine undiscovered gem and you won't be sorry you took a chance on it.