I'm so glad that I actually enjoyed this one, because it has TEN sequels, and I would have watched them regardless. This is Tomas Milian as quirky cop Inspector Giraldi, a strangely-dressed, dirty-looking freak who keeps a mouse called Serpico and likes to get the bad guys in less violent fashion than his contempories (even those played by Milian himself).
The film was a huge success in Italy, mainly due I guess to Milian's off the wall performance as Giraldi, a crook turned cop who is always trying to track down a bad guy called the Baron, plus some other guy who keeps leaving message consisting of nothing but 'Up Yours!' on Giraldi's answer machine. Things are played out lightly enough until the Baron accidentally steals five million dollars from a hard case gangster (Palance) and starts getting his mates killed while the Mafia try and get their money back.
This doesn't stop Milian getting it on with the strangely patient Maria Rosaria Ommagio (who looks like Kate Bush), a robbery victim who doesn't seem to mind going to bed with Milian even though he wears two pairs of socks, three jumpers and some nifty red budgie smugglers, because of course no Milian film is complete without him at least appearing once in his pants. He also takes her disco dancing which made me burst out laughing at Milian's moves, as well as his get-up and the hat he wears that has "Tomas Milian" written on it in red pen.
It has a mainly light tone this film, but don't think of it as some sort of Eurocrime 'Trinity' film. The film does mainly stick to the grim plots of before, just with a much better character up front than the usual stone-faced killing machines. And his mouse wears a little hat at the end!
Oh, and all Jack Palance did was chew cigarettes and scowl, as usual.
