''Gang War in Naples'' () is a 1972 crime film written and directed by

Pasquale Squitieri Pasquale Squitieri (27 November 1938 – 18 February 2017) was an Italian film director and screenwriter. Life and career Born in Naples, Squitieri graduated in law, then was briefly involved in stage, as author ("''La battaglia''") and even a ...

Cast

Fabio Testi Fabio Testi (born 2 August 1941) is an Italian actor. After growing up witnessing film work done around Lake Garda, Testi entered the sets of the film and began work as a stuntman and a double on set, where he worked as a stuntman on ''The Good, ...

: Tonino Russo *

Raymond Pellegrin Raymond Pellegrin (1 January 1925 – 14 October 2007) was a French actor. Born in Nice, Pellegrin made his screen debut in the 1945 French feature ''Naïs (film), Naïs''. He was also famous in France for dubbing Jean Marais for the voice ...

: Don Mario Capece *

Jean Seberg Jean Dorothy Seberg (; ; November 13, 1938August 30, 1979) was an American actress. She is considered an icon of the French New Wave as a result of her performance in Jean-Luc Godard's 1960 film ''Breathless''. Seberg appeared in 34 films in ...

: Luisa *

Enzo Cannavale Vincenzo "Enzo" Cannavale (5 April 1928 – 18 March 2011) was an Italian film actor. He appeared in more than 100 films since 1949, including ''Cinema Paradiso'', which won the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film at the 62nd Academ ...

: Nicola Cafiero "Sciancato" *

Ugo D'Alessio Ugo D'Alessio (26 August 1909 – 16 February 1979) was an Italian film actor.Goble p.113 Selected filmography * '' Malaspina'' (1947) - Nicola * '' Madunnella'' (1948) - Il ragionere, padre di Maria * '' Assunta Spina'' (1948) - Epanimonda Pe ...

: Pietro Russo, padre di Tonino *

Lilla Brignone Lilla Brignone (23 August 1913 – 24 March 1984) was an Italian film and theater actress. She appeared in 40 films between 1930 and 1982. Her father was film director and actor Guido Brignone and her aunt was actress Mercedes Brignone. He ...

: madre di Tonino *

Germana Carnacina Germana is an Italian female name. Notable people with the name include: * Germana Caroli (1931–2024), Italian singer * Germana Di Natale (born 1974), Italian tennis player * Germana Dominici (1946–2024), Italian actress and film director * Ge ...

: Anna *

Charles Vanel Charles-Marie Vanel (21 August 1892 – 15 April 1989) was a French actor and director. During his 65-year film career, which began in 1923, he appeared in more than 200 films and worked with many prominent directors, including Alfred Hitchcock, ...

: Don Domenico De Ritis *

Enzo Turco Enzo Turco (1902 – 7 July 1983) was an Italian film actor. He appeared in 39 films between 1939 and 1972. He was born in Naples, Italy and died in Rome, Italy. Selected filmography * '' Departure at Seven'' (1946) * ''Fear and Sand'' (19 ...

: Don Silverio *

Salvatore Puntillo Salvatore Puntillo (27 July 1935 – 14 July 2024) was an Italian film, stage and television actor. Life and career Born in Rende, in the province of Cosenza, Puntillo left his law studies to enroll at the Accademia Nazionale di Arte Drammati ...

: il commissario Capezzuto *

Renato Chiantoni Renato Chiantoni (19 April 1906 – 24 December 1979) was an Italian actor. He appeared in 100 films between 1937 and 1978. Born in Brescia, the son of the stage actor Amedeo, Chiantoni debuted on stage entering several drama and revue comp ...

: Agostino * Paul Muller: l'onorevole

Production

''Gang War in Naples'' was director

's fourth film after directing three spaghetti Westerns. Fabio Testi was cast in the film as Tonino Russo after Squitieri saw him in ''Le Tueur'' with

Jean Gabin Jean Gabin Alexis Moncorgé (born Jean-Alexis Moncorgé), known as Jean Gabin (; 17 May 190415 November 1976), was a French actor and singer. Considered a key figure in French cinema, he starred in several classic films, including '' Pépé le ...

. Squitieri went to Paris to meet him despite his producers wanting to cast

Massimo Ranieri Giovanni Calone (born 3 May 1951), known professionally as Massimo Ranieri, is an Italian singer, actor, television presenter and theatre director. Biography Early life Ranieri was born in Borgo Santa Lucia, Naples, the fifth of eight children ...

and

Martin Balsam Martin Henry Balsam (November 4, 1919 – February 13, 1996) was an American actor. He had a prolific career in character roles in film, in theatre, and on television. An early member of the Actors Studio, he began his career on the New ...

for the roles. Squitieri explained that he "didn't have anything against those actors, but I needed someone who would scare the audience when he came on the screen, and Fabio Testi, with his imposing physique, was just perfect." Squitieri also cast

, noting that Pellegrin "was my idol, he starred in a movie I adore,

André Cayatte André Cayatte (; 3 February 1909 – 6 February 1989) was a French filmmaker, writer and lawyer, who became known for his films centering on themes of crime, justice, and moral responsibility. Biography Cayatte began his directoral career at ...

's '' Are We All Murderers?''." Squiteri also declared casting

was easy as she was Testi's girlfriend at the time. The film was shot at Incir-De Paolis in Rome and on location in Naples.

Release

''Gang War in Naples'' was distributed theatrically in Italy by

Titanus Titanus (also called Titanus Distribuzione) is an Italian film production and distribution company, founded in 1904 by Gustavo Lombardo (1885–1951). The company's headquarters are located at 28 Via Sommacampagna, Rome and its studios on the Vi ...

on 24 August 1972. The film grossed a total of 1,345,608,000

Italian lire The lira ( , ; : lire, , ) was the currency of Italy between 1861 and 2002. It was introduced by the Napoleonic Kingdom of Italy in 1807 at par with the French franc, and was subsequently adopted by the different states that would eventually fo ...

domestically. Film historian and critic Roberto Curti described the box office success of the film in Italy was to the

Camorra The Camorra (; ) is an Italian Mafia-typeMafia and Mafia-type orga ...

what ''

The Godfather ''The Godfather'' is a 1972 American Epic film, epic crime film directed by Francis Ford Coppola, who co-wrote the screenplay with Mario Puzo, based on Puzo's best-selling The Godfather (novel), 1969 novel. The film stars an ensemble cast inc ...

'' was to film on the

Sicilian mafia The Sicilian Mafia or Cosa Nostra (, ; "our thing"), also referred to as simply Mafia, is a secret society, criminal society and criminal organization originating on the island of Sicily and dates back to the mid-19th century. Emerging as a form of ...

". It was distributed in France on 30 August 1972 with a 100-minute running time as ''Les tueurs a gages''.

References

Sources

External links

* 1972 films Films about the Camorra Films directed by Pasquale Squitieri Films scored by Manuel De Sica 1972 crime drama films Italian crime drama films French crime drama films Films set in Naples Films shot in Naples 1970s Italian films 1970s French films {{1970s-crime-drama-film-stub