Franco Prosperi (2 September 1926 – 17 October 2004) was an Italian film director and screenwriter, active between the mid-1960s and the early 1980s.

Career

Born in Rome, Prosperi began his career as an assistant director with

Mario Bava Mario Bava (; 31 July 1914 – 27 April 1980) was an Italian filmmaker who worked variously as a director, cinematographer, special effects artist and screenwriter. His low-budget genre films, known for their distinctive visual flair and stylish ...

and with whom he also wrote several screenplays. In 1966, he made his directorial debut, credited as Frank Shannon, with the thriller film, ''Tecnica di un omicidio'' and over the years, he built a solid reputation as a director of crime-action films. He also occasionally directed comedies (with

Lando Buzzanca Gerlando "Lando" Buzzanca (24 August 1935 – 18 December 2022) was an Italian stage, film, and television actor whose career spanned 65 years. Life and career Early years Born in Palermo the son of a cinema projectionist, at 16 years old Buzz ...

or Alighiero Noschese) and, in the final stage of his career, at the beginning of the 1980s, several low-budget

sword and sorcery Sword and sorcery (S&S), or heroic fantasy, is a subgenre of fantasy characterized by sword-wielding heroes engaged in exciting and violent adventures. Elements of Romance (love), romance, Magic (fantasy), magic, and the supernatural are also ...

films.

Selected filmography

* ' (1966) * ''Hired Killer'' (1966) * ''Every Man Is My Enemy'' (1967) * ''

Ripped Off ''Ripped Off'' (also known as ''The Boxer'' and ''Un uomo dalla pelle dura'') is a 1972 American/Italian crime film directed by Franco Prosperi and starring Robert Blake and Ernest Borgnine. Plot A young boxer is framed for murdering his croo ...

'' (1971) * '' The Funny Face of the Godfather'' (1973) (parody of ''

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 ...

'') * '' Unbelievable Adventures of Italians in Russia'' (1974) * ''

Meet Him and Die ''Meet Him and Die'' () is a 1976 poliziotteschi film directed by Franco Prosperi and starring Ray Lovelock, Martin Balsam and Elke Sommer. Cast * Ray Lovelock - Massimo Torlani * Martin Balsam - Giulianelli * Elke Sommer - Secretary * Heinz D ...

'' (1976) * ''

The Last House on the Beach ''The Last House on the Beach'' (, also known as ''Terror'' and ''The Seventh Woman'') is a 1978 Italian rape and revenge-thriller film directed by Franco Prosperi. The American title refers to Wes Craven's '' The Last House on the Left'', and Al ...

'' (1978) * '' Deadly Chase'' (1978) * ''

Gunan, King of the Barbarians ''Gunan, King of the Barbarians'' (), aka ''The Invincible Barbarian'' is a 1982 film directed by Franco Prosperi. Production ''Gunan, King of the Barbarians'' uses footage from ''One Million Years B.C.''. Release ''Gunan, King of the Barbarians ...

'' (1982) (parody of ''

Conan the Barbarian Conan the Barbarian (also known as Conan the Cimmerian) is a fictional sword and sorcery hero created by American author Robert E. Howard (1906–1936) and who debuted in 1932 and went on to appear in a series of fantasy stories published in ''We ...

'') * ''

The Throne of Fire ''The Throne of Fire'' is a 2011 fantasy adventure novel written by American author Rick Riordan. It is the second novel in ''The Kane Chronicles'' series, which tells of the adventures of modern-day fourteen-year-old Carter Kane and his twelve ...

'' (1983)

References

External links

* 1926 births 2004 deaths Italian film directors 20th-century Italian screenwriters Italian male screenwriters Giallo film directors Film people from Rome 20th-century Italian male writers Italian parodists Italian comedy film directors Parody film directors {{italy-film-bio-stub