is a 1987 film directed by

Tonino Valerii Tonino Valerii (20 May 1934 – 13 October 2016) was an Italian film director, most known for his Spaghetti Westerns. Tonino (Antonio) Valerii started his film career as an assistant director on Sergio Leone's ''A Fistful of Dollars'', before mo ...

Production

''Shatterer'' was produced with Japanese funding. Producer Asao Kumada got in contact with director

after being suggested to him by Peter Shepherd. Shepherd had previously met with Valerii on the set of '' The Best of Enemies'' and again on ''

Day of Anger ''Day of Anger'' ( , lit. "The Days of Wrath") is a 1967 Spaghetti Western film directed and co-written by Tonino Valerii and starring Lee Van Cleef and Giuliano Gemma, and features a musical score by Riz Ortolani. The film credits the novel ' ...

'' where he was

Giuliano Gemma Giuliano Gemma (; 2 September 1938 – 1 October 2013) was an Italian actor. He is best known internationally for his work in Spaghetti Westerns, particularly for his performances as the title character in Duccio Tessari's '' A Pistol for Ringo'' ...

's dialogue coach. Valerii did not like Kumada's story for the film involving the mafia taking over a nearly bankrupt steel mill that is saved by a Japanese team. Valerii stated that it was absurd for the mafia to attempt to take over a company that was at a loss and read about a car engine that would work for less fuel was being tested on and suggested Kumada to make a story about that. Valerii stated that "it was an unlikely story, but it worked well in Japan." Beatrice Ring was cast in the film, but was not the first choice for the role. She had the interview with Tonino Valerii right after finishing work on

Lamberto Bava Lamberto Bava (born 3 April 1944) is an Italian film director. Born in Rome, Italy, Rome, Bava began working as an assistant director for his director father Mario Bava. Lamberto co-directed the 1979 television film ''La Venere d'Ille'' with his f ...

's film '' Graveyard Disturbance''. On working with Kikkawa, who was a popular star in Japan at the time, Ring stated that he had limited English and felt bad for him on set. Shooting for the film took place in early 1987 at Empire Studios in Rome and later in Sicily. Co-production requirements demanded a Japanese lead, which was played by singer

Koji Kikkawa Koji, Kōji, Kohji or Kouji may refer to: *Kōji (given name), a masculine Japanese given name *Kōji (Heian period) (康治), Japanese era, 1142–1144 *Kōji (Muromachi period) (弘治), Japanese era, 1555–1558 *Koji orange, a Japanese citrus ...

which was meant to be a stepping stone into the Western market. Japanese sources state that Kikkawa was originally cast as the films hero, but his role was changed during film and after the death of executive producer Shin Watanabe, Valerii changed the story and gave more screen time to Forest. Forest denied this.

Release

''Shatterer'' was released in Japan on 13 June 1987 where it was distributed by

Toho is a Japanese entertainment company that primarily engages in producing and distributing films and exhibiting stage plays. It is headquartered in Chiyoda, Tokyo, and is one of the core companies of the Osaka-based Hankyu Hanshin Toho Group. ...

. The film was apparently dubbed into English and presented with Japanese subtitles for this release. According to Ring, the response in Japan was of disappointment because of prominent amount of screen time for Forest and lack of screen time for Kikkawa. The film was not submitted to the Italian board of censors, but was broadcast on Italian television in 1992 as the ''Sicilian Connection''. The soundtrack was released by Sounds Marketing System.

References

Footnotes

Sources

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External links

* {{Tonino Valerii 1987 crime drama films Italian crime drama films Swiss crime drama films Japanese crime drama films Toho films Films directed by Tonino Valerii Films with screenplays by Ernesto Gastaldi