Vittorio Gassman in THE VIOLENT PATRIOT (1956)
Good production even though it's quite obvious the film had a limited budget. It's mainly known under this title but my copy, in widescreen and English, the title is JOHN OF THE BLACK GANGS. The Italian title is GIOVANNI DALLE BANDE NERE. Directed by Sergio Grieco, which we all know what that means : uneven, with moments of greatest amidst some moments of mediocrity. Vittorio Gassman's reputation as an actor extended all the way to Hollywood. He even married Shelley Winters at one point. Their marriage lasted two years.
Unfortunately, the word 'gangs' is misconceived. He fought for the Pope against the King of France and added black bands to his insignia when the Pope died. Also, his real name was Lorenzo di Giovanni de' Medici. There is an excellent 2001 film directed by Ermanno Olmi, dealing with his death while fighting the Emperor, called 'The Profession of Arms'.
ReplyDelete