Cosa Nostra is a Blu-Ray and book boxset looking at three films that respected Italian actor Franco Nero, and Italian director Damiano Damian collaborated on. Each of the films has a Mafia theme running through them, and each is a skilfully made and wonderfully acted example of cinema- with a focus on the more thought-provoking and socially conscious side of things.

The set appears on Radiance Films- the relatively new boutique label, which focuses on the more distinctive, lesser seen, and generally intriguing genre films. Each film in the set comes presented in its own Blu-Ray case- with reversible cover art. Also featured in the set is a one hundred and eighteen-page perfect bound book- this is a decidedly glossy affair- taking in both texts & a great selection of stills/ poster art from all three films. The book takes in new articles for each of the three films, full cast & crew credits, an archive interview with the director, and more. The set comes presented in a thick card box slipcase. This is the first boxset from Radiance Films - and I must say it’s a most classy looking & well-presented item.

Before we get into the films themselves- let's talk about the two key focuses with this set- director and writer Damiano Damian. And actor Franco Nero. Damian was born Pasiano di Pordenone, Friuli-Venezia Giulia, Italy in the year 1922. Between the late 1940s and early 2000s, he had thirty feature-length credits to his name. These go from isolated island-based romantic drama Arturo's Island (1962), onto atmospheric horror The Witch (1966). Though to hostage thriller Goodbye & Amen, to US horror sequel Amityville II: The Possession (1982). So, he had a genre-varied career.  

Franco Nero, I would hope needs little or no introduction to readers of M[m] as he is one of the most known/ respected Italian actors. He’s been active since the early 1960s and is still acting today. He’s amassed an impressive two hundred thirty roles to his name- with twelve films presently in production. He first became known due to playing the role of coffin-dragging Gunslinger Django in the mid 60’s, and has gone on to take a host of different roles in different genres- with his most recent film being horror thriller The Pope's Exorcist (2023).

Each of the films in the set receives a classy, crisp, and clean 2k scan. With each has been presented in either English or Italian language versions- with well-defined English subtitles on the Italian versions. Each film gets a good selection of extras too- but more on those as I review each film.

The first film of the set is The Day Of The Owl( aka Il Giorno Della Civetta, Mafia). This is from the year 1968- it was filmed on location in & the countryside around Partinico, Palermo, Sicily. With interiors captured in Studio Incir - De Paolis, Rome, Lazio.

The film opens in a hot summers day field with a back shot of a man getting a rifle ready to shoot- and as a truck comes rumbling down a country road- the shooter fires…the driver stagers out of his cab- to be gunned down by the side of the road….we find out later the man killed was the owner of a local construction firm, as a new road/ development is taking place in the area. In time a bus with a Carabinieri officer pulls in- he tells the driver to inform his boss in the nearby town of the killing.
Fairly soon a jeep arrives at the scene, on board our three Carabinieri officers, and their recently started-in post boss the rather stern & smart Capt. Bellodi( Franco). And the murder investigation starts. At first, the offices go & see if they can interview the only witness to the shooting- who lives in a house just above the road. He disappears leaving his rather fiery, but clearly concerned wife Rosa Nicolosi (Claudia Cardinale), and their small young daughter.

As the film and the investigation unfolds the Capt starts focusing on cool-as-cucumber Don Mariano Arena(Lee J. Cobb), and his men. The Carabinieri offices are just across the street from Don’s house- so the two camps often watch each other, and this very much plays into the film's plot.

The whole thing very much plays like a cat & mouse game between the capt & the Don. As the capt pulls in first one of his henchmen after another and plays mind games with the Don. Mixed into this we have Rosa- because as the days tick by there is no sign of her husband- and she starts getting used as a pawn in the pair's mind games.

Initially both Franco & Cobb are very much calm & controlled. But as things move on both start to show the cracks in their cool veneer. There are a few moments of general tension/ edge present in the film- for example, we get a wonderful tense scene where Franco gets into a car that might be wired for explosion, as Cobb watches on. But mainly it’s a slow-burn drama/ mystery- with the whole thing played out in the high & sweaty rural Italian summer. We get a few soundtrack cues in the film- but more often than not the scenes play out with either just street sounds or the background hassle ‘n’ bustle of the Carabinieri offices. We get a well-placed & often very good support cast- though the most memorable roles are from members of the Don’s gang- like Tano Cimarosa as Zecchinetta a greased back-haired, moustached, and constantly denying gambler. Or Serge Reggiani as twitchy trying to play both sides Parrinieddu

The film runs at one hour and forty-three minutes- and to be honest I think there could have been a few scenes trimmed here & three to make the whole flow a little evenly. But on the whole, as a slow-burn mystery drama, with a great game of mental chess played out through its length- The Day Of The Owl is well made & engaging film.

On this disc, we have the following extras. Franco Nero on The Day Of The Owl (17.21) this is an on-film interview with the actor in Italian with English subs. He begins by talking about how Damian was a very American influence director- with a very American air & rhythm to his films. He talks about the director's use of framing and abstraction in his work, and how this came from his passion for painting. We find out the director was a large man/ former boxer. He talks about the first film he worked on with the director An Empty Canvas (1963) where he had a small cameo role. He talks about how he initially turned down the role in The Day Of The Owl, but of course, later reconsidered. He talks about how his father worked in the Carabinieri, and when the film first came out, he went to watch his sons five times in one day. He talks about his character, his fellow cast members as well as riding bumper cars with a few of them. Next, we have Identity Crime-Sis(20.04) here filmmaker and Italian crime cinema expert Mike Malloy discusses the Italian crime film genre, its sub-genres, and how/ where The Day of the Owl fits within the genre. Next is Casting Cobb (32.26) which is a visual essay from Filmmaker Howard Berger- he looks at the career of American actor Lee J. Cobb, and how he came to work in Italian film in general, as well as the film to hand. We get an archive interview with Franco Nero, writer Ugo Pirro and production manager Lucio Trentini(26.34). And a trailer.

Next up we have The Case Is Closed, Forget It ( aka L'istruttoria è Chiusa: Dimentichi) from the year 1971. This is a prison-set drama thriller- which features a nice twist plot, some great acting, and a few moments of brutal/ unsettling violence.

In the film Franco Nero plays Vanzi- a mild manner architect who is wrong excused of running down a man in a traffic accident. He's sent to prison for a while awaiting his trial. When we first see him in the prisoner governor's office- he’s clean-shaven, very pale, and looking rather shocked- this is made worse when he’s mistaken for a man who has got a thirty-year term.

Vanzi is first given a cell on his own, and here he meets Armando (Simone Santia) an ageing/greying stabled/ slight man who cleans the cells toilets out- and is very much aware of what’s going on in the prison. In time he’s moved into a cell with four or five other men- with one of them being Biro a killer, who seems to be looking for trouble/upset where ever he can- he’s played by notable Italian genre actor John Steiner (Tenebrae, Caligula, Shock).

Vanzi mangers to get moved into the hospital wing- but after raging at one of the guards due to them cutting short a meeting between a wife & her dying husband he’s back in the cell with Biro- someone urinated on his bed and pulled out photos of his wife & kid.

One day out in the excise yard with Armando he sees Salvatore Rosa (Claudio Nicastro) who is nicely suited & prim in his appearance. He’s somewhat of a kingping prison-treated very different from the other inmates. He asks for his help to move cell- and he gets shifted to a cell with an ageing & camp man who makes doilies, and the very twitchy Pesenti (Riccardo Cucciolla). At first Vanzi & Pesenti get off on the wrong foot- as Pesenti thinks he’s a spy. As things unfold- Vanzi's prison life gets worse, and we find out Pesenti is a very important man- who holds evidence against organized crime.

Acting wise Nero is excellent really selling his shift from a pale man out of his depth, to someone who thinks he’s on top of everything, to a broken man. Steiner really seems unhinged & dangerous. And Nicastro is great as the smug & devious Rosa. We get two moments of very shocking/ upsetting gore- a face/ head bashing, and a gruelling razor slash scene.

The film runs at one hour and forty-six minutes- and really you are held/ engaged throughout. With a rewarding blend of gritty drama, in-prison tension, and some quite thrilling/ tense moments along the way. All in all, The Case Is Closed, Forget It is a great prison-based film- with some worthy points made about corruption, breaking down spirit, and loyalty.

On this disc, we have once again Franco Nero talking about the film to hand(14.26). He discusses the character he played, the supporting cast, and how Damian often cast non-actors in smaller roles. He talks about acting in one of the film's more harrowing scenes, and how Damian turns up in a small role as his character's lawyer. Next, there’s Italy’s Cinematic Conscience(35.29) which is a video essay from critic Rachael Nisbet discussing the career of director Damian- often within the context of social issues in Italy. There is an archival documentary on the making of the film featuring actor Corrado Solari, assistant director Enrique Bergier and editor Antonio Siciliano(28.09), and a trailer.

Finally, we have 1975’s How to Kill a Judge ( aka Perché Si Uccide Un Magistrato). It’s best described as a political corruption drama with strands of murder mystery, and Mafia undercurrents. In the film, Franco plays Giacomo Solaris- a moustached, initially confidant- if slightly-arrogant filmmaker. Who has just made a lightly fictionalized picture regarding smug, greying and corrupt State Prosecutor Alberto Traini-Luiz (Marco Guglielmi).

As the film opens the state prosecutor asks to see Solari's picture- with suggestions he may have it seized. As things unfold- and the picture is now playing in cinemas- there seems to be a fair bit of anger from the public, and resentment towards Solaris from the prosecutor’s glamorous brunette wife Antonia(Françoise Fabian). Solaris tries to convince her of her husband’s corruption- by introducing her to a series of people burnt by her husband, or connected with those that were. We get a sudden plot twists a way into the film- when the Prosecutor is killed in a  similar to in Solari's picture.

The hour and fifty-minute film is a rather drawn out and very talky affair- yes we do have fleeting moments of picking up of pace, slight intrigue, and one fleeting moment of nasty violence. The murder mystery elements are very slight- we get a quite effective flashbacks relating to this side of things. But largely this is political drama very much focusing on the Italian system- which is run through with Mafia roots, though again this is relatively played down.

I’ll have to say of the three films here I found this the least engaging- I can certainly see the points that are trying to be made, and bringing in the postmodern elements is clever/ well realized. It’s just too weighty in the dialogue scenes. And really Franco’s excellent performance here is one of the main things that kept me held/ interested as the film went on. He moves from being passionate-if-slightly cocky, to more troubled/haunted, then even more disillusioned. Fabian works well as the Prosecutor's wife- who again has a good character arc. With the rest of the film, cast is all well-selected & placed. And ultimately How to Kill a Judge is certainly a well-made film- with Damiano Damian certainly having things to say, the problem is the film itself is just a bit too lulling paced- with too many dialogue-based scenes, and not enough tense, edge, or genre elements. 

On this final disc, Mr Nero talks about the film to hand(12.33). He moves from talking about how passionate the director was about this film- and how he adjusted the script as they worked through its filming. Working with the other actors on film, and how his role was playing a version of the director.  Next, there's Lessons In Violence (21.38) a video essay on the film by filmmaker David Cairns- he discusses the true story that influenced the film, and much more. There's an interview with Alberto Pezzotta, author of Regia Damiano Damiani- regarding the director's career (34.23).and a trailer.

All in all, Cosa Nostra is a wonderfully curated and presented boxset- looking at these three fascinating collaborations between actor and director. With excellent 2k scans and a selection of extras for each film, and of course the bulky perfectly bound book. I'm very much looking forward to the next boxset from Radiance!.