Day of Violence is a little bit different from the usual Polizi flick; and if it wasn't for the fact that Sidney Lumet's masterpiece Dog Day Afternoon was released two years earlier; I might say that this film was quite original. Still, in spite of being another Italian rip-off - this film is not bad at all. The film takes the basic idea of two men holding a bunch of people hostage and gives it a much more exploitative theme and the film does have a 'Last House on the Left' vibe running throughout which ensures that the atmosphere is always nasty and overbearing. The plot focuses on two men who decide to rape a woman. Not long after the rape, the cops are out looking for them and they decide that the only way they can get out of the mess they are in is to go to a high class restaurant and take the customers hostage. So, they set out and buy a couple of guns and walk into the restaurant before announcing that nobody is to leave! The cops soon turn up on the scene and we watch the action from the inside as the criminals interact with the hostages.
The main point of Dog Day Afternoon was to show how a media circus can be created. This film doesn't follow that point or any other really, although there is some reference to the lack of jobs going in Italy at the time. Day of Violence is an extremely rare film and hasn't got itself the fan base of some of the Italian rip-offs of more popular films, which is a bit of a shame as this film is likely to please many genre fans. Day of Violence was obviously shot on a budget and the production values are not particularly impressive; although the film is actually fairly well directed and while nobody in the cast will win any awards; the ensemble of performances comes off quite well also. The film adheres to the template set out by Dog Day Afternoon fairly closely and the only real difference between the two is that this film is a bit nastier. There's not a great deal of violence in the film, which is a bit disappointing considering the title and the rest of the genre that it comes from and that is a bit of a failing point for the film. Still, if you can find a copy of this one; it's well worth a look!
The main point of Dog Day Afternoon was to show how a media circus can be created. This film doesn't follow that point or any other really, although there is some reference to the lack of jobs going in Italy at the time. Day of Violence is an extremely rare film and hasn't got itself the fan base of some of the Italian rip-offs of more popular films, which is a bit of a shame as this film is likely to please many genre fans. Day of Violence was obviously shot on a budget and the production values are not particularly impressive; although the film is actually fairly well directed and while nobody in the cast will win any awards; the ensemble of performances comes off quite well also. The film adheres to the template set out by Dog Day Afternoon fairly closely and the only real difference between the two is that this film is a bit nastier. There's not a great deal of violence in the film, which is a bit disappointing considering the title and the rest of the genre that it comes from and that is a bit of a failing point for the film. Still, if you can find a copy of this one; it's well worth a look!