I love this movie so much

The greatest movie ever made..!

Thanks for the memories!

Although it has its amusing moments, in eneral the plot does not convince.

Among fans of Italian genre cinema, director Umberto Lenzi is known as a master of many genres, be it gruesome Cannibal films or tantalizing crime cinema, and furthermore has earned himself the well-deserved reputation of one of the most uncompromising directors of gruesome films. It is therefore no surprise, that one of the most ultra-violent and tough-minded highlights of Italian Crime cinema, namely "Almost Human" comes from Lenzi. "Milano odia: la polizia non può sparare" aka. "Almost Human" of 1973 is a brutal and brilliant Poliziottesco, one of the most uncompromising films of its genre, coming along with an ingenious score by none other than Ennio Morricone. Apart from the brilliant score, the brutal, uncompromising violence, the raw atmosphere and gripping story it is furthermore two of the greatest stars in Italian 70s cinema that make "Milano Odia" an absolute must-see for lovers of cult cinema.One of my personal all-time favorite actors, Tomas Milian, stars in his most sadistic and despicable role of Giulio Sacchi, a ruthless small-time crook who has no scruples to rape, torture and brutally murder Innocent victims for his own benefit. Milian is truly brilliant in his role, and excellently personifies perverted sadism and greed. His opponent is played by another true great of Italian crime cinema: Henry Silva plays super-tough Inspector Grandi, a man who hates criminals as he hates crime, and who is not afraid to take the law into his own hands once the legal ways have failed to bring a delinquent to justice... These two brilliant actors are the perfect cast for the film. Milian and Silva alone are capable of making a film great, and "Milano Odia" has so much more to offer. The supporting performances are also great, Laura Belli, Guido Alberti, Luciano Catenacci, who plays a crime boss, and the wonderful Anita Strindberg are especially worth mentioning.Brutal, tough-minded and tantalizing from the beginning, "Almost Human" is definitely not for the sensitive when it comes to violence, but an absolute must-see for every fan of Italian Crime cinema. This is Eurocrime at its grittiest and most uncompromising. It simply doesn't get more intense than "Milano Odia". Lovers of 70s genre-cinema can not afford to miss this gripping and ultra-violent masterpiece! 10/10

There was actually a period of time, believe it or not, when Umberto Lenzi showed talent as a director. After reliably cranking out Westerns, adventures, and Second World War flicks during the Sixties, Lenzi coasted into the two most popular film genres of 1970s Italy: the giallo, a crime story that forces audiences to watch unseemly behavior from the felon's point of view, and the poliziottescho, Italy's reaction to a justice system that limited police officers while criminals happily roamed free.In competition with directors like Enzo G. Castellari and Sergio Sollima, Lenzi has been widely considered as the best maker of Italian police films. 'Almost Human' may certainly rank as Exhibit A in his poliziotteschi output of at least six titles from 1973 to 1979, including 'Rome: armed to the teeth' and 'Violent Naples.' Originally released as 'Milano odia: la polizia non può sparare' (roughly, Odious Milan: the police can't shoot), 'Almost Human' is a true standard of Italian crime, mixing defined characters with a riveting plot and well-crafted action. The 1974 shocker was also a landmark 'B' performance for actor Tomas Milian, who still regards Giulio Sacchi as one of the best efforts in his lengthy career.Modeled after box office hits like 'Dirty Harry,' 'The French Connection,' and 'Death Wish,' 'Milano odia' is a crime film injected with 1970s Italian truculence. The film opens en route to a bank robbery with Sacchi, a drunk, pill-popping felon, driving the getaway car for a local crime syndicate. Approached by a traffic cop while the robbery is in progress, Sacchi panics and shoots the officer dead, forcing his gang to drive off empty-handed. Giulio is roughed up and fired by the syndicate boss, leaving him without a meal ticket.Cash-desperate Sacchi arranges to kidnap Mary Lou Perrino (Laura Belli), the 20-year-old daughter of a local businessman, and hold her for ransom at 500 million lira with the help of his friends Vittorio (Gino Santercole) and Carmine (Ray Lovelock). This, of course, means that Sacchi has to wipe out every trace of evidence - living and nonliving - to avoid prison time. In Sacchi's rather limited world, no one is safe, including his two helpers and girlfriend Iona (Anita Strindberg). The dead bodies start piling up and police inspector Walter Grandi (Henry Silva) begins to work against the clock, assured that Mary Lou will die next unless law enforcement goes to extremes.Umberto Lenzi is known for his gialli, including 'Orgasmo,' 'A Quiet Place to Kill,' 'Oasis of Fear,' and 'Seven Blood-Stained Orchids,' probably his best effort in the genre. But it was Eurocrime that seemed to ideally fit Lenzi's technique and obsessions; he is still well-remembered for titles like 'Milano odia,' filmed before his entire career went to pieces by 1980. 'Milano odia' is a perfect vehicle for his heavy-handed style of direction, moving frantically and never afraid to shock its audiences. It advances in characteristic Italian 'B' fashion with not a page of Ernesto Gastaldi's script lacking malice. Don't expect a happy ending or the slightest civility from this picture; few characters get out of 'Milano odia' unscathed, as people are terrorized, beaten, stabbed, machine-gunned, and forced into sexual transgression. To make matters worse, the nasty behavior unwinds at a constant rate, with law enforcement not having the slightest ability to restore order.Tomas Milian pulls off a major feat by acting completely over-the-top but never looking comical at the wrong times. Unkempt, unfeeling, rather dumb, and always on edge, Milian renders Giulio Sacchi a sardonic, often funny lowlife who tries to look in control but keeps on betraying his awareness that the roof will come down at any moment. The only 'quality' Sacchi can rely upon is his outrageous behavior, which instills just enough fear in his two partners to stay on top. Gino Santercole and Ray Lovelock are excellent in their supporting roles, providing contrasts to Sacchi's total insanity. As Vittorio, Santercole holds some value in friendship but is no kinder to their hostage then Giulio. Lovelock is the most humanitarian, wanting to grab their ransom while inflicting as few bruises as possible.Henry Silva gives a solid performance as Inspector Grandi, an intentionally less dynamic form of Harry Callahan. Silva is about the only character we can relate to, because he acts on popular sentiment and takes the law into his own hands. Anita Strindberg and Laura Belli give life to their characters, although Iona's love for Giulio because of his 'size' makes womanhood look rather shallow. Technically speaking, editor Eugenio Alabiso keeps things moving at a nice clip, especially in the opening chase scene, and Ennio Morricone's pounding score is very hard to forget.'Milano odia' has been released on DVD by NoShame Films and will satisfy fans of Eurocrime. The film boasts widescreen presentation with Dolby enhancement of the original mono audio; the Italian track and English 'dubbing' are supplied with optional English subtitles. Included are the Italian and international trailers, a gallery of posters and production stills, and interviews with Lenzi, Lovelock, Santercole, Gastaldi, and Milian. Also gracing the DVD package is a six-page booklet with historical and biographical information.The film's print is in excellent condition with little grain; sound is well-coordinated between dialogue, background noise, and music. The interviews explain how the lead cast of 'Milano odia' came together, including Henry Silva's employment after the death of actor Richard Conte (much to Lenzi's annoyance). A bit too much emphasis is placed on the lasting friendship between Milian and Lovelock, when time could have been spent with the two lead actresses. Annoyingly, the case, disc, and booklet contain misspellings which look unprofessional, but NoShame's heart was certainly in the right place. The package is a decent tribute to this wacky film and highly recommended for Eurocrime junkies.*** out of 4Roving Reviewer - www.geocities.com/paul_johnr

ALMOST HUMAN (Umberto Lenzi - Italy 1974.I had missed out far too long on Umberto Lenzi's best known crime flick, which is hands down one of the best poliziotesschi I've seen so far, almost on par with the best of Fernando Di Leo's work, together with Lenzi one of the more prolific directors within the genre. Whilst generally acknowledged to be one of the better Italian crime flicks, Lenzi's somewhat ham-fisted approach to his gialli, had made me a little reluctant to catch up with any of his other work. Although Lenzi's own VIOLENT NAPLES is also a well-made, highly effective genre entry, this one comes close to beating out that one when it comes to sheer brutality and an almost unbelievable barrage of nasty violence.A rarity in most Italian crime thrillers, this film benefits enormously from an intriguing and woefully ambivalent central character, played with tremendous vigour by Tomas Milian, who plays Guillio Sacchi, a violent low life scumbag with no regard for human life at all and with a real penchant for torture and rape. The other side of the law is represented by stone-faced Henry Silva, who switches to playing a cop this time, instead of his usual turn as the calculating crime kingpin. The story by Ernesto Gastaldi is simplicity itself and doesn't take all kinds of distracting side-roads that make many other genre efforts so forgettable in that department. Anyway, if you're still in doubt about the merits of Italo-crime flicks, watch this one. An intriguing story, Tomas Milian in a great role and Ennio Morricone contributes another impressive soundtrack what must be one of his most recognizable scores this side from Sergio Leone. I keep wondering if the members of the Academy, who recently honoured Morricone with the honorary Oscar, had any idea what kind of films the maestro generally got involved in.Camera Obscura --- 9/10

Once again Umberto Lenzi and Tomas Milian deliver the goods. I was recently lucky enough to finally get ahold of an uncut Italian DVD of this (though the English version on it is dubbed not subtitled). It was my first time seeing it, and I was continually (and pleasantly) surprised at how the unfolding narrative, charging ahead like a runaway locomotive, confounded my expectations. This ultra-violent film has some of the most shocking moments from any film from the seventies and constantly grinds up cliches and spits them out like so much shredded celluloid. Utterly mesmerizing, in part due to the jawdropping performance of Milian as the psychotically sociopathic, wisecracking kidnapper. But Lenzi's direction and the script by Ernesto Gastaldi (veteran of some of the finest giallos)deserve credit, too. Although it's great to see Henry Silva in a substantial role as the doggedly pursuing detective, his performance is a bit uneven, unbelievably wooden in some scenes, over-the-top in others. Supporting cast Ray Lovelock, Anita Strindberg and Laura Belli are all great.It's hard to believe that some of the folks supplying comments here found this boring! Thoroughly downbeat and uncompromising, refusing to deliver a happy ending for any of the characters, it's one of the great, gritty, up-from-the-gutter trash classics from seventies Italian cinema. Highly recommended. If you love this kind of movie and have still not seen it, search it out!