Why so much hype?

Overrated

Excellent and certainly provocative... If nothing else, the film is a real conversation starter.

Actress is magnificent and exudes a hypnotic screen presence in this affecting drama.

A heroin shipment between Italy and New York goes missing and a small time pimp, Luca Canali (Mario Ardof), is wrongly blamed (actually, framed is probably more accurate). The New York boss sends two hit men to Milan take out Luca. Luca's also got the Milan boss and his goons breathing down his neck. But Luca's not going to go down without fight.What a fantastic movie! The Italian Connection (or Manhunt or any of the other names this movie has been released under) is the second film in director Fernando Di Leo's "milieu trilogy". While I'm not sure I enjoyed The Italian Connection quite as much as Caliber 9 (I still haven't seen The Boss), they're both excellent, exciting, gritty movies. I think my preference for Caliber 9 is related to the plot twists near the end. Otherwise, it's hard to choose. I'm a relative newbie as far as Di Leo goes, but he's quickly becoming one of my favorites. Di Leo had the ability to film action as well as any director I've run across. Luca's chase scene across Milan is just brilliant. De Leo's film is often bloody and brutal, but always entertaining. I hate to spoil anything, so I'll just say that there is one death scene (and you'll know it when you see it) that Di Leo filmed and set-up in such a way that it's heartbreaking. The cinematography is stunning. The gritty streets and alleyways of Milan are photographed like works of art. And the film's pacing is excellent. There's not a dull moment in the entire runtime. In fact, I would use the word "frantic" to describe much of the movie – particularly the chase. The acting in The Italian Connection is spectacular. First, Mario Ardof is wonderful as Luca. I really can't say enough positives about him. The fact that he (and Di Leo) was able to take a low- life, scummy, greasy pimp like Luca and turn him into a sympathetic hero is nothing short of remarkable. It's a truly brilliant piece of acting. In addition to Ardof, the cast includes Henry Silva and Woody Storde as the ruthless New York hit men, Adolfo Celi as the Milan boss, Luciana Paluzzi of Thunderball fame, and Sylva Koscina as Luca's estranged wife. It's quite a strong, talented cast for a movie of this type. I could go on and on praising The Italian Connection, but I'll end it here. Even though I said I preferred Caliber 9, I'm rating The Italian Connection the same 9/10. It's that good.

Two professional hit men from the States are hired to track down a small-time pimp Luca Canali in Milan, as this man was accused of the disappearance of a shipment of heroin between Milan and New York. Well that's what they are to believe by local crime boss Don Tressoldi. Their job is to brutally kill Luca and make a message of it. However Luca doesn't know why they want him and he won't go down too easy, as he tries to get to the bottom of it.This confidently gritty 70s Italian crime thriller might start off slowly, but when it hits its strides. Boy it doesn't let up. What starts off talky where you are waiting for things to happen gets better as it moves along, where plot threads unfold and it suddenly becomes impulsively hazardous. There's one sensational car / foot chase sequence that packs brute force and never gives you a chance to catch a breath. It's very well done. Most of the action follows the same dynamic pattern. Thrilling, tough and intense with constant roughness. Fist fighting, scuffles and shootouts… as the sweat pours and the bruises are inflicted. Hear and see it! Not escaping is the seedy hook, brassily loud instrumental score, compact camera-work and authentic European locations.Some well known players feature in the cast. Woody Strode and Henry Silva are the American assassins. Strode plays the quiet, steady head and Silva's a live-wire, womanizer. Complete opposites, but the same rather deadly and downright bad-asses. This shows in the lethal cat and mouse climax in a car scrap-yard with Mario Adorf's character. Adorf holds his own with a respectable turn, constantly making a slip when the manhunt begins, but after a tragedy hits. Now he's fuelled by revenge… going in head first. The script is just as jagged, as like the editing but there's a sardonic edge to it and the excessive melodramatics ups the emotions and motivations.Hard-boiled, if bittersweet Italian crime entertainment.

Stars Henry Silva and Woody Strode as two hit men who are dispatched to Italy to find a low level mobster who had "lost", really stolen, 6 million in heroine and who resold it. They are told to make his death as painful and public as possible. The trouble is that target has a knack for getting loose and despite the best efforts of all involved things go far from smoothly.Good but not great mob story has the advantage in that in keeps moving. Once things are set in motion the film just goes. You want to see how this is going to come out and to me makes it worth a bowl of popcorn and a soda, even if you won't need to see it again.

The other two comments I've seen here are completely accurate. I only want to implore you to see this some more. So far, I've yet to see Henry Silva in a better role. His role in the more recent Ghost Dog was super, but here he is even better. He's great in this as a wild, tough, and sleazy hit-man. The way he skulks around like a bad asp is totally cool. This movie also boasts some righteous potty mouth dialog, worthy of a Sopranos episode. The only possible drawback to this movie is the dated special effects (of people punching each other or getting shot) that come off as being pretty silly at times- but honestly, the pluses far outweigh the minuses. This is right up there with Street Law as a classic of 70's Italian-made violence. See it!