The Day of the Cobra

Director: Enzo G. Castellari Enzo G. Castellari

Overview

In this well-paced crime thriller, Larry Stanciani (Franco Nero) is a hard-boiled private investigator in San Francisco, an ex-cop kicked off the police force and thrown in prison for a time because of a frame-up by a Mafioso named Kandinsky. One day, he is called to the office of Goldsmith (William Berger), a narcotics agent out to nail Kandinsky on drug charges. Goldsmith asks Stanciani to go to Genoa, Stanciani's home town, track down Kandinsky, and haul him back to the U.S. for due process. Stanciani's motivation is multiple: Goldsmith offers him his old job back if he succeeds. Soon the private eye is on his way and encountering obstacles that include Brenda (Sybil Danning) a gorgeous disc jockey, and a motley group of underworld denizens.

Product Details

Release Date:	09/19/2006
UPC:	0029502010348
Original Release:	1980
Source:	TELAVISTA
Region Code:	A
Sound:	[Dolby Digital Stereo]
Language:	English
Time:	1:35:00
Sales rank:	52,183

Special Features

Full length feature film; Scene access; Digitally remastered; Enhanced audio

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Franco Nero	Larry Stanziani
Sybil Danning	Brenda
William Berger	Jack Goldsmith
Carlo Gabriel Sparanero	Tim
Mario Maranzana	Davide
Licina Lentini	Lola Alberti,Actor
Enio Girolami	Martino,Actor
Mickey Knox	Raul Papasian
Massimo Vanni	Beltrame
Sasha D'Arc	Blonde Assassin
Romano Puppo	Silvestri
Angelo Ragusa	Kandinsky's Hitman
Paolo Vasile	Composer

Technical Credits

Fabio Carpi

Aldo Lado

Enzo G. Castellari	Director
Cataldo Galiano	Special Effects
Rocco Lerro	Stunts
Turi Vasile	Producer
Fabio Carpi	Screenwriter,Screenwriter
Aldo Lado	Screenwriter

Scene Index

Disc #1 -- The Day of the Cobra
1. Larry [13:10]
2. Genova [6:42]
3. Club [8:05]
4. Danger [4:50]
5. Information [5:14]
6. Deception [6:52]
7. Playtime [8:03]
8. Leads [5:44]
9. Fake [8:11]
10. The Keys [6:09]
11. Assassin [9:12]
12. It Ends [11:45]

Menu

Disc #1 -- The Day of the Cobra
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Editorial Reviews

This crime thriller from Italian cult director Enzo G. Castellari is fitfully exciting, but lacks the consistency necessary to make it more than the sum of its set pieces. The key flaw is the maddening story line, which manages to be over-complicated and half-baked all at once. The constant plot contortions involved in keeping the hero from cornering his prey are more annoying than they are compelling, and the other elements of the story simply rehash other, better thrillers, like The French Connection. Despite its rather derivative nature, The Day of the Cobra has its attributes. The best is Franco Nero's performance; he brings a lot of charm and sincerity to his grizzled cop character. Director Castellari brings a lot of eccentric style to the proceedings, the standout example being a surreal montage of the hero and his son bonding at a baseball field. He also delivers a few worthwhile action set pieces. The rooftop chase that opens the film is quite exciting and there is also a memorably tongue-in-cheek scene where Nero dukes it out with a transvestite in an empty disco. However, the viewer must wade through a lot of clichés and dull passages to get to these moments, so The Day of the Cobra can only be recommended to hardcore action fans.

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