Der Don ist tot

"The Don is Dead" - the title alone is worth the price of the purchase - is too often downgraded as a quick and inferior attempt to cash in on the tremendous success of Francis Ford Coppola's "The Godfather"; released the year before. Let me tell you, the problem doesn't lie with this perfectly enjoyable and competently made Mafia saga. The problem merely is that "The Godfather" is insanely popular and too many avid fans will bash and boycott everything that even remotely resembles their preciously favorite milestone. Popular cinematic ideas are reproduced and often even get blatantly copied, that is a fact. This doesn't mean, however, that nothing good comes out of the giant stream of imitations! Italian exploitation, for example, is my personal favorite type of cinema and that genre exists for 99% out of shameless knock-offs and stolen ideas. Regardless of what you mean read, "The Don is Dead" remains an excellent drama/thriller with an absorbing plot, splendid performances from a great cast and steady direction from the underrated Richard Fleisher. Following the death of a highly respected Don, representatives of three Mafiosi clans gather to re-divide the Las Vegas territory. The slimy Luigi Orlanda and his mistress see this as an opportunity to double-cross the others and raise a destructive gang war. They manipulate for the powerful Don Angelo DiMorra to fall in love with the girlfriend of his own protégé stepson Frank Regalbuto and things rapidly escalate into deceit, executions and mass-retaliation. The story is good, and Fleisher effortlessly finds the right balance between talky sequences and exciting action footage. There are some delightful execution-highlights, like set in a barbershop or a laundry salon. Anthony Quinn gives a fine performance, although clearly modeled after Marlon Brando - I admit, and "young" actors Frederic Forrest and Robert Forster are also very impressive.

"The Don is Dead" wins no points for originality. Obviously, it's attempting to ride on the coat-tails of "The Godfather". And it's not a classic that deserves to be remembered years from now. Its presentation is pretty matter-of-fact and of no real distinction. But it's still very engaging visceral entertainment, at least for fanatics of the mob movie genre. It benefits from good characters, fine performances, and the kind of in-your-face violence that has become standard for this type of thing.

The prominent mafia don of Las Vegas has died, and a truce is currently existing between the three families in the city. But all of that is going to go to Hell pretty quickly, as one greedy and power-crazed individual gets the bright idea to have two of these families go to bloody war with each other - all with a simple letter addressed to Don Angelo DiMorra (Anthony Quinn). Among the leading players are ambitious young Frank (Robert Forster), the son of the deceased don, and the Fargo brothers, Tony (Frederic Forrest) and Vince (Al Lettieri).

The makers of "The Don is Dead" do cast their movie well, from top to bottom. Angel Tompkins, Charles Cioffi, Louis Zorich, Ina Balin, Joe Santos, Frank DeKova, Abe Vigoda, Victor Argo, Val Bisoglio, Sid Haig, and Vic Tayback all put in appearances. (Lettieri and Vigoda, of course, were also in "The Godfather".) Forrest is particularly effective as Tony, who would rather leave the "life" behind but gets drawn back in when things start getting ugly.

Scripted by Marvin H. Albert, from his novel, and directed by Richard Fleischer, this is compelling drama when taken on its own terms and not compared to anything else. Even if it's just on a visceral level, it *does* work.

Seven out of 10.

Charles Cioffi, the consigliere of a jailed Mafia chieftain decides to get a war started among the three Las Vegas crime families. Knowing that Angel Tompkins, singer girlfriend of the son of a recently deceased Mafia Don, is looking for a break, he arranges a meeting with Anthony Quinn, Godfather of the third Mafia family where nature takes its course.

When former boyfriend Robert Forster returns to America and finds out it ain't long before the bullets start flying. When the film is over there are only a couple left standing and if you want to know who does pick up all the marbles than watch the film.

Of course this film came out to take advantage of the enormous publicity reaped by The Godfather in the previous year. It's an average sort of gangster flick, it could have been done at Warner Brothers during the Thirties with their stable of gangster players.

Al Lettieri and Abe Vigoda were both in The Godfather and their presence sort of lends an aura authenticity to the film. Lettieri was just coming into his own as a great portrayer of villains and assorted gangland types. His early death was a real loss to film.

Anthony Quinn of course is always good and fans of his which are legion will want to catch The Don is Dead.

Richard Fleischer was a very good craftsman of the 7th art, very prolific, excelling in different genres: Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi, History, Crime, Drama, Mystery, Music, Romance, Biography, he approached almost all genres. It delighted my childhood, adolescence and youth with movies such as: "20,000 Leagues Under the Sea", "The Vikings", "Barabbas", "Fantastic Voyage", "The Boston Strangler", "Tora! Tora! Tora!", "The New Centurions", "Soylent Green", "Mr. Majestyk", "The Incredible Sarah", "The Jazz Singer", "Conan the Destroyer", "Red Sonja". "The Don Is Dead" it's a film like Francis Ford Coppola's "The Godfather". We also have two actors who starred in both films: Abe Vigoda and Al Lettieri, both predestined to play mobsters. This is not an ordinary review, but a tribute to Al Lettieri. He is the best actor in "The Godfather". Here he has a similar role, but it's more temperate. In both films he's killed by rival mobsters. This actor, who played only mobsters and other villains, instinct tells me, would have deserved a role of honest man, a positive hero in at least one film. Usually, in a movie starring Anthony Quinn, he's the reason I want to see the movie. This time, Lettieri was the first reason, Quinn was the second. Quinn also plays a great role as a mobster here, especially in the final scene, when he looks like a vegetable. In other very good roles are: Frederic Forrest, Robert Forster, Angel Tompkins, Charles Cioffi.

And also very faithful to Marvin Albert's work. I read it six times in my life, the first one when I was 16. This is of course influenced by GODFATHER, borrowing a couple of the actors of Corleone saga. This story could easily have given a mini series, because you have focus on many sub characters and plots. But the book was not that huge either. I I have always enjoyed this Dick Fleischer's feature. And watch out for the faces here. As were THE UNTOUCHABLES. The good thing here is that you have not real lead character, mainly supporting ones, or the one you may think the lead is actually not the winner at all.... As in the Marvin Albert's novel.