La via della droga

When I first saw this film many years ago, I was put off by its slow and fragmented first ten minutes, featuring scenes of (gratuitous!) drug use in various parts of the world. Also, I had just seen David Hemmings' other Italian crime film from this year, SWINDLE with Tomas Milian (directed by Bruno Corbucci), which was INCREDIBLE, and this did not seem as good. However, once the film kicks into gear after fifteen minutes or so, it is quite good and features some incredible stunt work, imaginative action sequences, exciting guitar-driven music from Goblin (not as repetitive as some of their work), a wonderful over-the-top performance by David Hemmings as an interpol narcotics investigator, and a cool, smoldering performance by Fabio Testi as an undercover cop out to bust the international drug trade. As a later 70s product, this film features unnecessary closeup shots of drug use and some gratuitous nudity (a lesbian scene presented as a FANTASY of a minor character!), but there's not enough of either to derail what becomes a nail-biting action film. The final fifteen to twenty minutes of HEROIN BUSTERS are incredible--the motorcycle chase in the subway, which leads into an outrageous airplane chase--some of the most interesting and daredevil action-film stunt-work I've seen in a while. The film also has nice bursts of humor here and there (such as when Hemmings, chasing a crook, gets a ride from a young lady on a motorcycle and has to grab on to her breast to hold on!) and was quite satisfying on all levels. It does start slow, however, so don't give up on it (or fast forward through some of the initial scenes). What a "golden age" of Italian crime films the 1970's was--even a standard genre entry turns out to be a gem, the likes of which would NEVER be made today.

You can always rely on Enzo Castellari to knock things up a notch, and even though he had me worried (and a little confused) at the pacing of this one, it all leads up to major kick ass ending.

After the film seemingly randomly shifts between Hong Kong, Amsterdam, Colombia and New York, the film finally settles in Rome, as we see Fabio Testi getting busted for carrying drugs into the country. At the same time and in the same place, another guy who's just arrived from Amsterdam is tailed by cop David Hemmings, who gets duped by the dealers as big old Romano Puppo gets away with the goods.

Yep, Hemmings is hot headed, potty-mouthed cop out to take down a huge drug cartel, and he's the only guy who knows that Fabio Testi is an undercover cop. Things get pretty difficult for Testi as he works his way into the dealer's trust via a junky guy with his own sub plot, and nothing ends up going to plan as everything results in a huge chase at the end that uses feet, motorbikes, and finally, planes. I think there's a deep meaning to all this, and that is "If you deal drugs, Fabio Testi will shoot you."

You've got the usual Enzo back up crew here: Massimo Vanni (who does his 'riding a bike downstairs' bit), Joshua Sinclair as a suave dealer, Romano Puppo as another dealer, and even Enzo himself turns up to mug for the camera. Sherry Buchanan turns up as the junky guy's girlfriend, but she really just turns up to be naked for a minute or two.

I found it strange that there's an obvious stunt double doing even the most routine of stunts for Fabio, but then it's Fabio himself doing all that crazy crap with the planes later. I did burst out laughing when a guy pulled a particularly strange face when getting shot in slow motion.

It does seem however that Enzo is kind of making some sort of comment about the hippy life being dead and leading to horrible addiction, because the drug taking here is shown in all its glory and when you see a guy licking spilled heroin from a toilet seat, it doesn't exactly entice you to go take the stuff. Well done Enzo!

There are some preposterous situations and developments in LA VIA DELLA DROGA aka THE HEROIN BUSTERS but it still reeled me in and had me interested to the end.

Director Enzo Castellari is no household name, not even in his native country, Italy. To be frank, I had never heard of him. That said, the production looks far from shabby thanks to effective cinematography by Giovanni Bergamini and the convincing if unusual leading duo of Fabio Testi - undercover cop looking tall, fit and muscular despite wearing cowboy boots in his almost nonstop running - and Hemmings, the somewhat podgy Interpol inspector still able to climb walls. They exchange some cryptic, even funny lines, none more so than when Testi teaches Hemmings on how to use the pronoun "whom" instead of "who."

The film posts some well made car, bike and running chases - though I found the final one, aboard two light planes, downright risible. The top villain with his fake wig rather struck me as a clearly unintended comedian, especially when piloting the aircraft.

Despite those flaws, I found HEROIN BUSTERS and its level of violence credibly engrossing. 7/10.

Politically and Objective, Subjective viewed this film is a kind of insult for every drug consumer (and i mean every drug: illegal and legal)and suits actually well the political"comedy" concerning this theme. Castellari shows here a strong stereotype world of the "drugscene" that i cannot associate with the word intelligence especially with such a theme(though funny it is). Here we have the "typical" junkie whos halfcrazy coz he doesnt get his "medicine", and the tough b*****d dealer who beats the s*** out of everybody when it comes to money. it gets then "socio-critical" when the police says how many poor people die due the use of (illegal)drugs (fine that its unimportant how many die due excessive alcohol consume-especially when the state gets money for it) Naturally if you dont take it seriously this film is quite entertaining: fabio testi here who plays a cop who goes undercover in the drug scene, wears most of the film a cap and some priceless wildleather boots(!) The (psychedelic)music from goblin is great, and is a perfect start for the film Needless to say that some decent action is also included here. Patrizia Webley the sleazy blonde, has here a short cameo as one of the lesbian customers of sherry buchanan -who gets her money for the drugs by selling her body. Yes, its a "mondo candido"!..

This crime thriller tells the story of an undercover cop (Fabio Testi) who has to "play" a drug dealer so that the real dealers accept him as a member of their syndicate and he can come close to the big men at the top of the syndicate. As it is the problem with many genre films of its decade, the depiction of the drug dealers, their environments and the investigating methods of the undercover cop looks clichéd and hilariously out of date. Except for that, this is a highly entertaining, action packed film.

Fabio Testi never looks like a real drug dealer, but who cares, his acting is solid as ever. David Hemmings as the police inspector who knows about Testi's true identity brings English flair to the role with his sometimes almost exaggerated British accent. The supporting cast consists of many faces familiar from other Italian genre outings (e.g. the ruthless syndicate killer in Lucio Fulci's "Luca il Contrabbandiere" from 1981, also starring Testi in the lead role), and the score by the (at that time) Argento regulars "Goblin" just rocks. There are some quite original action sequences, especially the climax, in which director Enzo Girolami delivers a plane chase for once instead of a car chase (and this plane chase looks daring sometimes). Because the simple plot always pushes the action forward, the movie never becomes boring and delivers.

Certainly not Enzo Girolami's best film (his "La Polizia Incrimina, la Legge Assolve" is probably the best Italian crime film ever made), mainly because the story is never really convincing, but it's fast paced and will please every fan of Italian crime thrillers.