Omicidio per appuntamento

Since this is the very first user-comment submitted for "Date for a Murder", I was really hoping to enlighten all you readers about another totally forgotten and fascinating Italian cult film from the late 60's! Sadly, it didn't turn out to be the undiscovered gem that I was desiring to see (with the recent popularity towards for Italian cinema, I assume all the greatest films have already been identified), yet it's nonetheless an interesting crime/thriller with some raw action sequences and a fairly compelling plot. Two American friends coincidentally meet each other in the Italian countryside and agree to get back together again a couple of days later in Rome, after they both settled some private affairs. When one of them doesn't show up, the other one gets concerned and fears that something suspicious happened. He investigates the case himself and it doesn't take long before he's entangled in a network of industrial espionage, blackmail and even cold-blooded murder. The story, especially towards the finale, is rather predictable and the obligatory love-story is completely pointless. The heroic duo (the American and a local police commissioner) are likable characters and all the villains look effectively menacing, most notably the creepy guy in motorized wheelchair! To finish up, the film contains several beautiful images of Rome, the soundtrack is exciting and the action scenes (on rooftops, on remote highways, in dark alleys, ...) are well choreographed. "Date for a Murder" was written by Fernando Di Leo – who's really an expert in the genre – but perhaps it also needed a famous and experienced director to make it more memorable. Someone like Umerto Lenzi ("Violent Naples", "Almost Human"), Ruggero Deodato ("Live like a Cop, die like a Man") or Enzo G. Castellari ("Street Law", "The Big Rocket").

This film is a mix of a little bit of everything. It starts out trying to be funny. It wasn't particularly funny. George Ardisson plays the lead detective, who thinks he is James Bond, on a mission to find a missing friend. He has a young love interest, Halina Zalewska, but that is a relatively small part of the film.

As the movie unravels, it develops a more serious tone. Our hero winds up killing some bad guys during the course of his investigation. Enter local police commissioner, Günther Stoll, who doesn't like George Ardisson's cowboy style... so they team up to try and solve the case.

Overall, it's a bit of a guilty pleasure for me. The film has tonal issues and at times is a bit too silly for me. However, it breezes by with incredible pacing, and it's amazing how many things it gets right considering all the different elements it's bringing together. It's def worth watching if you're a fan of these things.