Un verano para matar

Isn't this the dream-start we all hope to find in an action/revenge thriller? After barely 10 minutes of running time, we already witnessed one brutal mafia execution and three bloody retaliation murders! Two things can happen then. Either you're in for a genuine gem with non-stop excitement throughout the entire play time, or ... the whole thing becomes a boring mess after the great opening. Luckily, "Summertime Killer" belongs in the first category, as it's a terrific and explosive Italian exploitation gem with a great cast, wonderful filming locations and a continuously good pacing. The story is extremely simple, but hey, those are usually the best and most effective! At very young age, Ray Castore witnesses how is father is sadistically slain by four thugs. A good decade later, Ray grew up to be hunky blond lad with a motorcycle and a loyal dog, but still the only thing on his mind is to avenge his father's dead. When his fourth and final murder attempt fails, despite careful planning, he kidnaps the former mobster's beautiful 19-year-old daughter and locks her up in a houseboat.

"Summertime Killer" guarantees great entertainment. Sure, the middle section is somewhat predictable, since you know the girl is bound to get a case of the Stockholm Syndrome, but these sequences are made more bearable because the girl in question is Olivia Hussey and she just happens to be one of the most beautiful and sensual women in the world. Speaking of pretty people, Christopher Mitchum is very good as the avenging angel. This was definitely the best role in the career of Robert's less talented son; - although perhaps on par with the bonkers "Mean Machine". The stellar cast also features Karl Malden (as the tough copper on Joe's tail) and Raf Vallone as the merciless mobster turned wine farmer. The many motorcycle stunts form the highlights of the film, together with the shots of Olivia Hussey in bikini, of course.

A young boy watches his father be brutally murdered by mobsters. Now in his 20s, Ray Castor (Christopher MItchum) is out for revenge. After killing a couple of the men who participated in his father's death, Ray sets his eyes on the mob boss. Unable to get close enough to succeed, Ray puts together a plan that involves kidnapping the boss' daughter, Tania (Olivia Hussey). It's all going as he intended, but something unexpected happens - Ray falls for Tania and vice versa.

Overall, Summertime Killer is nice little Italian crime/mob film. It's not as outlandish or action packed as some of its brethren, but it's enjoyable just the same. That's not to say there's no action. Summertime Killer features a bucket full of interesting and exciting dirt bike stunts, all capably pulled off by the master, Rémy Julienne. Really good stuff. There are also some nice tension filled moments as Ray hunts down his prey. The first killing, in particular, was nicely shot.

On the acting front, I'll just say that everyone is at least capable enough to make things enjoyable. Karl Malden, as the investigator brought in to find Ray, is sadly not given enough to do. I realized while watching Summertime Killer just how much I like Malden. He was a more than capable actor who always gave a professional performance. Here, though, his screentime is limited. The best I can say about Christopher Mitchum is that, here, he doesn't really mess things up. I like him, but honestly, he's not the best actor. He may look a lot like his father, but he doesn't have his dad's acting prowess. As for Hussey, I'll be nice and say she's in the movie. I've never been a fan.

More than enjoyable than a lot of films i watch, I'll give this one a 6/10. Fans of Italian genre cinema might enjoy it as long as you go into expecting a slower than normal poliziotteschi.

Hey there must be fans out there of the 70s European action movies. The king of the genre is Charles Bronson but a lot of other US actors packed up and headed over to Europe to churn out some mid budget violence.

This time its Christopher Mitchum ( son of Robert), Karl Malden, and Olivia Hussey, with support from Italian Raf Vallone.

Its basically the young man seeking revenge redeemed by love plot mixed in with the old cop with a guilty conscience who wants to atone for his sins plot. And its not half bad with some nice motorbike stunts, cool sunglasses worn by Mitchum and nice location photography in Spain. And of course there is that ambience found in these 70s Euro action films where there are long pauses, meaningful angles as well as a gallery of existential or thoughtful characters. Its no classic but its fun. The only question is when is Tarantino going to get around to this sub genre?

A young boy witnesses the murder of his Father by vicious mobsters, 20 years pass the Kid now a young man (Christopher Mitchum) plots his one man vengeance trail on all those responsible for his Father's death. Hot on his heels is a hard boiled cop (Karl Malden) who has been hired by he Mob to stop the kid, who has already killed a fair few of the Mob, The Kid's ace in the hole, is when he kidnaps the daughter (Oliva Hussy) of the leader of the Mob (Raf Vallone)in order to lure him out to make him an easy target, However things get more complex for the Kid as the two young'ns gradually fall for one another. A great piece of 70's Euro trash exploitation, with nice cinematography,great Motorbike stunts by the master Remy Julian and his posse of stunt men and a great score by Luis Baclov (Django). Both Mitchum and Hussey are excellent in their roles and they seem to develop some sort of surreal chemistry. Karl Malden makes the best of a very sparse script,

Summertime Killer is a Spanish thriller and would seem to take influence both from the Italian Polizi and mafia genres, as well as the American action films. The film is thoroughly entertaining for the entire duration; but it does suffer from some major story and scripting problems - for a start, the film simply tries to do too much and changes gears too often and at really short notice; we go from a revenge thriller to a kidnap flick in a heartbeat and it makes the film feel rather disjointed. Add in some completely bizarre character decisions and you've got a film that is seriously hard to take seriously. Summertime Killer starts with a scene that sees a bunch of gangsters kill a man, under the nose of his son. We then fast forward a few years and the kid is grown up; the gangsters that killed his father are also being picked off one by one. Naturally, there are people out to stop him from taking his revenge; including the mob boss as well as a police detective who resolves to track the kid down.

The lead character is played by Christopher Mitchum; a fresh faced actor who I was surprised to find is the son of grizzled Noir star Robert Mitchum. He actually fits the role better than I thought he would and plays the cold man of few words well. My fellow Dario Argento fans will recognise Karl Malden as the star of Cat O'Nine Tails; the distinctive actor puts in a good performance here, and the stunning Argentine actress Olivia Hussey rounds off the central cast. There's a solid stream of action that runs throughout the movie and thankfully director Antonio Isasi-Isasmendi knows his way around an action scene well enough to keep everything entertaining. The car chase towards the end of the film is a seriously gripping highlight and actually reminded me a lot of the standout car chase in James Cameron's masterpiece Terminator 2. The film has a fair few distinctive elements about it; the way the central character rides around on a dirt bike and lives in a houseboat being the biggest of them. Overall; this is certainly a very flawed film - but it's entertaining enough and I'm sure that anyone who tracks it down won't be too disappointed.