THE ITALIAN JOB
A film review by Shane R. Burridge
Copyright 1997 Shane R. Burridge
The Italian Job (1969) 98m.
Cult favorite is best remembered for its unexpected ending and a robbery sequence featuring three Mini Coopers. Michael Caine is Charlie Croker, a small-time crook who sees his chance to make the big time by hijacking a bullion shipment in Turin. His plan is sponsored by English gentleman Mr Bridger (Noel Coward), a high-class criminal who lives the high life in a London prison. As protagonists, Caine and Coward couldn't be more different, but between them they encompass the spectrum of all that is essentially English. Coward, who waves his hand like royalty, is accompanied throughout the film by a number of pro-British anthems (Rule Brittania, God Save the Queen, The British Grenadiers) that eventually culminate in a football chant from his fellow inmates; Caine is a Jack-the-lad who hasn't lost touch with people on the street. Picture's tongue-in-cheek patriotism (ostensibly the `real' motive behind the robbery) paints a world where there is co-operation between the classes, between criminals and the law, between the common laborer and the educated professional, all united as a matter of national pride.
The film's images of British criminals abroad - invading foreign turf, so to speak - is well complemented by location shooting in Italy, particularly the crowded Turin streets and the majestic alpine roads. Picture's highlight, of course, is the robbery itself, in which three patriotically-colored Minis (which always drive in order of red, white, and blue) weave through plazas and rooftops in order to make their getaway. Original ending, as written, tied up loose ends with Caine's girlfriend and the Mafia (who simply drop out of the story in the final cut), but the substitute ending is more in keeping with the film's cavalier attitude. Film has humor, action, but surprisingly little suspense. Caine, who was enthusiastic about this project, is curiously flat and mannered - it's almost as if a Michael Caine impersonater dubbed his voice. Peter Collinson, who seems to enjoy filming cars rolling down cliffs, directed from an original screenplay by Troy Kennedy Martin. Quincy Jones supplied the music - an odd choice! Worth seeing in widescreen Panavision.
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