Trailer—Year of the Gun

First... the problem many viewers are having: I saw this film in theaters... and again on home video on VHS tape. When it was later remastered for DVD and HD streaming, some idiot forgot to include the English subtitles. Half the film's dialog is spoken in Italian. In theaters and on home video VHS, there are English subtitles for all the Italian dialog Neither the DVD nor the streaming version have any English subtitles for these parts and there is no way a viewer who does not speak Italian can follow the intricate details of the story. Entire subplots and character details are lost That's a shame because when seen with the full subtitles, the film is a well crafted superb thriller worthy of standing alongside some of Frankenheimer's best films.

SPOILERS! There are three redeeming features about this terrible film. 1. An exciting fight scene, ending in sex. 2. A Student riot. 3. A Speedy motorbike chase, ending with a murder. Apart from that, this film is surprisingly unpromising and McCarthy delivers one of the worst performances i've ever seen he might as well be a plank of wood for all he's worth. The location of rome could be shot well, but in dank, dark colours and photos of run down cobbled houses, he fails at th easiest of opportunities. This is almost as boring as the videos they show in history lessons at high school! Frankly, Disappointing. **/****

From the first moment I felt myself well entertained. I did not check the specifics, before after watching it, so I was surprised that it was made so many years after the kidnapping of Aldo Moro. The lighting and filming was stimulating from start to finish. And nothing wrong with the cutting neither. I remember nothing about the sound, so it much have done its job well. The filming ( the grittyness/grain ) and the format, made it seem a true timepiece, that maybe because of that, sometimes balances on the edge of kitsch.

John Frankenheimer's "Year of the Gun" has an interesting plot, especially considering the setting (Italy's so-called Years of Lead: an undeclared civil war between protesters and the government throughout the 1970s). Unfortunately, the focus is primarily on the US journalists covering the events. It would've made more sense to get into the politics. Even ignoring the Red Brigades, the Vietnam War had riled up the younger generation (especially since so many fascist-adjacent people were in positions of authority). The government used a lot of questionable methods to arrest the terrorists; seems like the whole thing could be an analogy for events of the past twenty years (or twenty-one, if you want to include the G8 summit in Genoa). In terms of form, the movie has some respectable merits in its characters, cinematography, etc. I particularly liked Sharon Stone's character. It's just that they could've expanded the story.

An intriguing film and despised. I do not understand why not give due weight to this film. Already I watched several times and every one of them I realize their best value. The story is very good, comes to political issues of an Italy relatively new, still very much alive in our memory. And the treatment of the film is very close to the reality of the facts. The cast works very competently. Sharon Stone is one of his good moments. Valeria Golino may have done their best work here and Andrew McCarthy surprised with his performance. The action scenes are well done, with some small mistakes, but perfectly acceptable in situations such as those portrayed in the film. In summary this is a great film, but you need to give a little more attention to it.

The acting is solid and the film well directed except in one place: The photojournalist survives a hail of machine gun bullets by hiding behind a car while taking picture of a bank robbery. Normally this would be OK, except the parts of the car she is hiding behind are the windows! The story is tight and very believable as it is set to the historical background of the capture and killing of Aldo Moro (Italy). The sequence of events is built on a series of coincidental events that demonstrate how you cannot trust anybody if you really want to keep a secret. The film also proves the saying ` if you play with fire you will get burned'. Filmed on location in Italy, the street scenes and interiors add the authenticity of the film. Secondarily, the film also explores the sexual weapon that women sometime use to achieve their own ends, and the unfaithfulness of men that succumb to it so easily. I gave this a 9.

Year of the Gun was a thought provoking film that swept you into a political mind frame. I felt as if i was in Italy in 1978 and being taken on a tour of all of italy's troubles back then. The film is a mix of drama and suspense, it has enough of both to keep you entertained. It is fast paced with a lot of twists and turns and explores many different themes including politics, violence, love, treachery and sex. The only sour note comes from Andrew McCarthy, who doesnt have quite what it takes to be in a film like this. Valeria Golino is ok as McCarthy's italian lover and Sharon Stone, once again delivers a great performance as a photo journalist.