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Sergio Corbucci

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Sergio Corbucci
Born(1926-12-06)6 December 1926
Rome,Kingdom of Italy
Died1 December 1990(1990-12-01)(aged 63)
Rome,Italy
NationalityItalian
Other namesStanley Corbett
Gordon Wilson Jr.
Enzo Corbucci
OccupationFilm director
Style
Height1.77 m (5 ft 10 in)

Sergio Corbucci(Italian:[ˈsɛrdʒokorˈbuttʃi];6 December 1926 – 1 December 1990) was an Italianfilm director,screenwriterandproducer.He directed both very violentspaghetti Westernsand bloodlessBud SpencerandTerence Hillaction comedies.[1]

He is the older brother of screenwriter and film directorBruno Corbucci.[2]

Biography

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Early career

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Corbucci was born inRome.

He started his career by directing mostly low-budgetsword and sandalmovies. Among his firstspaghetti Westernswere the filmsGrand Canyon Massacre(1964), which he co-directed (under the pseudonym, Stanley Corbett) withAlbert Band,as well asMinnesota Clay(1964), his first solo directed spaghetti Western. Corbucci's first commercial success was with the cult spaghetti WesternDjango,starringFranco Nero,the leading man in many of his movies.[3]He would later collaborate withFranco Neroon two other spaghetti Westerns,Il MercenarioorThe Mercenary(a.k.a.A Professional Gun) (1968) — where Nero played Sergei Kowalski, a Polish mercenary and the film also starringTony Musante,Jack PalanceandGiovanna Ralli— as well asCompañeros(1970) a.k.a.Vamos a matar, Companeros,which also starredTomas MilianandJack Palance.The last film of the "Mexican Revolution" trilogy -The MercenaryandCompañerosbeing the first two in the installment - wasWhat Am I Doing in the Middle of the Revolution?(1972).

AfterDjango,Corbucci made many other spaghetti Westerns, which made him the most successful Italian Western director afterSergio Leoneand one of Italy's most productive and prolific directors.[4]His most famous of these pictures wasThe Great Silence(Il Grande Silenzio), a dark and gruesome Western starring amuteaction hero and apsychopathicbad guy.[5][6]The film was banned in some countries for its excessive display of violence.

Corbucci also directedNavajo Joe(1966), starringBurt Reynoldsas the title character, a Navajo Indian opposing a group of bandits that killed his tribe, as well asThe Hellbenders(1967), andJohnny Oro(1966) a.k.a.Ringo and his Golden PistolstarringMark Damon.Other spaghetti Westerns he directed includeGli specialisti(Drop Them or I'll Shoot,1969),La Banda J.S.: Cronaca criminale del Far West(Sonny and Jed,1972), withTomas MilianandThe White the Yellow and the Black(1975), withTomas MilianandEli Wallach.

Corbucci's Westerns were dark and brutal, with the characters portrayed as sadisticantiheroes.His films featured very high body counts and scenes of mutilation.Djangoespecially is considered to have set a new level for violence in Westerns.[7]

Later career and legacy

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In the 1970s and 1980s Corbucci mostly directed comedies, often starringAdriano Celentano.Many of these comedies were huge successes at the Italian box office and found wide distribution in European countries like Germany, France, Austria and Switzerland, but were barely released overseas.[8]

His movies were rarely taken seriously by contemporary critics[9][10]and he was considered an exploitation director, but Corbucci has managed to attain a cult reputation.[6][11]

He died in Rome in 1990, at age 63, of aheart attack.[12]

His nephewLeonardo Corbucci[13]continues the legacy of film directors in the family in Los Angeles.

In 2021 was released a documentary about Corbucci, directed by Luca Rea,Django & Django,that relies to a considerable extent on an interview with Quentin Tarantino.[14]

In 2022 German thrash metal bandKreatorreleased the instrumental song "Sergio Corbucci is Dead" as an intro to their albumHate Über Alles.According to vocalist/guitaristMille Petrozza,"Sergio Corbucci was someone who was very anti-authoritarian in his film. In all his films he has a protagonist who rebels against the authorities. Often these characters are very obscure. I was wondering if there are still people like that who make really political films without trying to preach anything to you. It's a bit of a dig at the bands who don't speak their minds out of fear of losing fans."[15]

Filmography

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Director and writer

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Actor

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References

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  1. ^"Sergio Corbucci".Movies & TV Dept.The New York Times.Archived fromthe originalon 11 May 2008.Retrieved23 January2019.
  2. ^Bondanella, Peter;Pacchioni, Federico (19 October 2017).A History of Italian Cinema.Bloomsbury Publishing USA.p. 490.ISBN9781501307645.
  3. ^Cox, Alex(1 June 2012)."Once Upon a Time in Italy".The New York Times.p. 16.Retrieved23 January2019.
  4. ^"Mondo Esoterica - Sergio Corbucci Film Reviews".mondo-esoterica.net.Retrieved24 April2023.
  5. ^Scott, A. O. (28 March 2018)."Review: 'The Great Silence,' a 1968 Spaghetti Western Unchained".The New York Times.ISSN0362-4331.Retrieved24 April2023.
  6. ^abHoberman, J. (28 December 2018)."'68 Rides Again: The Return of Sergio Corbucci ".The New York Times.ISSN0362-4331.Retrieved24 April2023.
  7. ^Tarantino, Quentin (27 September 2012)."Quentin Tarantino Tackles Old Dixie by Way of the Old West (by Way of Italy)".The New York Times.ISSN0362-4331.Retrieved27 June2020.
  8. ^"SERGIO CORBUCCI BOX OFFICE".BOX OFFICE STORY.Retrieved24 April2023.
  9. ^Wong, Aliza S. (15 December 2018).Spaghetti Westerns: A Viewer's Guide.Rowman & Littlefield. pp. 123–124.ISBN978-1-4422-6904-0.
  10. ^Bondanella, Peter (25 July 2019).The Italian Cinema Book.Bloomsbury Publishing.ISBN978-1-83902-024-7.
  11. ^Mask, Mia (28 February 2023).Black Rodeo: A History of the African American Western.University of Illinois Press. p. 139.ISBN978-0-252-05402-0.
  12. ^Flint, Peter B. (1 May 1989)."Sergio Leone, 67, Italian Director Who Revitalized Westerns, Dies".The New York Times.p. 8.Retrieved23 January2019.
  13. ^"Behind the Scenes: The Legendary Series with Leonard Corbucci on Apple Podcasts".Apple Podcasts.Retrieved27 June2020.
  14. ^DeFore, John (8 September 2021)."'Django & Django': Film Review | Venice 2021 ".The Hollywood Reporter.Retrieved6 April2023.
  15. ^"Album review: Kreator – Hate Über Alles"(in German). 8 June 2022.
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