Un asesino para su majestad

I was not sure what to expect when I began watching this one. I was half expecting another James Bond ripoff; however, this one stands on its own merit as there are some things about this that resembles a Bond film, but for the most part it is its own thing. It is not a very good film mind you, but it is a pretty interesting view as the main guy who is on a security detail in this film and his buddy are a bit of a charismatic pair so they keep the film fun even though the plot is not the best as it is a bit too obvious what is going on and there is a lack of anything really going on.

The story has a man sniping a guy while he is escorting a king through the streets. The man shot was in charge of the King's security. A new guy is put in charge and he is on the case as he learns the killer likes candy! That really is not as important as the title makes it out to be, but I must admit it is a catchy title.

Like I said I thought the main guy and his sidekick carried this film. The assassin is pretty good as he has the looks of a former Nazi. Usually films like this have very attractive girls, this one doesn't quite have super hot girls, but there are a couple of nice ones. Mainly all the ones the sidekick has with him.

So, it is a fun film, but just not all that good considering the sum of its parts. It could use a few more action pieces a few less scenes of nothing really going on. Usually you get nice locales in a film like these, but most of the places are bland. Thankfully the stars in this keep the film fun for the most part.

"The Killer Likes Candy" is an Italian suspense film dubbed into English. It stars the American actor Kerwin Mathews as well as a lot of Italian folks. Dubbing films into English as well as having American stars (often 2nd and 3rd tier stars) was quite common in the 1950s, 60s and 70s. Not surprisingly, as a film snob I prefer subtitled films--but this wasn't possible with these movies as most of the time, the foreign star delivered their lines in English while the rest of the cast spoke Italian.

This film is about an assassin. He's killed quite a few folks and has the odd habit of eating candy and leaving the wrappers when he's making a kill. Hopefully this can be used to catch him. Much of the films is from the standpoint of a guy whose assignment is to protect the dictatorial king of a fictional nation. Some of it's pretty exciting and might offend the squeamish (such as the gasoline scene) but some of it also is pretty cheesy (such as the body at the end of the film that falls to its death--it's VERY obviously a dummy). Overall, it's mildly interesting but no more. Bad edits and some HORRIBLE 1960s music make this one a bit hard to take.

For those who like their pasta cheesy: a 60s French-Italian-German pulp thriller filmed at the tail end of the Euro spy craze (1964-1968), and loaded with warped camera angles and great bongo-driven muzak that kicks in at totally inappropriate moments. Top agent OSS117 `Angel Face" (Kerwin Matthews) is assigned to protect a Eurasian monarch from a ruthless assassin, a glassy-eyed ex-Gestapo officer who leaves a candy wrapper at the scene of every hit. Damn, these spaghetti merchants keep finding novel settings for their genre punchups - this time round a karate fight at a meatworks (one guy gets covered in a bucket of pig's blood!) and ending in a shootout amidst a truckload of crumbling skeletons in the Rome catacombs.

This shoddy Italian crime film perfectly captures the feel of a five cent pulp novel: some detectives with a cool names (James Steele? I can't remember...) protects a middle east king from being murdered by political opponents. The evil doers have hired the world's number one hit man for the job, a perfectionist loner who for some reason eats candy all the time. The ingredients for the film are the following: 1) a lot of fighting 2) a lot of badly written "tough" dialouge 3) a little bit of conspiracy 4) a little bit of sex, and 5) an awesome easy listening soundtrack complete with "ba-di-ba-daba-da" choruses. The running gag is that the happy-go-lucky/comical relief detective time after time tries to get it on with a cute nurse, but always gets interrupted by the I'm-a-serious-motherf**ker detective. The Killer Likes Candy is OK pulp, I guess, but I must admit I was getting a little bit bored near the end. Never the less, I can think of far worse ways to have spent 90 minutes of my life.

5/10 - for the soundtrack, dear...

Stupid as it may sound, it's almost unthinkable that this simple & straightforward crime-thriller could still be made today, and this for an utmost dumb fact. The titular killer leaves candy wrappings (the dude's sole vice is a sweet tooth) at the scene of practically every crime, and nowadays it would be "not-done" for any character - hero or villain - to litter. You know, what with the environment and all?

Am I exaggerating? Perhaps, but it also somewhat demonstrates that "The Killer Likes Candy" is a very mundane and forgettable late '60s thriller. I watched it less than 48 hours ago, and already I have trouble remembering the plot and the denouement. It's entertaining enough while it lasts, merely thanks to a few exhilarating action sequences and a handful of adequate performances, but overall this is a weak effort. No-nonsense American hero Mark Stone gets assigned to protect the king of Kafiristan during his diplomatic stay in Italy, after a previous assassination attempt resulted in the death of his regular bodyguard. The hired killer is the stoic and introvert Oscar Snell, and his instructors clearly don't have a lot of confidence in him, since they additionally send a small army of goons (including Cameron Mitchell) out to neutralize Mark. Good aspects of the film include the majority of settings and filming locations (Rome, Venice, ...), the swinging soundtrack and two or three death sequences (burned alive, electrocuted, ...). The film is far too slow-paced, however, and the inexperienced director Frederico Chentrens doesn't manage to generate the least bit of suspense.