Ah, the "Poliziotesschi". The rough & tough cop action/thrillers movies from Italy. There's not an exploitation subgenre that I love more, except maybe the Giallo. But for both the Giallo and the Poliziotesschi, the end of the 70s and start of the 80s marked the end of their glorious heydays. "The Rebel", which is the I-don't-know-how-many-th collaboration between experts Stelvio Massi (director) and Maurizio Merli (lead actor), came out when the subgenre was already a lot less popular.
Nonetheless it remains an entertaining and adrenalin-packed action movie, and the script attempts to bring a few minor innovations here and there. For instance, Merli's character isn't an unorthodox cop anymore. I reckon all the unorthodox coppers from the 70s got fired eventually, and now they are private detectives or - like in this case -bodyguards. Nick Rossi (Merli) gets begged by his friend Tony to come work with him in his personal security company, because during his last two assignments his clients were killed. Even with Rossi on board, the next client - and also Tony - gets killed by a criminal organization that apparently assassinates prominent foreign visitors just for funsies. Frustrated that he was unable to prevent the attack and swearing revenge for his buddy, Rossi infiltrates into the organization to take them out from bottom to top.
Well, yes, you've seen this all before, but it's still worth seeking out if you're a fan of Italian exploitation cinema. Merli remains as dedicated to his role as if it was his very first Poliziotesschi, there are bloody shootouts and violent stunt work aplenty, impressive filming locations in Venice and Berlin, and a solid sub plot revolving around the unfolding love between Rossi and Vivien; - the beautiful female minion in the organization. It's a terrible shame that our hero must always slap - and hard, I may add - women in the face in these Poliziotesschi flicks, but I reckon it must have been a chauvinist-macho fetish back in the 70s, or something.
Lovely soundtrack by the always reliable Stelvio Cipriani, too.
