Johnny Cool (1963)

terrible... so disappointed.

Self-important, over-dramatic, uninspired.

One of those movie experiences that is so good it makes you realize you've been grading everything else on a curve.

The movie's not perfect, but it sticks the landing of its message. It was engaging - thrilling at times - and I personally thought it was a great time.

This film begins with a brief overview of the career of a local Sicilian hood named Salvatore Giordano. As a child, he killed Nazi soldiers and soon he's the local mob boss--but he' strictly local. Then, out of the blue, he appears to have been killed by soldiers. End of story, right? Nope...it's just the beginning. It seems that the old Giordano is dead and he's now been re-christened 'Johnny Cool'. Johnny was saved from death by a big-time hood named Colini--an ex-mob boss who has been forced into exile in the old country. His purpose for Johnny is to send him to America to be a one man killing machine--to kill all the mobsters Colini blames for the exile. And, he's been promised that he'll one day be Colini's successor.When Johnny (Henry Silva) arrives in America, he is a cool character--and the American mob (headed by Telly Savalas) notices him. However, despite various attempts to kill Cool, he manages to use his wits to not only evade death but carry out his various contracts. The closest they come is to beat up Johnny's new lady friend (Elizabeth Montgomery). Soon, the American mob is leaderless and guess who is ready to step into the void. Colini thinks it's him, but by now Johnny realizes that Colini intends to kill him too and perhaps he can now be the big boss-man. Will Cool make it all the way to the top or will his meteoric rise come to just as swift an end? While this is not a great film, Silva is very slick in the lead--very cool, so to speak. His style is smooth as well as very cold--and it makes this average movie just a bit better than it should be. Worth watching, though it was quite inexplicable how Montgomery's character fell so hard for a man she hardly knew--particularly when she is supposedly well-educated and bright.

Nice little mob movie. And not a bad little showcase for a few Ratpack members either. Great actors...Elizabeth Montgomery, Henry Silva, Jim Backus, and Telly Savalas to name a few. Silva is in his element here, playing a gangster sent to avenge the deportation of a mob boss who can't get back in the country to settle the score himself. No one plays a better heavy than this guy! So cold and calculating! Silva's Johnny is one creepy character! Perfect! Montgomery is absolutely beautiful and shows the beginnings of a great career. No wonder she became a star!!The film itself I found to be a bit slow and, at times, ever so slightly confusing. Even so, I enjoyed it and would watch it again if only to marvel at the talent of Silva.

I think the ending of this film should be spoiled for two reasons: 1)There are so very many reviews online that make glancing mention of an ending which disturbs, without anyone ever going so far as to explain what, exactly, in this age when we have seemingly seen it all, could be disturbing about a 1963 crime film and 2) Because the ending really IS pretty nasty, out-Quentining Tarrantino himself with almost offhand ease, you may opt not to watch at all.Asher's direction (which takes lots of hits in online world) is blunt and nondescript, which I think works for an actively vicious film. To do stylish arabesques with the camera, or to seem to overly calculate the delivery would feminize this most crudely testosterone-driven of all films.Silva is so good, you want him to succeed in all his brutal activity. Elisabeth Montgomery is, if anything, even prettier than you remember her. I don't really get what flips her to totally betray Silva as she does. Supposedly she realizes what a nutzoid killer he is. But one has the impression she has realized that for some time. Did she simply grow bored of Silva? Hard saying.Okay, here it comes. Get ready for something so singularly distasteful, it bothers me to even type it in here. During the last few minutes of this film the Silva character, the new Johnny Cool, is placed in a straitjacket in order to subdue him, and then prepared to be buried alive in the coffin of one of the men he killed. He pleads first, then he struggles wildly as the inescapable nature of his fate closes in on him. It is a scene that makes you feel ill. It's the kind of fate you wouldn't wish on your worst enemy, and that in fact you'd rather not spend two seconds of your life imagining at all. The ultimate action isn't shown. But the last time we glimpse Johnny Cool, it is chillingly clear what is just seconds away from taking place.It might be argued that this is a logical end for a pathological killer who has been an unstoppable killing machine up to that point, one whose enemies seem to have zero hope of ever catching him off guard. But I don't think the ending is accessible through normal ideas about logic or justice. It is not a return to center and balance. Not exactly justice. Even for a killer, this is an unforgettably awful way to die. Doubly so for a character, a true anti-hero, who has such charisma that you rooted for him no matter what he was doing. I doubt that this almost breezy tale of a professional killer bears such an abrupt shift to horror right at the end.Overall, the film is enjoyable as a cheap crime film with hipster ambitions. But, as many have noted on the net, the ending dissipates the real fun, and coming right at the end, the whole thing is apt to leave a bad taste in the mouth. It is probably the ending that has effectively buried this film alive -- pun intended -- for generations, and kept it unreleased on regular DVD to this day.Coda: I can see it being remade today with a different ending, a case some message board wags have pleaded. Jason Statham would be Johnny Cool. It would end with him being sealed in the coffin. The End But wait... That would be a trick false ending. As the hearse drove to the cemetery, it would pick up speed and zoom away. There'd be a crazy twenty minute car chase with the cortège careening through downtown L.A. after the hearse, through a million of dollars worth of car repair. Finally, after the last car in the cortège had been driven off a cliff in a burst of flame, we'd see the hearse pull down a side road and park on the shoulder of the road in long shot. The driver would get out and open the coffin, helping Statham out of the jacket. After that, the driver would remove the sunglasses and beard, take off the hat and shake her luxuriant hair loose, and babe and killer would drive on into the sunset. Oh yeah -- and there would be sacks of cash in the coffin that the wind would whip all around the inside of the hearse, like one of those "How many dollars can you grab" booths at a fair. Makes no sense, but it'd be a crowd pleaser. It would become your routine noughties action flick, in other words, amoral more through stupidity than anything else.Hmm... maybe the current ending isn't so bad after all.

This movie doesn't seem to be well known, beyond devoted gangster movie fans. It's a small, black and white thriller, about two or three days in the life of a ruthless contract killer, sent from Italy to America to seek revenge,and demand tribute on behalf of a deported Mafioso. He becomes involved with a thrill seeking society woman, who aids him in his crimes. Whether their unusual relationship can be considered a love affair in any normal sense ,is open to interpretation.The movie was considered quite violent in its day, and still has some pretty nasty action, by implication. It's fast moving, and unpredictable, with an oddly charismatic performance by Henry Silva in the title role. Elizabeth Montgomery's character is a little under developed, but she makes a memorable impression nonetheless. A lot of the cast is made up of familiar faces, some in very odd roles. Jim Backus as a jovial, crooked contractor, John McGiver as a grumpy casino manager, Sammy Davis Jr. as a nervous gambler, all help to make the atmosphere of this picture a mix of humor and ambiguity. More traditional hoodlum roles are played by Marc Lawrence and Telly Savalas, with such crime movie reliables as sleazy Joe Turkel and creepy Elisha Cook, Jr appearing as various mobsters and hangers on.The movie isn't quite like anything I've ever seen. It's hard to define what it is that gives this picture its unique atmosphere, but it makes for a fascinating, if unnerving viewing experience. This is well worth the effort, if you can manage to find it on cable, or home video.