Nino, an ordinary man, is targeted by a hitman. A wealthy woman’s kidnapping unfolds, and those involved are being eliminated. Nino, innocent in the abduction, races against time to uncover the mastermind behind the assassins and survive.
Nino Peralta (Giuliano Gemma) is a former car thief, running a coffee/drink stall to live a straight life following a two-year stint in prison. Providing for his wife, Lucia (Eleonora Giorgi), and children is at the top of his priority list. As viewers, we are instantly thrown into a chaotic situation as Nino learns (in the film’s opening scene) that his name has been added to a hitman’s, Antonio (Michele Placido), kill list.
Directed by Damiano Damiani, “A Man on His Knees” is an Italian thriller that barrels ruthlessly ahead. It doesn’t allow much breathing room as details are continuously disclosed. There are many name drops that can be overwhelming at first but soon fall into familiarity as the characters are continually mentioned, keeping the film from becoming too hard to follow. For the most part, I found the movie engrossing — that is, until about the last 15 to 20 minutes. The ending takes too long to wrap things up, needlessly stretching the film out even though the ultimate conclusion does drive home the point Damiani is making about the mafia.
From a technical standpoint, this disc is another fairly solid offering from Radiance Films. I did notice some weird anomalies on both the soundtrack and image with this release. There were a couple of moments where the audio became harsh, introducing a static-like quality to the dialogue and sound effects. This was not distracting enough to detract from the movie. The picture was restored in 4K at Augustus Color in Rome, Italy, according to the booklet. Overall, it looks excellent. The final scene does have an unusual fluctuating spot in the center of the image. Like the audio issue, however, it’s not enough to draw away from the film.
The extras for this limited release include a booklet featuring an essay by Roberto Curti and several on-disc interviews. I really enjoyed this disc’s new interview with Alberto Pezzotta, who wrote the book ‘Regia Damiano Damiani.’ Pezzotta gives an overview of the mafia film genre and places “A Man on His Knees” within the context of the greater cinema-scape in Italy at that time period (the late ’70s, early “80s). While it’s interesting, I wouldn’t watch it until after viewing the movie because it does feature some spoilers for the film’s conclusion. The disc also features a trailer and archival interviews with stars Giuliano Gemma, Tano Cimarosa, and assistant director Mino Giarda.
Altogether, this is another excellent release from Radiance. They seem to focus on allowing cinephiles to experience some ‘lost’ international works. While “A Man on His Knees” lost me a bit in the end, I did think it was a pretty good film. Despite some technical irregularities, this disc is still worth picking up if you’re interested.
Available on a Special Limited Edition Blu-ray™ September 24th
