[yasr_overall_rating]
Alfredo Martelli is picked up by the police in his apartment without justification. In the precinct, he slowly discovers what is the investigation about as we find out details about his life.
“The Assassin” is a black and white Italian crime film from 1961. It is also the directorial debut of Elio Petri. I thought these elements of the film were going to make the movie too archaic and abstract to really enjoy. Petri’s directorial work is confident and self-assured but there’s nothing too memorable to his work that makes it distinguishable. While this means that “The Assassin” is far from bad, the film creates the impression of a director trying to find his legs in how to create a film rather the impression of a director who is creating something truly unique.
The plot is best described as Kafkaesque, but that’s a phrase that’s used too often so let me explain exactly what I mean. The plot herein reminds me a good deal of “The Trial” by Franz Kafka. Both stories involve protagonists who end up on the wrong side of the law after seemingly having done nothing. In “The Assassin,” a man named Alfredo (Marcello Mastroianni), ends up the subject of a murder investigation for the man’s mistress. He is pursued by a law enforcement officer who follows him due to a gut instinct that the man is guilty of the commission of a crime.
Director Petri could be compared to his contemporary, Michelangelo Antonioni who also directed several films about anonymous characters. But while Antonioni used to these characters to the point of abstraction, Petri uses this premise to create something much more horrific and thrilling. “The Assassin” isn’t a giallo, though, because details about the man’s life are developed in flashbacks during the progression of the film. As a result, while the movie starts out as a Kafkaesque thriller, it ends up as something closer to a character study.
Even though “The Assassin” is a strong film, it has largely been forgotten by many. This is startlingly good, particularly for a directorial debut and I recommend anyone who is a fan of thrillers to watch this film. Yes, it’s Italian. Yes, it’s in black and white. But even if these can act as obstacles in many films, give “The Assassin” a chance. If I haven’t convinced you to watch this by now, here’s another reason why you should: there’s an anecdote that the film’s director once discovered a poster for “The Assassin” hanging inside the home of Martin Scorsese. Arrow has lovingly presented the film in this form and it’s a really enjoyable picture.
Now available in a 2-Disc Special Edition Blu-ray + DVD
