Customer Reviews

Uno Bianca

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

If you were looking for some new films of Michele Soavi you probably enjoy "The Church", "Stagefright", "The Sect" and "Cemetery Man" a lot. And "Uno Bianca" is definately not like those brillinat horror flicks. But anyway it's still brilliant. Although not horror. Even if you came across this film by chance I suggest you order it because it's very good. It tells a story of two Rimini cops who are after a ruthless "Uno Bianca" (White Fiat Uno) gang which robs banks and kills the eyewitnesses. Based on actual events that'd taken place in Italy this 3h 20m story spins so fast you won't be able to take you eyes off the screen. Primarily I wanted to watch this TV-film during two evenings, but after the first part I realized I wouldn't be able to wait till another day. So I had to go to sleep very late at night. But it was worth it. Every aspect of "Uno Binca" is great. Cinematography, acting, music, the script - everything. It is one of the best movies I bought recently and it proved the fact that a talented person is talented in everything. Michele Soavi who retired from the horror genre (I hope not forever) took a totally different work and managed it just perfectly. I will definately be waiting for another release of his whatever it will be - horror, police movie or a romantic comedy.

Dario Argento protege, Michele Soavi, left the cinema due to his son's health problems soon after his zombie classic, "DELLAMORTE DELLAMORE" aka "CEMETERY MAN". He then decided to make Italian TV movies like this one. But, this is unlike any film you'll ever see on ABC. It plays more like an HBO film but with some visual flairs occasionally added.
Kim Rossi Stuart plays a beach patrolling cop in an Italian resort town. When he hears some local policemen were gunned down by the notorious "UNO BIANCO" gang, it peaks his interest. But, it isn't until his commanding officer is gunned down by the mad, money-hungry gang members, that he decides to put an end to the terror. Thus begins his investigation, which points the accusing finger towards a policeman who may be a member.
High suspense and an eerie soundtrack make this a great entry in the Michele Soavi collection, even though it's a big departure from his Gothic Horror roots.
3 hours and 20 minutes of subtitles, however easy to read, might make you miss some of the visual elements. Still, worth a look.
Bravo, Soavi.

Extremely good, but lengthy. From a TV "mini" series and I was surprised how deep the storyline was. Anybody who likes Kim Rossi Stuart should buy a copy. This is a great cop story; aka cop on cop!

My copy of the DVD did have faulty sub-titles, No Shame is inconsistent on quality; some titles are unbelievably good while others have some sort of fatal flaw.

UNO BIANCA, consisting of a 3 hour DVD release (over 2 discs) is a
thriller, suspense movie, of the highest quality (although released
on TV, in Italy). Quality is important, viewers, want the images,
colors, sequences to be crisp, crystal clear unlike that what is
often filmed, intended for and shown on TV. This work suceeds in
that regard.

The 3 hours doesn't constitute a waste of time, or even, poor
editing. Not at all. It manages to build up very quickly a tension,
suspense and thrill from the opening moments of the movie, until the
very end. The dialog is in Italian, and is well understood to those
fluent in Portuguese, and perhaps, Spanish to a less degree. The
English subtitles don't get in the way of the action.

This picture is quite fascinating and is a treat, for viewers to tag
along for the ride, on an "Internal Affairs" matter of police. They
manage to narrow down, get evidence and apprehend a gang of
perpetrators that were the plague of a home town, in Bologna and
Rimini, Italy, not unlike a gang of anarchists, weapon-obsessed,
looters who caused deaths, havoc, fear and panic in the population
on a regular basis for over a year until their capture, in a
blatant, crude fashion, involving stick-ups in financial
institutions, and such.

The acting is charismatic, credible, focused laser-like over the
duration of the picture.

Perhaps more could have been done in the humor department, by the
lead actor, who shows the lead detective as psychotic in his
obsession to solve the case, and a workaholic to the point of
sleeping at his desk, at work, 24/7.

The tensions, over procedures, and hierarchy, always present in the
military, and in public service, is also highlighted, and realistic,
considering that in the legal arena, common-sense and practicality
often loses to procedures, protocols, administrative requirements so
that things are done by the book.

Also, more could have been done, in the Italian aspects of the
movie, rather than limiting the filming to a very few city spots in
Italy and a few it the countryside, and almost no cultural aspects.

A final shortcoming, is that no consequences are explained to the
viewers, on how the justice system dealt with the violence and
horrors perpetrated by these 5 gang members, all police officers who
were bored of their daily routines and desk jobs.

Drab, dry and very dorky much if one were to cross an 80's Wham video with Miami Vice. The character profiles were as unstitched and broken as a sheet of glass after a hurricane. Little time was spent building characters we could empathize with or relate to, hence i wasn't drawn in even a little bit. The action effects were in a low budget area of their own, especially the boat blow up scene. A film need not have hi-budget fx to justify itself, just deliberate, careful attempts that allows us to suspend our belief. Cemetery Man was the reason i gave this offering a shot in the first place, which i thought to be brilliant Italo-horror along the lines of Dario Argento's Demons. This, however was a genre which the director should never have wandered into, everything felt artificial and scripted. I have a suspicion that its received points purely on its foreign charm, only i would argue there is no foreign charm, just foreign. That alone does not justify elevating the loose ended story, off pacing, terrible subtitles, mediocre acting, bland lighting and lack of mood of any kind. Its been almost a year since i rented this through Netflix, and all i can remember is what was unmemorable. STAY AWAY, go for Cemetery Man.