Sunday, January 10, 2010

CARAMBOLA

Carambola – Italian title
Carambola – Brazilian title
Mon nom est Trinita – Belgium title
Caramba-veljekset – Finnish title
Si ce n’est toi…c’est donc ton frere – French title
Vier Fäuste schlagen wieder zu – German title
Nos llaman Carambola – Spanish title
Carambola! – Slår alltid först – Swedish title
Karambol – Turkish title
Strange Adventures of Coby and Ben – English title
Carambola – English title

A 1973 Italian Production [B.R.C., Aetos (Rome)]
Producer: Manolo Bolognini
Director: Ferdinando Baldi
Story: Nico Ducci, Mino Roli
Screenplay: Ferdinando Baldi, Nico Ducci, Mino Roli
Cinematography: Aiace Parolin [Eastmancolor, CinemaScope]
Music: Franco Bixio, Fabio Frizzi, Vince Tempera (Vincenzo Tempera)
Songs: “You Can Fly”, “Milk Serenade” sung by Dream Bags
Running time: 100 minutes

Cast:
Coby/Toby/Trinity - Michael Coby (Antonio Cantafora)
Clem/Ben/Lynn/Butch/Len Rothman - Paul Smith (Anan Edel)
Kelly - William Bogart (Guglielmo Spoletini)
Captain Howard - Luciano Catenacci
Lieutenant Stevens - Remo De Angelis
Clydeson - Horst Frank
sheriff - Pino Ferrara
Professor Max Lager - Franco Fantasia (Francisco Fantasia)
Mexican revolutionary - Pedro Sanchez (Ignacio Spalla)
Roger - Pietro Ceccarelli
Clydeson henchmen - Nello Pazzafini (Giovanni Pazzafini), Elio Bonadonna, Artemio Antonini, Enrico Chiappafreddo, Roberto Dell Acqua, Wladimiro Daddi
Howard's assistant - Pietro Torrisi, Gianlorenzo Bernini, Fred Robsahm
bartender - Benjamin Lev
tug-of-war brawler - Moises Rocha
Pamela - Melissa Chimenti (Anna Napolitano)
Coby's/Toby's/Trinity's billiard opponents - Gaetano Russo
billiard bookmaker - Mike Morris (Amedeo Trilli)
billiard spectator - Angelo Boscariol
travellers on the road - Claudio Ruffini, Angelo Susani
with; Luigi Antonio Guerra, Glauco Onorato


Director Ferdinando decided to cash in on the success of the Trinity films and cast his own set of Terence Hill & Bud Spencer look-alikes with Michael Coby (Antonio Cantafora) and Paul Smith.

In Carambola, Coby is an ex-soldier and billiard champion. He and his friend Len Rothman accept the sum of $50,000 dollars to investigate the trafficking of arms across the Mexican border. However, the film takes a twist when the pair come across a new, revolutionary revolver. This film was followed by a sequel “The Crazy Adventures of Len and Coby”. After Bud Spencer turned down the role of Bluto in Robin Williams 1980 movie “Popeye” Paul Smith was offered and accepted the rôle.

3 comments:

  1. Paul Smith is always good for a laugh! There's a Smith and Coby adventure in the SPAGHETTI WESTERN BIBLE Vol. I: DIAMOND PEDDLERS. Haven't seen it yet.

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  2. Smith and Coby are nothing but copies if you know the business. No wonder that Bud Spencer(Carlo Pedersoli) declined the role of Bluto in the flop Popeye. In the first place he never saw himself as an actor, and he most certainly earned way more money as a co star in the movies with Terence Hill. All of their movies from the late 60s to mid 80s made a lot of money. They never hit the big market in the US, but their ticketsales in Germany and Italy and many other countries in Europe were massive. Their movies have gathered more than 100 million germans alone to the theatres. I know cause i lived in Germany those days.

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